FEWS NET Annual Team Meeting Fiscal Year 2020

The meeting aimed to provide a platform for collaboration and knowledge sharing among the team members. The meeting began with welcoming remarks by Patrice Lee, Contract Officer, and Brian Bacon, Division Chief, Technical, Learning and Planning Division of Office of Food for Peace. Bacon noted that this was the 35th year of Famine Early Warning under the FEWS NET banner, and expressed gratitude to all team members for their dedication, particularly in the context of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Bacon acknowledged the team's efforts in addressing the immediate and anticipated impacts of the pandemic on food security. The meeting continued with introductions by Jim Verdin, FEWS NET IDIQ Contract Officer's Representative, who asked all participants to introduce themselves. A complete list of names and associations of participants can be found in Annex I. The meeting then moved on to a summary recap of awards to date, which highlighted the progress made by the team in various areas. This was followed by remarks on the Pillar 1 Early Warning Task Order, delivered by S. Wilson, who provided an overview of the task order and its objectives. The Pillar 1 Early Warning activities were highlighted by L. Glaeser, who presented the key achievements and challenges faced by the team. The presentation covered the implementation of early warning systems, data collection and analysis, and the dissemination of information to stakeholders. The meeting also featured remarks on the Pillar 2 Hub Task Order by R. Williams, who discussed the objectives and progress of the task order. The highlights of Pillar 2 TO activities were presented by F. Riely, who covered the key achievements and challenges faced by the team. In addition to the Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 activities, the meeting also featured presentations on the Science Team activities, USGS activities, UCSB activities, NOAA/CPC activities, NOAA/PSD activities, NASA activities, and USDA activities. Each presentation provided an overview of the key achievements and challenges faced by the respective teams. The meeting concluded with open discussion and Q&A session, where team members had the opportunity to ask questions and share their thoughts on the various topics discussed. The meeting also included a review of post-meeting actions, which outlined the key decisions and follow-up actions agreed upon by the team.