The Role of Science in the Current Federal Policy Landscape Workshop

From: Science, Technology & Engineering in Policy Program (STEP)

• Thursday, April 3 - 4-6 p.m. (including time for socializing)
• Corps Leadership and Military Science Building, room 170 and via Zoom
• All welcome - Please register in advance here

This workshop is an opportunity for members of the Virginia Tech community to discuss the implications of changes in the federal landscape on the roles of expertise in governance and explore how work at the science-policy interface might adapt to these new conditions. Informing decision-making with our scholarship is as important as ever, but changing conditions may necessitate new modus operandi.

After brief introductory remarks from K.L. Akerlof, associate professor in George Mason University’s Department of Environmental Science and Policy and lead of the Science Policy Programs initiative, the group will convene in small and large groups around three questions:

1. What are the implications of changes underway at the federal level on our scholarship and how it informs policymaking?
2. What are the appropriate roles of our scholarship and expertise vis-a-vis policy making in this environment?
3. What tools and infrastructure can help us to maximize our impacts?

There may be an opportunity for a report to come out of this session, but following Chatham House rules (i.e., no attribution of particular comments to individuals). Furthermore, the intention of this session is not to critique government efficiency or other changes being implemented; rather, it is to examine the implications of these changes and how our science-policy engagement might evolve, regardless of personal views on the changes themselves.

Light snacks and non-alcoholic beverages will be served.

This event is co-sponsored by the +Policy Network, the Urban & Environmental Policy & Planning Program, and the School of Public and International Affairs.