How to Talk Science to Policy Makers – Michelle Wyman, National Council For Science and the Environment

May 15, 2020

“The part in this that is so important is the relationship building component, and that part takes time… (it) is the glue that brings cohesion across the issues and it enables a different form of listening and a different openness, in my view, that includes openness to hearing the science….. Science is the strongest tool of diplomacy.”

Michelle Wyman, NCSE

 

The COVID-19 pandemic has given us all a renewed appreciation for the importance of science in decision-making, especially in policy making.  It can mean the difference between life and death, literally. But how do you do it, especially with policymakers and elected officials who resist the science?  

Listen to Michelle Wyman, Executive Director of the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE), who has been involved in policy for 20 years, share her tips in this engaging interview on Green Connections Radio podcast with host Joan Michelson.

You’ll hear:

• Why science is important in policymaking, in case you need someone to make the case for you.
• How to effectively bring science into a discussion with someone who does not value it or doesn’t want to hear it – with stories from her own experience.
• How to communicate science to Congress and other elected officials so it influences their decisions.
• Why preparation matters – and how to do it.
• Plus great career advice!

“Stay very clearly focused on remembering not to get boxed in. Not to stay in your lane….There may be ways to step outside that lane, there may be complete pivot points where you can go in a totally different direction and it doesn’t need to happen only when you’re 25.”

Michelle Wyman on Green Connections Radio podcast

You’ll also want to listen to:

• Stacy Jupiter, another recent MacArthur “Genius” winner working in climate change mitigation

 

• Rawlings Miller, a climate change mitigation planning expert.

 

• Ingrid Daubechies of Duke University, MacArthur “genius” award winner, and master innovative thinker.

 

• Beth Gibbons, climate change adaptation leader working with local resilience teams.

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