Tethys Geoscience Foundation at CIROH DevCon 2025

The scenic shores of Lake Champlain provided the backdrop for collaboration as the Tethys Geoscience Foundation participated in CIROH‘s 3rd annual Developers Conference in Burlington, Vermont, from May 28–30, 2025. Hosted by the Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology (CIROH) at The University of Vermont, this gathering brought together hydrological researchers, developers, and practitioners to advance the frontiers of water science and forecasting technology.

A Gathering of Innovation

CIROH DevCon 2025 exemplified the power of bringing together diverse communities working on related challenges. The conference’s focus on hydrological forecasting, particularly for extreme events, created an environment where researchers, developers, and practitioners could share insights and explore new approaches to pressing water-related challenges.

The conference’s training tracks—Machine Learning, NextGen, Flood Inundation Mapping, Hydroinformatics, and Social Science—demonstrated the interdisciplinary nature of modern hydrology. Participants had opportunities to engage with the CIROH community, learn about recent research and development activities, and gain hands-on experience with emerging models, tools, and services.

For the Tethys Geoscience Foundation, participating in this conference reinforced the importance of cross-community collaboration in addressing complex environmental challenges. The energy and enthusiasm of attendees highlighted how much can be accomplished when researchers and practitioners come together to share knowledge and explore new possibilities.

The Value of Community

What struck us most about CIROH DevCon 2025 was the collaborative spirit that was showcased in every session and conversation. Participants freely shared insights, challenges, and potential solutions, creating an atmosphere of mutual support and shared purpose. This kind of open collaboration drives innovation and ensures that scientific advances can have meaningful impact.

The conference demonstrated how much stronger we become when different communities work together. Hydrologists, software developers, social scientists, and practitioners each brought unique perspectives that enriched the discussions and pointed toward new possibilities for addressing water-related challenges.

We’re grateful to CIROH and The University of Vermont for creating such a welcoming and productive environment. The connections formed and insights shared during these three days will undoubtedly contribute to advancing the field of operational hydrology.

Continuing the Conversation

The collaborative energy we experienced at CIROH DevCon 2025 reinforces our commitment to building bridges between communities working on environmental challenges. This spirit of collaboration drives our upcoming Tethys Summit, taking place July 14–15, 2025, at The Westshore Grand in Tampa, Florida.

Tethys Summit will bring together the dynamic, open-source communities behind Tethys Platform and GEOGLOWS for a focused two-day event dedicated to advancing accessible Earth science solutions. Whether you’re developing hydrological models, creating environmental applications, or working to make scientific insights more accessible to communities, this gathering offers opportunities to connect, learn, and collaborate with leaders in open-source Earth science technology.

The summit will feature technical talks from core developers, hands-on workshops covering application development and data integration, and networking opportunities with an international, multidisciplinary community. We’ll also host the Tethys Platform App Development Contest, showcasing innovative applications that address real-world geoscience challenges.

To encourage attendance, our Travel Grant Program provides support for transportation, lodging, and registration fees. Applications are open from March 31 through May 18, 2025, with funding provided by the National Science Foundation under POSE Phase II award #2303756.

The conference will welcome participants from across the Earth science community, including software developers and data scientists, environmental scientists and modelers, educators and students, and policy advisors and NGOs. You don’t need to be a developer to participate, Tethys Summit is for anyone passionate about building and applying open tools to understand our planet.

Join Us in Tampa

The collaborative spirit we experienced at CIROH DevCon 2025 exemplifies what makes scientific communities thrive. As we look toward Tethys Summit 2025, we’re excited to continue these important conversations and build new connections that advance our collective ability to address environmental challenges.

We invite you to be part of this continuing dialogue at Tethys Summit 2025, where we’ll work together to advance the tools and approaches that help communities understand and protect our planet’s resources. Registration is now open, and we look forward to welcoming you to Tampa for what promises to be an inspiring and productive gathering.

Together, we can build a more connected and collaborative community dedicated to creating accessible, impactful Earth science solutions for communities worldwide.