Community Voices

This post is part of the Early Career Scientist Policy Subcommittee’s series on science policy fellowships. You can also search for fellowship opportunities in the GSA Policy Fellowship Database. AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowships (STPF) give scientists and engineers the opportunity to apply their knowledge and analytical skills to the policymaking process. These US-based fellowships…

Guest post by Irini Topalidou. This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine honored the discovery of a major breakthrough in cancer treatment: immunotherapy. At a news conference after the announcement, one of the recipients, James P. Allison, stated: “The reason I’m really thrilled about this is I’m a basic scientist.” And he continued: “I…

This post is part of the Early Career Scientist Policy Subcommittee’s series on science policy fellowships. The Early Career Advocacy Fellowship (ECAF) is a two-year program to engage early career scientists (ECS) in advocacy activities while they continue their academic work. All members of the American Physiological Society who live in the US and are…

Join the Communication and Outreach Subcommittee of GSA’s Early Career Scientist Leadership and Professional Development Program. Are you a student or postdoc with a passion for science communication and outreach? Gain valuable experience, professional skills, portfolio pieces, and a vibrant network by applying for the Communication and Outreach Subcommittee, one of four subcommittees under the GSA’s…

Guest post by Andreas Prokop. This blog post was originally published as an article in Open Access Government (Prokop, 2018b) to advocate for the importance of Drosophila research. It follows up on a previous piece in the same journal advocating for developmental biology (Prokop, 2018a). These articles aim to showcase how policy and decision makers…

Guest post by Giovanna Collu Are you interested in applying for the AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowships (S&TPF)? Applications are now open and to help you prepare we have compiled some tips we learned from current and former fellows Cara Weismann, Maryam Zaringhalam, and Avital Percher. To learn more about the fellowship experience, read…

This post is part of the Early Career Scientist Policy Subcommittee’s series on science policy fellowships. Research!America sponsors a 3–6-month science policy fellowship for those with a PhD or other terminal degree. The Research!America alliance is made up of over 400 science organizations: from research institutions like Johns Hopkins to scientific societies like GSA to…

This post is part of the Early Career Scientist Policy Subcommittee’s series on science policy fellowships. The Science & Technology Policy Fellows Program of the California Council on Science & Technology (CCST) places ten PhD-level scientists in the California legislature for one-year appointments. Fellows work hands-on with policymakers addressing complex scientific and technical issues as…

The recipient of the 2018 Crow Award reveals details of flu evolution at the smallest —and largest—scales. For many viral diseases, a vaccine can provide lifelong protection. But for flu, you need a new shot every year. The influenza virus evolves so fast it presents a constantly moving target for both our immune systems and…

Guest post by members of the Early Career Scientist Policy Subcommittee Emily Lescak, Giovanna Collu, and Lacy Barton Recent high-profile cases of sexual misconduct in science have revealed a pervasive undercurrent of harassment in the STEM workplace. How should scientists, institutions, and funding agencies respond? Given the importance of this issue, we wanted to provide…

Turning vision into reality takes work—that much is obvious. But anyone who has written a proposal of any sort will realize that a coherent vision doesn’t appear out of thin air. It must be carefully crafted from an initial collection of goals, ideas, and ideals. This year, GSA’s staff, leadership, and membership are working hard…