RISK newsletter:
SRA Chapter Organizing in Chicago Area

Source: The Society for Risk Analysis' RISK newsletter, Second Quarter 1995

A new Society for Risk Analysis chapter, the Chicago Regional Chapter, received official recognition at the SRA Council meeting on March 26, 1995. It is the first SRA chapter to organize since 1991, bringing the total number to 15.

The new chapter's petition for recognition contained around 30 signatures, primarily from SRA members who work at Argonne National Laboratory. A number of risk analysis professionals in the Chicago area, including staff at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region V, have expressed interest in the chapter. The chapter's leading organizers, SRA charter members Thomas D. Wolsko and Loren J. Habegger, both of Argonne, are serving as the interim chapter president and secretary, respectively.

The chapter petitioners anticipate that the local chapter will provide a professional focus for risk activities in the Chicago area. "A large number of people are engaged in risk activities in the Chicago area," said Wolsko. "Therefore, we expect there is an interest in a professional forum now because it is directly related to their work." Pending risk legislation should provide an additional incentive for risk professionals from both the government and private sectors to join a professional forum that discusses risk issues.

The chapter's initial interests are broadly based, ranging from highly technical subjects such as probabilistic risk assessment to policy/risk management issues such as perceived risk and risk communication, Wolsko said.

For more information about the chapter, contact Wolsko at Argonne National Laboratory, Decision and Information Sciences Division, 9700 S. Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439, telephone (708) 252-3733, fax (708) 252-6073, e-mail tdwolsko@anl.gov.

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