Scientific and Engineering Society Advocacy Initiatives
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Disciplinary societies not only represent the interests of individual members; they also have a broader role in promoting the advancement of science and its applications in service of society. Historically, these societies have acted as the custodian of the core values, accepted practices, and traditions of their disciplines. Societies are also an important source of professional norms, helping members navigate their interaction with each other and with society.
In the context of advocacy, the societies can eschew it entirely; they can advocate as an organization; and/or they can promote and facilitate advocacy among their members by providing practical and normative guidance. They may view themselves as objective sources of technical expertise to those who call on them, as well as “guardians” of the proper use of knowledge by society. They may be aggressive proponents of using science in societal decision-making, and be highly visible players in major policy debates. What they do, how, and why are undoubtedly the result of many factors.
For our work, we wanted to know what societies based in the U.S. were doing with regard to advocacy. Our preliminary research turned up a range of activities, or “initiatives,” from information about how to contact elected officials, to detailed talking points about research funding. Table 1 presents a short description of the advocacy initiatives of each society listed, while Table 2 presents web links to each society’s homepage and their advocacy initiatives. The lists are neither representative of the larger set of science and engineering societies in the U.S., nor comprehensive in describing their advocacy initiatives. Within the constraints of time and resources, we offer the lists simply as examples, without further generalization.
Table 1: List of Scientific Societies and their Advocacy Initiatives
NAME | ADVOCACY INITIATIVES | MISSION |
American Anthropological Association (AAA) | Committee on Public Policy |
|
American Chemical Society (ACS) | Policy Division |
|
American Educational Research Association (AERA) | Educational Policy and Politics |
|
American Institute of Biology Sciences (AIBS) | Public Policy |
|
American Meteorological Society (AMS) | Policy Program |
|
American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) | Public Policy Committee |
|
American Society for Microbiology (ASM) | Public and Scientific Policy |
|
American Physical Society (APS) | Policy and Advocacy |
|
American Physiological Society | Policy Action Center |
|
American Psychological Association (APA) | Science Policy Office |
|
American Sociological Association (ASA) | Public Affairs |
|
American Statistical Association (ASA) | Science Policy Programs |
|
Association of American Geographers (AAG) | Government Relations |
|
Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) | Advocacy Division |
|
Ecological Society of America (ESA) | Public Affairs Office |
|
Federation of American Scientists (FAS) | Policy Action Center |
|
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) | Policy and Government Affairs |
|
Federation of Associations in Behavioral and Brain Sciences (FABBS) | Advocacy Division |
|
Genetics Society of America (GSA) | Public Policy |
|
National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) | Issues and Advocacy |
|
Society for Conservation Biology (SCB) | Policy Committee |
|
Society for Neuroscience (SFN) | Education and Advocacy |
|
Table 2: Links to Scientific Societies and their Advocacy Initiatives