Unfinished Business: Science Policy for the White House in the New U.S. Administration

This panel will focus on the role of the White House -- in particular, the president’s science advisor and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) -- in U.S. science and technology (S&T) policymaking. The panelists, bringing experience inside OSTP or working with the office, will lead a discussion on how the new administration can build on the existing federal S&T policy framework to address the growing number of societal challenges requiring reliable scientific and technical information and expertise, such as national and domestic security; health and public safety; energy, climate change, and the environment; commerce; education; and many others. The conversation will focus on how the science advisor and OSTP can most effectively assist the president in setting priorities for federal research and development investments, federal regulations, and applications of S&T to the wide array of responsibilities of the mission agencies. Panelists will share their personal perspectives on major S&T policy issues facing the new administration and comment on the new president’s S&T policy agenda, including any early-term policy objectives announced by the administration. The panelists will also engage the audience in an open dialogue on how the White House and federal agencies can take best advantage of advances in S&T and input from the science community to address national needs.