Science's CEO Tells It Like It Is. (August 23, 2013)

Alan Leshner is Science's Chief Executive Officer. In the journal's August 23, 2013 editorial he notes:

The [US] economy is only now recovering from bad times, and there is great pressure to get the federal budget deficit under control. The “sequester,” an across-the-board cut in the entire federal budget, is making matters even worse for science, whose budget has failed to keep pace with inflation for at least the past 4 years... other countries are increasing their R&D investments, in spite of similar economic conditions, responding to the clear relationship between a nation's research capacity, its economic strength, and the well-being of its people. The inequality in science funding trends is threatening America's standing in the global scientific community.

Dr. Leshner then singles out the decline in US support for the nation's agricultural R&D and "how neglect can undermine a scientific domain". He cites a recent report by the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) "that America's agricultural research enterprise is no longer prepared to meet the challenges it will face in this century and that the country's “innovation ecosystem for agriculture” requires a fundamental restructuring" which emphasises that "[m]ore intramural and extramural funds [should] be awarded through competitions based on excellence rather than allocated as formula-based block grants, [and the] report urges increased investments in scientific workforce development and in research infrastructure. To facilitate technology transfer to industry, the report recommends the creation of multidisciplinary innovation institutes supported by public/private partnerships and a comprehensive review of federal regulatory policies for agriculture."

Science's CEO concludes with this plea:

If the core elements of this approach—combining increased funding, focused new programs, and the strategic rebalancing of existing funding, programs, and policies—are put in place, the United States will stand a much better chance of maintaining a leadership position in agricultural research, development, and innovation. Similar analyses and the same kinds of strategies might be very beneficial to maintaining the nation's overall scientific stature.