Science’s Next Frontier? It’s Civic Engagement

By Louise Lief Every day, it seems, brings more dispiriting news to the science world. The head of the Environmental Protection Agency is removing research scientists from the agency’s advisory boards and has forbidden some of them from speaking at conferences. The Government Accounting Office is investigating reports that the current administration is violating scientific integrity policies at federal agencies. The Trump administration has proposed deep budget cuts at scientific agencies. But scientists’ problems run deeper. According to a number of recent surveys, there has been a rapid decline in knowledge about and sympathy for scientists and the institutions where many of them work, particularly among Republican and Republican-leaning voters. Politicians from the same party who now govern in over 32 states, the White House, and Congress are aware of these sentiments. A June 2017 survey by the Pew Research Center found 58 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning voters felt colleges and universities are having a negative impact on the country, a 13 point increase since its September 2016 survey.