Recent Accomplishments

Working to increase federal research funding for the biological sciences, supporting the development and maintenance of natural science collections and national biological research infrastructure, encouraging scientific integrity across the government, and addressing legislation that would significantly affect the ability of scientific society publications to keep the presses rolling — these are a subset of the issues AIBS Public Policy Office staff work on each day. The following illustrate some of our recent accomplishments:

• Secured the inclusion of key provisions in the Department of the Interior's Scientific Integrity Policy.


• Organized three congressional science briefings in 2011 that provided congressional staff and agency personnel with current scientific information about Gulf of Mexico ecosystems, economic benefits of ecosystem services, and pressing scientific priorities for natural resources and conservation decision-makers.


• Enabled thousands of scientists to communicate the importance of federal investments in scientific research and education to federal lawmakers.


• Provided an opportunity for nearly 3,000 students to urge their lawmakers to support scientific research and education.


• Testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Environment about the need for increased funding for the United States Geological Survey.


• Provided communications and policy training to scientists and students.


• Established the annual Biological Sciences Congressional District Visits initiative, a national event that enables scientists to meet with lawmakers.


• Helped the Natural Science Collections Alliance develop and implement a national advocacy campaign that has increased the profile of natural science collections among federal policymakers.


• Published Communicating Science: A Primer for Working with the Media, a book that contains practical tips and techniques for successful media outreach by scientists.


• Increased awareness for USGS science programs.


• Successfully promoted evolution education in the K-12 curricula.


• Provided lawmakers with timely information about the state of climate change science.


• Contributed to efforts to defend the integrity of peer-review and to prevent political forces from defunding specific branches of science and lines of inquiry.


• Provided timely and accurate policy news and analysis to thousands of scientists and decision-makers via the AIBS Public Policy Report and the Washington Watch column in BioScience.

Support the AIBS Public Policy Office so that, working together and speaking with one voice, we can more effectively promote the biological sciences.