Opinion: We’re asking candidates about science. See what they’re saying.
All Iowa voters, even those skeptical of the evidence for human-caused climate change, should know whether candidates for office would help them deal with the possibility of increasing floods and more severe storms.
Both Iowans who farm and those who view unfettered agriculture as a threat to the state’s rivers and lakes should learn how future policymakers would use science to sort out the issue.
And regardless of whether Iowans accept that vaccinations save lives rather than risk children’s health, prospective senators, representatives and statewide leaders should say how they stand on requiring shots for students.
These issues and others depend on sound science and on politicians’ ability to understand and weigh research-based evidence. Yet few candidates talk — or are asked — about the role science plays in their thinking and positions on these and other matters.
We’re seeking answers. As leaders of a coalition of Iowa environmental, agricultural, health and science organizations, we’re determined to ensure science gets its due on the campaign trail and in state and federal capitals. Working with our partners, we developed the Iowa Science Policy Candidate Survey, brief questionnaires that we’ve sent to every person on the state’s ballot for U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, governor, Iowa secretary of state and secretary of agriculture and land stewardship, and Iowa Senate and House of Representatives. That’s around 250 individuals.
Iowans can go to iowasciencepolicy.weebly.com to learn what those who want to represent them say about science-based policies.
Voters can read candidates’ positions on science-based approaches to meet Iowans’ mental health needs.
They can see what a potential U.S. senator or representative thinks about integrating science-based decision-making into programs put forth in the next farm bill.
Iowans can learn what policies candidates support to manage agriculture in ways that produce a healthy and sustainable food supply while mitigating negative effects on rural populations and natural resources.
Members of our science-based organizations accept evidence for human-caused climate change and safe vaccinations. We support research-based measures to stop harmful agricultural pollution. But as nonpartisan organizations, we let candidates have their say: Their responses are published unedited, without comments or endorsements. We merely want to ensure science gets a hearing in the election.
That attention is long overdue. Candidates often put forward policies based on economic or ideological principles. It’s rarer for them to weigh the consensus of scientists and researchers regarding those laws and regulations. Our coalition believes science in the public interest, publicly supported research, and laws and regulations grounded in peer-reviewed evidence will improve life for all Iowans.
Getting answers from every candidate is surely impossible, but we’re determined to get as many as possible. Visit iowasciencepolicy.weebly.com. If someone seeking to represent you at the U.S. or Iowa capital hasn’t responded, you can find contact information on our website. Tell them you value their views.
Our coalition includes Iowa State University’s ASPIRE and the University of Iowa’s Connecting Science to Society student groups, both chapters of the National Science Policy Network, and Science Iowa, formerly the March for Science Iowa. Other signatory organizations are:
● Iowa Environmental Council● Conservation Districts of Iowa● Iowa Public Health Association● Sustainable Iowa Land Trust● Citizens' Climate Lobby Des Moines Chapter● Citizens' Climate Lobby Iowa Great Lakes Chapter● Drake Environmental Action League● Society of Physics Students, University of Iowa● Science for the People, Iowa State University● Sustainable Agriculture Student Association, Iowa State University
Together, these organizations represent thousands of Iowans. They and every citizen deserve to know how elected representatives will use science to improve their lives and the lives of future generations.
Dan Chibnall, Science Iowa president, is the STEM librarian and an associate professor of librarianship at Drake University. Annabelle Lolinco is a Ph.D. candidate at Iowa State University studying student learning of chemistry in context. She is the co-founder and president of Advocating Science Policy in Research and Education, Iowa State University’s National Science Policy Network student chapter. Riley Troyer is a graduate student at the University of Iowa studying the northern lights. He is also the co-founder and president of Connecting Science to Society, the University of Iowa’s National Science Policy Network student chapter.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Opinion: We’re asking Iowa candidates about science
