Science Policy Report

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27 June 2018

In This Issue:

Policy News

Science and Society News

International Corner

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

Policy News

The House passed its farm bill last week by a vote of 213-211 after weeks of uncertainty over whether leadership would be able to secure enough support within the fractious GOP Conference to pass a measure that is critical to farm country. Passage of the House farm bill — which would re-authorize programs ranging from nutrition assistance and crop subsidies to rural development and agricultural research — moves Congress one step closer to sending a bill to President Donald Trump before the current legislation expires at the end of September. The Senate is planning to take up its version, which has bipartisan support, as soon as the next few days, and passage is widely expected — but trouble could be in store when both bills get to conference. Read the full article.

Hoping to avoid a continuing resolution or a large catch-all spending bill, the House and Senate are moving “minibus” spending bills. The first minibus bundled three appropriations bills – Energy and Water, Legislative Branch, and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs – generally considered to be three of the least contentious bills to pass. The Senate passed its first minibus spending package, on Monday and the House passed its own version earlier this month. Now the two chambers must work out a compromise bill during the conference process before a final vote will send the bills for President Trump’s signature. Read the full article.

President Donald Trump proposed reorganizing parts of the federal government in ways that should sound very familiar to those who follow U.S. science policy. In fact, many of the ideas that would impact the research community have been floated by previous administrations—Democratic as well as Republican—and some are less bold than what his predecessors had hoped to achieve. The plan, labeled “Delivering Government Solutions in the 21st Century,” would affect federal research agencies in ways great and small. Read the full article.

Scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey must now submit their presentation titles for review by the Interior Department to get approval to attend two major conferences, and they will have to identify how their research relates to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's priorities. In guidelines posted on the agency's internal website this week, the USGS's Office of Administration told employees they will have to provide a detailed “attendee justification” when applying for travel approval for the annual meetings of the American Geophysical Union and the Geological Society of America later this year. Read the full article.

Science and Society News

Dr. Lawrence Haddad and Dr. David Nabarro will receive the 2018 World Food Prize for their individual and complementary global leadership in elevating maternal and child undernutrition to a central issue within the food security and development dialogue at national and international levels. A pioneer in food policy research, Dr. Haddad brought the issue of nutrition to the forefront by using both economic and medical research to convince development leaders to make child nutrition an urgent priority in the global food security agenda. Dr. Nabarro, a champion of public health in the United Nations, was directly responsible for uniting 54 countries and one Indian state under the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement to join forces and implement evidence-based policies and programs. Read the full article.

Field, Lab, Earth is the podcast all about past and present advances in the fields of agronomic, crop, soil, and environmental sciences. A joint production of the Tri-Societies, the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, it features interviews with authors published in our journals, books, and magazines. Opinions and conclusions expressed by authors are their own and are not considered as those of the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, Soil Science Society of America, its staff, its members, or its advertisers. Find the podcast here.

Palmer amaranth has recently emerged as one of the most widespread and severe agronomic weeds in the United States, due in part to its facility for evolving herbicide resistance. It has also invaded portions of Africa, Europe, and South America. Although climate change will likely affect Palmer amaranth’s geographic range, few studies have examined how climate may influence the global distribution of this highly invasive weed. In an article recently published in Agricultural & En­vironmental Letters, researchers simulate the potential global distribution of Palmer amaranth under current conditions and future climate scenarios using a process-oriented bioclimatic niche model. They found that key row-crop production regions in Africa and Australia were at high risk for Palmer amaranth invasion. Read the full article.

Labels proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to disclose “bioengineered” (BE) foods dramatically increase a wide variety of consumer concerns, especially regarding human health. Those are among the findings of new research by the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation into areas where AMS sought comments on its proposed BE labeling standards, as well as consumers’ views generally of genetically modified foods, or GMOs. The IFIC Foundation tested reactions to the three BE labeling symbols and two variations of text disclosures. In every combination, levels of concern across a variety of factors increased—often substantially—when a disclosure label was applied. Read the full article.

