Taking the Long View: A World Full of Critical Uncertainties

The 56th INMM Annual Meeting held in Indian Wells this year had a special tension in the air as participants anticipated a possible announcement about the Iranian nuclear deal, now officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).1 The deal, and whether it would be successfully culminated by one of the most intensive diplomatic negotiations in this generation, was a critical uncertainty the world was facing with respect to how a path to the future might play out, and was prominent in conversations during our meeting. On Tuesday morning, July 14, the news rippled through the meeting attendees like the wildfire in the San Jacinto Mountains that had threatened the Palm Springs area during our Annual Meeting in 2013. To have such an historic event occur during the INMM Annual Meeting made it a special time, with intense hallway discussions, information and idea sharing, and challenging questions for presenters during some of the technical presentations and panel sessions.