{"id":19409,"date":"2023-05-04T20:12:15","date_gmt":"2023-05-04T20:12:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/?p=19409"},"modified":"2023-05-04T20:12:15","modified_gmt":"2023-05-04T20:12:15","slug":"esa-policy-news-may-4-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/2023\/05\/04\/esa-policy-news-may-4-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"ESA Policy News: May 4, 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this issue:<\/strong><\/h2>\n

ESA Graduate Student Policy Award Recipients Visit Capitol Hill<\/a><\/strong>
\nFifteen ESA members and graduate students visit Congressional offices for the first in-person Graduate Student Policy Award event since 2019.<\/p>\n

ESA & ESAL Webinar \u201cProtecting Waterways for Healthy Communities and Ecosystems\u201d \u2013 Monday, May 8 at 2:00 pm<\/strong><\/a>
\nJoin ESAL and ESA to learn how science and policy intersect to protect waterways, hear from local advocates for ecologically sound practices, and discuss the potential impact of an ongoing Supreme Court Case.<\/p>\n

Congress
\n<\/strong><\/a>Bipartisan members of Congress introduce legislation to address harassment in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.<\/p>\n

Executive\u00a0Branch<\/strong><\/a>
\nPresident Biden signed environmental justice Executive Order.<\/p>\n

Courts
\n<\/strong><\/a>Climate lawsuit filed by Hawai\u2019i teens advances in state courts.<\/p>\n

States<\/strong><\/a>
\nState legislatures consider bans on diversity, equity and inclusion programs at colleges.<\/p>\n

International<\/strong><\/a>
\nIPBES launches call for Indigenous and local knowledge.<\/p>\n

Scientific Community
\n<\/strong><\/a>National Academies to hold webinar series titled \u201cPaving the Way for Continental Scale Biology: Connecting Research Across Scales\u201d starting April 24-25.<\/p>\n

Federal Register<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

ESA Graduate Student Policy Award Recipients Visit Capitol Hill<\/h2>\n

The 2023 Graduate Student Policy Award (GSPA) Cohort of 15 students flew in from around the country to learn about science policy and meet with lawmakers. Students met with 30 Congressional offices April 25 in Washington, DC. Students asked for increased funding for the National Science Foundation, shared the importance of NSF funding to their own careers and the value of their own research. The visits came as Congressional appropriations committees are starting work on the FY 2024 budget.<\/p>\n

Despite talks of potential cuts in the House Republicans\u2019 debt ceiling proposals, ESA members found almost universal support for science funding across the ideological spectrum. This was the first in-person Graduate Student Policy Award event in-person since 2019 and the first GSPA Hill visits since Congress passed the Chips and Science Act with bipartisan support in fall 2022.<\/p>\n

Before the Hill visits, students received policy and communications training and developed messages about the value of ecological research with each other and ESA staff. The group also met with US Global Change Research Program Director\u00a0Michael Kuperberg and newly appointed National Nature Assessment Director Phil Levin. Kuperberg and Levin discussed the National Nature Assessment, the National Climate Assessment and opportunities for ecologists to get involved in both assessment and their own careers at the science-policy interface.<\/p>\n

Charlotte Levy (Carbon180), Cleo Chou (USAID), Brittany Marsten (NOAA), Amina Pollard (EPA), Karen Lips (NSF) and Rich Pouyat (US Forest Service emeritus) joined the GSPA cohort in the ESA office to discuss their careers as ecologists working in science and policy. Levy, Chou and Marsten all are GSPA alumni.<\/p>\n

ESA selected 15 students to receive the award, the largest in-person cohort so far:\u00a0Alicia L. Arrington-Thomas\u00a0<\/strong>(University of Mississippi),\u00a0Tira L. Beckham<\/strong>\u00a0(North Carolina State University),\u00a0Jonathan Behrens<\/strong>\u00a0(Duke University),\u00a0Elijah Catalan<\/strong>\u00a0(University of California, Los Angeles),\u00a0Scott M. Carpenter\u00a0<\/strong>(Yale University),\u00a0Chloe Y. Cho\u00a0<\/strong>(Cornell University),\u00a0Gina L. Errico\u00a0<\/strong>(Oklahoma State University),\u00a0Vanessa M. Lau<\/strong>\u00a0(Columbia University),\u00a0Shalimar G. Moreno\u00a0<\/strong>(East Carolina University),\u00a0Maria H. Park\u00a0<\/strong>(University of Minnesota),\u00a0Brandon A. Quintana\u00a0<\/strong>(California State University, Fullerton),\u00a0Sarah E. Rothman\u00a0<\/strong>(University of Maryland),\u00a0Veronica Manka\u2019a Tangiri\u00a0<\/strong>(Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District, Lund University),\u00a0Aubrey Tingler\u00a0<\/strong>(University of Maryland) and\u00a0Tatjana Washington<\/strong>\u00a0(University of Chicago).<\/p>\n

See an album of the GSPA event here.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a>ESA & ESAL Webinar \u201cProtecting Waterways for Healthy Communities and Ecosystems\u201d \u2013 Monday, May 8 at 2:00 pm<\/h2>\n

Monday May 8
\n2:00 \u2013 3:00 pm ET
\nRSVP here<\/a>\u00a0to receive instructions to join<\/p>\n

Join\u00a0Engineers &\u00a0Scientists\u00a0Acting Locally<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Ecological Society of America<\/a>\u00a0to learn how science and policy intersect\u00a0to protect waterways, hear from local advocates for ecologically sound practices, and discuss\u00a0the potential impact of an ongoing Supreme Court Case.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rain fills our rivers, lakes, and reservoirs, but how does it get there? Wetlands are vital to managing how water flows after storm events to protect human environments from floods and natural environments from soil erosion and habitat destruction. Sound ecological science data clearly shows the vital role of wetlands for nature and to also protect human health and property. Planning requires the expertise of ecologists, landscape architects, environmental planners, and environmental engineers, and can be incentivized by local regulations.<\/p>\n

State and local waterway protections benefit communities by improving flood control, replenishing groundwater reserves, protecting biodiverse habitats, and supporting the maintenance of thriving outdoor spaces that everyone can enjoy. The Clean Water Act is a federal law that gives authority to states to protect the nation\u2019s waters. An ongoing Supreme Court case (Sackett vs. EPA) has the potential to shape the scope of this law. In this panel, co-hosted by Engineers and Scientists Acting Locally and the Ecological Society of America, we will hear from legal experts and implementers who will discuss the role of policy, both federal and local, in effective\u00a0ecosystem management.<\/p>\n

Confirmed panelists:<\/p>\n

Erika Harris-<\/strong>\u00a0Senior Planner, Puget Sound Regional Council
\nRoyal C. Gardner, JD<\/strong>\u2013 Professor of Law and Co-Director, Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy, Stetson University College of Law.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Congress<\/h2>\n

Legislative updates:<\/u><\/p>\n