ACS Joins Coalition in Making FY23 Recommendations to Administration
November 5, 2021
Ms. Shalanda D. Young
Acting Director
Office of Management and Budget
Dr. Eric S. Lander
Director
Office of Science and Technology Policy
Dear Ms. Young and Dr. Lander,
The Coalition for National Science Funding (CNSF) appreciates the opportunity to submit policy recommendations in response to the Biden Administration’s FY 2023 multi-agency R&D priorities to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).
CNSF is an alliance of more than 130 professional organizations, scientific societies, universities, and businesses united in our advocacy for the National Science Foundation (NSF). CNSF supports the goal of increasing the national investment in NSF’s research and educational programs in response to the scientific, technological, and economic challenges facing the United States. NSF plays a critical role in advancing our nation’s competitiveness and addressing research and education challenges related to many Biden Administration priorities. We hope that you will use the FY 2023 budget request to propose growth to NSF that enables progress on these priorities, as well as steady expansion to the agency’s core activities that form the backbone of the U.S. science and technology innovation ecosystem.
Pandemic readiness and prevention
The COVID-19 pandemic has touched every sector of the economy and requires research across disciplines to tackle the numerous societal, medical, public health, forecasting, logistics, education, and manufacturing challenges facing our nation. NSF funding has helped to advance the development of early warning systems, diagnostics, tools for virtual learning, and public health innovations. In addition, NSF has addressed the challenges facing the academic and research communities that have been disrupted through the pandemic, supporting the next generation of scientists and engineers. Now is the time to set a trajectory that will put the nation back on a path that ensures not only economic recovery from the pandemic, but also builds a capable workforce, and develops the science and technologies necessary to best prepare our nation for future pandemics and other natural disasters. NSF is leading the way through programs such as Predictive Intelligence for Pandemic Prevention. NSF’s sustained funding for pandemic preparedness will ensure that we continue to bring engineering, social, behavioral, ecological, computing, and other approaches to this enormous challenge. NSF should also continue to rebuild the research enterprise for recovery from pandemic-related losses, especially focusing on those most at risk in the scientific community and our next generation of scientists.
Tackling climate change and spurring energy innovation
Climate change is one of the most challenging and complex issues facing our nation and the world, requiring deep understanding of multifaceted and interdependent biological, geological, social, and behavioral systems, equity, and urgent technological innovation to enhance our resilience. NSF has been instrumental across these fields, advancing our foundational understanding of climate change, challenges facing specific regions and communities such as the Arctic and coasts, training the climate and energy workforce of the future, and developing innovations in environmental engineering, energy, and resilience. There is enormous opportunity for NSF to grow its convergent research, innovation, and partnership activities to address climate change. The Administration should enable NSF to play a key role in national climate and energy initiatives. Additional funding for NSF is necessary to truly meet the challenge ahead while at the same time ensuring that we do not jeopardize the foundational science and engineering ecosystem that will be critical for our future competitiveness and resilience.
Catalyze research and innovation in critical and emerging technologies
Funding for research and innovation in several areas, including artificial intelligence, quantum information science and high-performance computing, among others, is critical for maintaining our nation’s global competitiveness. NSF support is essential for expanding these technologies, for training a diverse workforce of future innovators, and for developing new research ideas. Fundamental research supported by the NSF often lays the groundwork for developing new technologies. CNSF encourages the Administration to support NSF-funded technological innovations that ensure our nation’s global competitiveness, in addition to fundamental research which drives our nation forward in science and technology.
STEM education, engagement, and innovation for equity
Equity and access to federal funding opportunities and programs are critical for our nation’s prosperity and can only be achieved through increasing capacity building and expanding participation in training programs. NSF supports implementing programs to promote excellence in STEM education at all levels and in all settings, as well as research aimed at developing and
identifying successful education and training models. These investments, in turn, help STEM educators reach the “missing millions” and support a diverse and well-prepared workforce. Talent development for those underserved and underrepresented in STEM through equitable education and training can greatly strengthen our nation’s workforce. CNSF encourages the Administration to invest in NSF-funded workforce, education, and education research activities, to develop a diverse and inclusive STEM workforce.
National security and economic resilience
Investments in research and technology underpin our resilience and national security. NSF partners with the Department of Defense in many areas to ensure that foundational advances in science and engineering address national security challenges, and to establish and maintain the development of a diverse future workforce that will underpin our economic competitiveness and national security enterprise. For example, NSF funds efforts to understand social and behavioral systems that improve decision making, training, and collaboration. NSF also supports research that enhances cybersecurity and protects against online threats that have been exacerbated during the pandemic. Research collaborations with international partners help maintain an open and engaging research environment and drive progress in science and technology. CNSF encourages the Administration to support NSF research and technological innovations, including social and behavioral research, to ensure our national security while maintaining a collaborative global research environment.
We look forward to working with you to support NSF funding in FY 2023. If CNSF can be a resource for you in this endeavor, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
The Coalition for National Science Funding
American Anthropological Association
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Association of Geographers
American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM)
American Association of Physics Teachers
American Astronomical Society
American Chemical Society
American Crystallographic Association
American Educational Research Association
American Geophysical Union
American Institute of Biological Sciences
American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
(AIMBE)
American Mathematical Society
American Physical Society
American Physiological Society
American Political Science Association
American Psychological Association
American Society of Agronomy
American Society of Civil Engineers
American Society for Engineering Education
American Society of Mechanical Engineers
American Society for Microbiology
American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
American Society of Plant Biologists
American Sociological Association
American Statistical Association
Arizona State University
Association for Psychological Science
Association for Women in Mathematics
Association of American Medical Colleges
Association of American Universities
Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC)
Atlanta University Center Consortium
Battelle
Biophysical Society
Boise State University
Boston University
Brandeis University
Brown University
Caltech
Cavarocchi Ruscio Dennis Associates
Coalition for Academic Scientific Computation
Columbia University
Computing Research Association
Consortium of Social Science Associations
Cornell University
Council of Graduate Schools
Council of Scientific Society Presidents
Council on Undergraduate Research
Crop Science Society of America
Dartmouth College
Duke University
Ecological Society of America
Entomological Society of America
Eversole Associates
Federal Science Partners
Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
Florida State University
Forge Policy Solutions
Geological Society of America
George Mason University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Harvard University
IEEE-USA
Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS)
Indiana University
Lehigh University
Lewis-Burke Associates LLC
Linguistic Society of America
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mathematical Association of America
Materials Research Society
Michigan State University
Michigan Technological University
Mineralogical Society of America
Museum of Science, Boston
National Association of Marine Laboratories
National Communication Association
National Postdoctoral Association
Natural Science Collections Alliance
New York University
Northeastern University Northern Illinois University
Optica (formerly OSA), Advancing Optics and Photonics Worldwide
Pennsylvania State University
Population Association of America
Princeton University
PsySiP: Psychology of Science in Policy
Research!America
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
SACNAS
SAGE Publishing
Saint Louis University
Silicon Valley Leadership Group
Society for American Archaeology
Society for Industrial and Applied
Mathematics
Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Society for Neuroscience
Society for Research in Child Development
Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI)
Soil Science Society of America
SPIE
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stony Brook University
The Bagley Group
Tufts University
UCLA
UNAVCO
University of California System
University of Cincinnati
University of Colorado Boulder
University of Florida
University of Illinois System
University of Iowa
University of Michigan
University of Notre Dame
University of Oklahoma
University of Oregon
University of Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh
University of Vermont
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin-Madison
US Ignite
Vanderbilt University
Virginia Commonwealth University
Washington State University
West Virginia University
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
Yale University