Co-Chairs NOGS

s the NOGS co-chairs, we were excited to see so many new students attending the BSG conference this year. There were also several people from previous years who attended and it was great to catch up with them. To make NOGS more visible at Sheffield, we increased student activities and brought students together in various ways. This included the lunch for new members and students during which we tried to identify students and welcome them to the conference. If you were at the lunch and we did not manage to speak with you, we apologize and hope to see you next year. Our Sheffield hosts also kindly provided us with a stand in the exhibition hall allowing us the opportunity to display information about NOGS and the student events at the conference.

Our annual meeting was held at lunch time on the Friday. Twenty students attended to learn about current NOGS activities. After a quick introduction of all of the attendees, discussions led to a very productive meeting. Attendees offered several suggestions on ways the organization could be improved and become more beneficial to students. In addition, possible locations and topics for the next NOGS event were discussed but not finalized. NOGS would welcome any offers from institutions willing to host next year’s event. Students also talked about ways to increase the number of student attendees at future BSG conferences and we hope some of the suggestions made can be put into action to increase student attendance at Bristol.

This year, Karen served on the Sheffield conference planning committee. The experience of having a student representative on the conference planning committee was found to be very beneficial. The representative not only gains the chance to learn about conference planning but also to increase the student profile at the conference and make sure that the programme includes specific student events. Therefore, at the student meeting we worked to identify students who will help with next year's BSG conference. Rhonda Knight and Elaine Chamberlain from the University of the West of England will be taking on this role.

Finally, we are very excited to announce the new NOGS chair, Ian Sidney, a PhD student from Keele University. As he makes the transition into his new position, we will be available to provide support and assist in the organization of next year’s NOGS event. We know that he will be very successful during his tenure. Welcome Ian and good luck in your new role!

We have greatly enjoyed working with students, BSG members and the Executive Committee during our period as co-chairs of NOGS. The Executive Committee (both past and current members) has been most helpful and supportive of all our efforts. We have learned a great deal from the members and hope that we will be able to pass on that knowledge to Ian and other students. Many thanks to all!