The American Society of Agronomy, the Crop Science Society of America, and the Canadian Society of Agronomy will host approximately 2,500 scientists, professionals, educators, and students at the 2018 International Annual Meeting, "Enhancing Productivity in a Changing Climate," on November 4-7, 2018, in Baltimore, Maryland. This premier scientific meeting provides unlimited networking opportunities, scientific abstracts, oral and poster sessions, a robust exhibit hall, technical workshops, and professional and destination tours. Plus, there's a career center, graduate and undergraduate programs, distinguished lecturers, awards, continuing education units (CEU's), prizes, and more! Learn more.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are launching the New Voices in Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine initiative to identify outstanding early-career New Voices US Networking science, engineering, and medicine (SEM) leaders. An initial group of 18 have been selected and will gather over a two-year period with a senior advisory committee to discuss key emerging challenges in science, engineering, and medicine, engage nationally with a wider group of young leaders from diverse groups, and attend international events on science policy. ASA and SSSA member, Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, is among the initial cohort. Read the full article.

Dr. Tim Durham’s family operates a 30-acre vegetable farm on Long Island, New York — where he returns to work every summer. During the academic year, Dr. Durham teaches general biology, plant science, biotechnology, genetics, and agronomy at Ferrum College in Virginia. Like other modern industries, agriculture is ever-evolving. Farmers today still lose sleep over unpredictable weather patterns and other factors outside of their control. In this Q&A, Dr. Durham explains what has and hasn’t changed for the modern farmer. Read the full article.

The earth’s surface is a highly variable and diverse environment where the physical and chemical properties of the soil and rock matrix change with depth as well as across the landscape. Moreover, significant changes in moisture content and biological activity occur over time due to weather events, seasonal variation, and interactions between plants, microbes, minerals, and fluids. This variability poses challenges to water managers and engineers, and instruments that can describe the heterogeneity of the subsurface and monitor changes over time are limited. In a paper recently published in Vadose Zone Journal, researchers describe several portable borehole nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) tools that have been developed recently to address these monitoring challenges. Read the full article.

A series of engineered proteins could improve biomanufacturing processes for the production of biofuels and other products including pharmaceuticals and commodity chemicals. Purdue University researchers have developed a series of engineered proteins derived from elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs), on single linear chains of amino acids. The team believes that these can address a common problem in biomanufacturing processes. During the production process, the buildup of toxic materials can damage cell health, typically lowering the overall amount of product that is made. The researchers fused the ELPs to transcription factors, proteins that bind to DNA, to control gene expression and therefore regulate the buildup of toxic materials. Read the full article.

Over the last 20 years, Maine’s forests have become younger and less dense. As a result, forests are not providing the most climate benefits that they could through carbon sequestration and storage. However, more carbon could be stored over the next 100 years, according to new research from the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of New Hampshire (UNH). Continuation of business-as-usual forestry will likely lead to Maine’s forest sector being a net carbon sink for the foreseeable future – meaning that when you add up all the carbon stored in the forest and also consider all the greenhouse gas emissions associated with harvesting trees and making forest products such as paper, lumber, and energy – there continues to be more carbon going into the system than going out. Read the full article.

The Science Societies Career Center is the premier career resource for our sciences. The Career Center promotes and encourages opportunities in the agronomic, crop, soil, and environmental sciences and serves as a clearinghouse for resumes and job listings. Employers and recruiters will find the most qualified talent pool with relevant work experience to fulfill their staffing needs. See the Career Placement Center listings.

The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) - Food and Agricultural Science Enhancement (FASE) and Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Team is presenting a webinar on how the AFRI FASE & EPSCoR Program works and how it is implemented at NIFA. This webinar will serve as an orientation for those new to the program and an update for returning applicants. There will also be a brief question and answer session. Learn more about the webinar and register.

Please join the American Geoscience Institute (AGI) on Wednesday July 18 at 1:00pm EDT for the next free Critical Issues Webinar, “Managing Groundwater Storage”. This 1-hour webinar will introduce the geoscience of managing groundwater storage and recharge, discuss groundwater storage policies and research in California and Texas, and review case studies and potential developments on the horizon. CEUs/CECs available. Learn more about the webinar and register. 

International Corner

India is facing its worst-ever water crisis, with some 600 million people facing acute water shortage, a government think-tank says. The Niti Aayog report, which draws on data from 24 of India's 29 states, says the crisis is "only going to get worse" in the years ahead. It also warns that 21 cities are likely to run out of groundwater by 2020 despite increasing demand. This would also threaten food security as 80% of water is used in agriculture. Indian cities and towns regularly run out water in the summer because they lack the infrastructure to deliver piped water to every home. Read the full article.

