Society and community updates Winter 2025

Council Elections 2026  

The election ballot (held 2-31 March) determines the candidate for Treasurer Elect for the formal vote at the Annual General Meeting on 17 June 2026. All Fellows will receive a communication in March with instructions on how to vote online. Fellows who have not provided an email address will receive a postal ballot pack.  

If you have not received voting instructions via email or post by 7 March or have any issues casting your vote, please contact secretary@geolsoc.org.uk 

Final call for Treasurer Elect 

Would you like to help deliver the Society’s purpose, vision, mission and values as a Trustee of the Society? We seek a Treasurer Elect to attend Council and the Finance and Planning Committee as an observer for twelve months from June 2026, and to then become Treasurer in June 2027. The Treasurer is responsible for leading the financial governance of the Society, including chairing the Finance and Planning Committee. 

Click here for guidance on the role and time commitment involved, as well as the nomination forms. The closing date for submissions is 23:59 on Monday 13 January 2026.

Research Grants 

Applications are open for the Society’s 2026 research grants and the Research Grants Committee will convene in spring to review them. We welcome applications but please ensure they are fully completed on the appropriate form and accompanied by a supporting statement from a suitably qualified person familiar with the applicant’s work. 

Click here to read the application guidelines and requirements and download the forms. There is also information on the 15 grants awarded in 2025. You do not need to be a Fellow to apply for a grant but, if successful, you must be a Fellow at point of receipt of the grant. The deadline for applications is 23:59 on Monday 9 February 2026.

Special General Meeting approval of revised Royal Charter and Byelaws 

1,538 Fellows participated in the ballot held over the summer, with 98.46% voting in favour of both the revised Royal Charter and Byelaws. At the Special General Meeting held on 8 October, the Fellows in attendance fully endorsed the Fellowship’s decision for the Society to petition the Privy Council to adopt the revised Royal Charter and approved the revised Byelaws. A formal petition has now been made to the Privy Council to adopt the Royal Charter, and we will update the Fellowship in due course. 

Royal Commission for The Exhibition of 1851 

The President of the Society, Jon Gluyas, is an ex officio Commissioner of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851. Applications are open for their various awards, including Research Fellowships. More information can be found here.

Open House Festival 

Each year, London’s Open House Festival attracts around 250,000 visitors, offering a unique opportunity to marvel at the city’s architectural treasures. As part of this celebration, Burlington House welcomed more than 1,000 visitors on 20 September, joining our neighbours — the Linnean Society and the Royal Astronomical Society — in creating a lively and engaging atmosphere, giving the whole courtyard a buzz. 

Eleven Society staff members and volunteers contributed their time to welcome guests and help them make the most of their visit. Amongst them, Archivist Caroline Lam produced a “Geology of Burlington House” spotters’ guide; Director of Science and Engagement Dr Natasha Stephen curated a new display of meteorite fragments; and Dr Lucía Pérez-Díaz led a series of four children’s workshops in the Gertrude Elles Room. We were also joined by our colleagues from the children’s geology club Rockwatch (part of the Geologists’ Association), who were stationed in the Lower Library and busy with hands-on activities throughout the day. 

Feedback from visitors was overwhelmingly positive — the building was filled with smiling faces of all ages, and many guests left with Society merchandise in hand to commemorate their visit. 

Antony Loveland

Head of Library and Information Services 

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