New Models for U.S. Science and Technology Policy
This project assembled recognized leaders from all sectors of science, engineering, and technology to recommend policy actions to help ensure the long-term sustainability of the U.S. science and engineering research enterprise.
The Perils of Complacency
Scientific and technological advances are fundamental to the prosperity, health, and security of America. Innovation and rapid integration of new knowledge and technologies emerge from investments in research and development, and rely on the partnership between universities, federal and state governments, and industry. Staying globally competitive will require a stronger partnership and a greater focus on long-term planning in scientific and engineering research.
The Restoring the Foundation report in 2014 and The Perils of Complacency report in 2020 offer actionable recommendations for the long-term sustainability of the U.S. science and engineering research system to ensure a healthy research enterprise that continues to benefit the American people.
People
Nancy C. Andrews
John E. Bryson
Thomas Robert Cech
Steven Chu
Jared Leigh Cohon
James Johnson Duderstadt
Mark Charles Fishman
Sylvester James Gates
Bart Gordon
M.R.C. Greenwood
John L. Hennessy
Charles O. Holliday
Peter S. Kim
Dana G. Mead
Richard Andrew Meserve
C. Dan Mote
Venky Narayanamurti
Maxine L. Savitz
Robert F. Sproull
Subra Suresh
Shirley M. Tilghman
Jeannette M. Wing
Elias Zerhouni
John C. Crowley
Kirstin Matthews
Publications
Project Outcomes
Since the release of Restoring the Foundation, the Academy has built support for the report’s recommendations among stakeholders in government, industry, academia, and philanthropy. The project’s efforts included collaborations with scientific and business organizations; media outreach; conversations with leaders in Congress and at federal research agencies; and forums, roundtable discussions, and symposia at universities and public halls across the nation.
Project members participated in over 150 meetings with congressional offices and testified before the Senate Commerce Committee before the release of the Restoring the Foundation report in 2014 and again in 2016. A working group of partner organizations, including the Academy, issued “Innovation: An American Imperative,” a public statement of support for recommendations from Restoring the Foundation. It was signed by CEOs and chairs from nine major corporations as well as more than 500 leading organizations from American industry, higher education, and science and engineering organizations. “Innovation: An American Imperative” was endorsed in a bipartisan, bicameral “Dear Colleague” letter circulated in Congress. These activities provided input to the 2016 American Innovation and Competitiveness Act passed by Congress.
Successes to date include congressional actions to: increase investment in some of the federal research institutes; make permanent and extend the federal R&D tax credit; reaffirm merit-based peer review; eliminate, reduce, and streamline research-related regulations; and further support domestic advanced manufacturing. The efforts of the project members and the working group helped support this progress.
Learn more about the influence of Restoring the Foundation and “Innovation: An American Imperative.”