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Those of you who know me well also know of my passion for observing the far reaches of the universe with any one of my “family” of telescopes. I acquired my first telescope in 1962, and amateur astronomy has been an incredibly rewarding and sustaining hobby since. Many have asked why, being technically oriented, I did not go into the field of astronomy as a profession. Frankly, the physics and math demanded by the discipline scared me when I was in my formative years. Working as a brewing chemist, although not any less technically demanding, eventually brought its own rewards and now I can enjoy both worlds.

One particular aspect of observing the universe with a telescope still amazes me—that with a relatively modest scope, one can look hundreds of millions of years into the past, at galaxies so distant that their light has taken that long to reach our inquisitive eyes. In many cases, the images I observe through my telescopes are snapshots taken many eons ago. So in a way, a telescope is a time machine, a time machine that can look into the past anywhere from nanoseconds to millions and even billions of years.

Of course, we are limited to looking only into the past. But, in planning for the coming years for ASBC, let’s pretend we had a special telescope, a scope that could instead look into the future. Where would we look and what would we see? What will be our brewing world in the next few years, in the coming decade, and in the decades beyond? The incredible changes that are currently in our midst make contemplating the future a daunting thought. With brewery consolidations and the changes in cultures, practices, and attitudes in the industry, it feels like we are on a rollercoaster ride wearing blindfolds, not knowing where we will be turning next, or even whether we can keep from getting thrown from the ride. As brewing technologists, in what direction should we be looking through our imaginary telescope—and how far? And how should we respond to what we see?

This is the difficulty that ASBC faces in strategically planning for our future and deciding what will allow us to succeed and to continue as a valuable service to our members. For the leaders of the Society, there is a wide-open universe of uncertainty to contemplate, and we often wish we had our special telescope to help guide us on the way. Nonetheless, we still need to look. Not having the benefit of our imaginary telescope, we must rely on our own imaginations, using the information we have at hand. The key in determining the proper direction and achieving value from our efforts is collecting and utilizing input from a number of resources. Strategic planning has become a critical function of the ASBC Board of Directors, looking both short-term and long-term. We have developed the Emerging Issues Committee, which keeps its eyes open to the world for issues and developments that can potentially influence our industries and professions and which helps determine where we should focus our efforts. It is important that ASBC continually keep a finger on the pulse of the industry and that we utilize the various methods available to keep the information flowing in both directions to and from our members, whether it be through the use of electronic correspondence offered through our website and targeted E-mail, or from personal contact, either from casual interaction or through formalized means such as the upcoming Hot Topics Forum scheduled for this year’s annual meeting in Savannah.

But, as always, we need help from our members. Astronomers have found that the best results come not from just one telescope, no matter how large its design, but from coordinating the efforts and compiling the data from a vast array of smaller scopes scanning the sky, providing a much greater field of view with improved resolution and clarity. As insightful as we on the ASBC Board of Directors may think we are, we are limited in our scope (please pardon the pun). It is our vast number and wide array of members that can give us the best guidance on where to focus our efforts and what services we can provide. As we approach you for information by electronic means or personally, please respond generously with your ideas and opinions and strive to be actively involved in the Society. With our collective observation skills, we can all contribute to the success of the ASBC, but we must be on guard not to focus too closely and intently in any one direction with our special imaginary telescope, at the risk of missing all else that may be lighting up the sky. So, although we should closely study and deal with the urgent issues affecting our brewing world and technology, we must not forget to sit back from the eyepiece on occasion and gaze at our universe with a wider perspective, to better recognize what is needed in planning the future, function, and viability of the ASBC.

During the upcoming annual meeting in Savannah, I will probably have one of my trusty scopes with me for some casual exploration. Nothing of supreme significance will be occurring in the sky during that week (some of you may remember the partial solar eclipse at our annual meeting a few years back), but I always enjoy taking some time to look at the night sky and share my enthusiasm with others. Please join me if you have the chance. See you in Savannah in June.

Tim Kostelecky
President

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