AGI Foundation Announces New Executive Director Mr. William N. Barkhouse

Alexandria, VA — The American Geological Institute Foundation announces Mr. William N. Barkhouse as its new Executive Director.

Mr. Barkhouse has been a longtime supporter of AGI and its Foundation, having served as a trustee of the Foundation. He has also served as Secretary of the AGI Executive Committee (2008-2010), as well as serving in leadership and foundation roles for several of AGI’s Member Societies. Currently he is serving as a Foundation Director at the Environmental and Engineering Geophysical Society and Vice Chair of the Association for Women Geoscientists Foundation. He has also served as Chairman of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) Foundation (2010-2011), Vice Chair of the SEG Foundation (2008-2010) where he coordinated SEG Foundation’s successful $17 million fundraising campaign.

Not only does he have a strong background in society and foundation leadership, but he also has a long career within the energy resource business approaching 40 years, first in mining and then petroleum with Mobil and ExxonMobil (35 years), retiring as a senior executive in 2006. He has been a successful business and geoscience consultant since 2006.

Mr. Barkhouse brings his skills developed during a long career in the energy resource industry and his knowledge of foundation leadership to the AGI Foundation. He hopes “to raise major financial gifts for the new AGI Center for Geoscience Understanding that will emphasize AGI’s unique geoscience education initiatives and critical issues forums while fully recognizing AGI as the ‘Unified Voice for the Geosciences’” during his time as AGI Foundation Executive Director.

Mr. Barkhouse is stepping into a role that has been ably filled for the past 17 years by Dr. Jan F. van Sant who will continue as an Associate Director of the AGI Foundation.