Dear SCB North America Members,
This Joint Society Message is being sent to you on behalf of the societies and organizations that contributed to what we are calling The Federal Impacts Survey, including the American Society of Naturalists; Society for the Study of Evolution; Western Society of Naturalists; Society of Systematic Biologists; Entomological Society of America; American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists; Women of Color & Non-Binary People of Color in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology; The Wildlife Society; Society for Conservation Biology North America; American Ornithological Society; Black Women in Ecology, Evolution; and Marine Science; Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation; and the Ecological Society of America.
The purpose of the message is to alert all of you that the results of the survey conducted to quantify the impact of federal and state policies, since January 20, 2025, on scientists in the fields of ecology, evolution, marine science, and environmental science will be published on 25 August 2025 at this website: https://www.firsthandaccounts.org/home.
The website will publish a technical report that includes information about the motivation for the survey, how the survey was authorized and conducted, the demographics of survey participants, a description of the key findings and takeaways of the survey, charts showing the breakdown of participant responses to different survey questions, and the long-term implications of the survey. The most telling information comes from the open-ended responses to survey questions that participants wrote and gave us permission to quote anonymously.
We understand that the key findings from this survey may be concerning to many, particularly to members who are early in their careers. Amplifying each other's stories is one simple step each of us can take to raise awareness of the impacts of federal policies on the members of our societies. Attached you will find a press release. Starting on Wednesday, 20 August 2025, you are welcome to distribute the press release through your channels. When the website is updated with the technical report August 25, please consider sharing the survey results with your colleagues, family, administrators at your institution, your elected representatives in the federal and state governments, and their staff.
Carl Zimmer from the NYT is looking to collect stories from investigators on the record who lost a field season this past summer due to budget cuts, uncertainty, and chilling effects on travel. You may request to remain unnamed in any articles, however he would prefer to interview people on the record. To share your story confidentially, please email carl@carlzimmer.com or Signal chat carlzimmer.31 with the subject "Lost Field Season" and indicate whether or not you are willing to speak on the record."
*NOTE: You will also find a formal Press Release attached to this email, including contact information for the lead survey author and participating societies.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Best,
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Bernie Traversari, M.S. (he/him/él)
Director of Operations and Programs
Society for Conservation Biology North America (SCBNA)
(210)-753-3817 |
bernie.traversari@scbnorthamerica.org | !Hablo español!
scbnorthamerica.org | @SCBNorthAmerica | scbnorthamerica
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