Comment: Encouraging an ACS policy ecosystem

ACS has a long history of engagement in public policy and working with policymakers. When US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the National Charter for the American Chemical Society in 1937, the US government charged the society to “encourage. . . the advancement of chemistry in all its branches, to promote research in chemical science and industry, . . . aid the development of our country’s industries, and add to the material prosperity and happiness of our people.”

To assist the society in carrying out its federal charter, the ACS Committee of Chemistry and Public Affairs (CCPA) helps identify and analyze legislative, regulatory, public funding, and other science policy issues that affect the chemical sciences. To that end, the committee is tasked with making recommendations on policy statements, facilitating communications between experts and the government on questions concerning chemical sciences and technologies, and encouraging ACS members to become involved in public policy.

But what is public policy? Put simply, it’s what the government chooses to do or not do to address social, economic, or environmental challenges. CCPA’s vision is “public policy informed by chemistry,” and the mission is to “catalyze ACS communities to improve public policy.” To this end, CCPA is working to strengthen the policy ecosystem within ACS to support the society’s ability to promote sound scientific principles and data to the federal government for its policy decisions. This ecosystem requires three pillars to be successful:
▸ official ACS policy positions
▸ training and advocacy tools to help ACS members engage with policymakers
▸ opportunities for ACS members to gain real-world experience working with policymakers. Underpinning all this is the need for ACS members to be aware of these efforts and an increased trust in science from policymakers and the average citizen.

ACS constantly monitors the congressional legislative agenda and appropriations, new regulations, and federal requests for public comment on issues that might affect chemists and the chemical sciences. ACS uses a set of policy statements as a basis for official ACS responses to these policy issues, which can be found at www.acs.org/policy. The ACS policy statements are board-approved, often have cross-cutting topics, and are written by teams of ACS members with staff support. To bolster the “health” of the ACS policy ecosystem, CCPA has worked to bring together these volunteers to increase opportunities for discussion, learning, and cross-committee cooperation.

Engagement with public officials requires a mixture of empathy, knowledge of how the government works, and a specific message with an “ask.” These skills require training; we developed the ACS virtual advocacy workshops to provide ACS members with the background and know-how to interact effectively with government officials. These workshops give you a primer on civics and hands-on role-playing examples to help you in your journey. More information can be found at www.acs.org/policy/memberadvocacy/acs-advocacy-workshops.html.

This brings me to the last pillar: opportunities for real-world experience working with policymakers in Washington, DC. ACS has had a fellowship program for the past 50 years in which PhD-level chemists and chemical engineers work directly on Capitol Hill. Since 1974, ACS congressional fellows have provided technical expertise to congressional offices and, in return, have had an up-close view of the inner workings of policy and politics. In 1986, ACS created another opportunity for chemists to gain experience in the policy arena through the ACS Science Policy Fellowships. ACS Science Policy Fellows join the ACS government affairs staff for 1 to 2 years. Fellows work side by side with experienced ACS staff to provide information to policymakers on the role of science in public policy, advance specific recommendations on issues affecting the chemical enterprise, and inform ACS members about the policy process and involve them in it. More information about the fellowships, including how to apply, can be found at acs.org/policyfellow. Look for an anniversary celebration at ACS Fall 2025 in Washington, DC, next August!

As you may have seen in the ACS Comment in the combined May 13/20 issue of C&EN, CCPA is a member of the Trust in Science Roundtable created by ACS past president Judith Giordan, which is giving grants to help support local sections, divisions, student chapters, and international chapters to create unique opportunities to reach their communities and increase the public’s trust in science and scientists. It’s important for scientists to communicate with empathy—to see the world through someone else’s eyes and act with compassion and trust when listening to and speaking with others. These grants were designed to pilot activities that will help the public connect with science in a way that establishes trust. The Roundtable will announce the winners in August.

In these ways, CCPA is working to strengthen the ACS policy ecosystem to support the society’s ability to execute its national charter.

Views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of C&EN or ACS.