A Chinese, government-controlled conglomerate is seeding a bumper crop in big data that’s modernizing the world of farming, from the vineyards of Burgundy to the cornfields of Illinois to the lychee orchards of Guangdong. ChemChina is substantially raising spending on research and development, with the biggest increases going to groundbreaking digital technology. FarmShots is a software that they developed that uses satellites and drones to pinpoint sick crops in the field. The advantage of satellite images is that they spotlight problem areas that could take a farmer a week or more to pinpoint scouting the spread. Read the full article.

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

The Food and Agriculture Defense Initiative: Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) for fiscal year (FY) 2018 provides national coordination of EDEN for outreach service to enhance biosecurity of the U.S. agriculture and food system. Deadline, July 26. Read the full announcement.

The Global Alliance seeks to work with an external consultant, researcher, or team to better understand the positive health benefits and impacts of sustainable food systems and collaboratively identify systemic solutions that promote healthy food systems. This work supports the Global Alliance for the Future of Food’s ongoing process of research and engagement related to the food-health nexus and involves compiling diverse evidence about the positive health benefits and impacts of food systems, identifying success stories that demonstrate how food systems can be managed for health, and highlighting policies that promote health. The Global Alliance is looking to Forge new insights and strengthen evidence for global systems change; Convene key food systems actors and facilitate meaningful dialogue; and Stimulate local and global action for transformational change. Deadline, July 27. Read the full announcement.

The Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program supports active research participation by undergraduate students in any of the areas of research funded by the National Science Foundation. REU projects involve students in meaningful ways in ongoing research programs or in research projects specifically designed for the REU program. This solicitation features two mechanisms for support of student research: (1) REU Sites are based on independent proposals to initiate and conduct projects that engage a number of students in research. REU Sites may be based in a single discipline or academic department or may offer interdisciplinary or multi-department research opportunities with a coherent intellectual theme. Proposals with an international dimension are welcome. (2) REU Supplements may be included as a component of proposals for new or renewal NSF grants or cooperative agreements or may be requested for ongoing NSF-funded research projects. Undergraduate student participants in either REU Sites or REU Supplements must be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or permanent residents of the United States. Students do not apply to NSF to participate in REU activities. Students apply directly to REU Sites or to NSF-funded investigators who receive REU Supplements. Deadline, August 22. Read the full announcement.

The Tribal College Research Area of Expertise (TCRAE) for fiscal year (FY) 2018 to assist 1994 Land-Grant Institutions in building research capacity through competitive funding of applied projects that address student educational needs and solve community, reservation or regional problems consistent with the 1994 Research Grants. Deadline, August 30. Read the full announcement.

The Division of Earth Sciences (EAR) awards Postdoctoral Fellowships to recent recipients of doctoral degrees to conduct an integrated program of independent research and professional development. Fellowship proposals must address scientific questions within the scope of EAR disciplinary programs and must align with the overall theme for the postdoctoral program. The program supports researchers for a period of up to two years with fellowships that can be taken to the institution of their choice (including institutions abroad). The program is intended to recognize beginning investigators of significant potential, and provide them with research experience, mentorship, and training that will establish them in leadership positions in the Earth Sciences community. Because the fellowships are offered only to postdoctoral scientists early in their career, doctoral advisors are encouraged to discuss the availability of EAR postdoctoral fellowships with their graduate students early in their doctoral programs. Deadline, September 19. Read the full announcement.

Sources: USDA; NSF NAS; AAAS; Politico; Rollcall; ScienceInsider; Washington Post; World Food Prize; Food Insight; Medium; UNH News; Biofuels News; AGI; BBC; Fortune;

Vision: The Societies Washington, DC Science Policy Office (SPO) will advocate the importance and value of the agronomic, crop and soil sciences in developing national science policy and ensuring the necessary public-sector investment in the continued health of the environment for the well being of humanity. The SPO will assimilate, interpret, and disseminate in a timely manner to Society members information about relevant agricultural, natural resources and environmental legislation, rules and regulations under consideration by Congress and the Administration.

This page of the ASA-CSSA-SSSA web site will highlight current news items relevant to Science Policy. It is not an endorsement of any position.