POLITICS

While efforts to convince the candidates to hold a science-only debate fizzled, three presidential hopefuls did take to the task of answering 20 questions from a coalition of science organizations and voters. (Nat Geo News)

• Hundreds of people are running for the office of president of the United States. Why are just three of them profiled in the ScienceDebate.org questionnaire?
  • Only the four candidates were invited to participate, and one has yet to respond.
    • Two candidates will appear on the ballots in all states and territories: Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump. Both responded to the 20-question questionnaire.
    • Three other candidates will appear on the ballots of more than 20 states and territories: Green candidate Jill Stein, Independent candidate Gary Johnson, and Constitution candidate Darrell Castle. Johnson has yet to respond, and Castle was not invited to participate.

• Why do you think government science-related policies are important?
  • Science has a wide reach and impacts dozens of programs, initiatives, and agencies of the U.S. government. How? Here are a few questions to get you started.
    • How do you think climate change policies might impact the National Park Service?
    • How do you think policies regulating genetically modified organisms (GMOs) might impact the Department of Agriculture?
    • How do you think policy surrounding research funding and transparency might impact the National Science Foundation?
  • Science policies impact an even wider variety of private organizations. Here are some questions to get you started.
    • How do you think energy policies might impact coal companies?
    • How do you think ocean-use policies might impact the tourism industry?
    • How do you think STEM education policies might impact Silicon Valley start-up firms?

• Read through the candidates’ responses to the 20 science policy questions. On what issues do the candidates seem to differ the most?
  • climate change
  • biodiversity
  • science and STEM education
  • public health and emerging diseases
  • agriculture and agribusiness
  • environmental and health regulations
  • combating the epidemic of opioid addiction

• What science-related issues are important to you? Here are the 20 general topics addressed in the ScienceDebate questionnaire.
  • innovation
  • research
  • climate change
  • biodiversity
  • the Internet
  • mental health
  • energy
  • education
  • public health
  • water
  • nuclear power
  • food
  • global and cross-border challenges
  • regulations
  • vaccinations
  • the space program
  • opioid addiction
  • ocean health
  • immigration and technology visas
  • scientific integrity

• Hold a class debate! Do some research and answer ScienceDebate’s questions as if you were running for president. What if our explorers were running for president?
  • What efforts would Sylvia Earle‘s administration make to improve the health of our ocean and coastlines and increase the long-term sustainability of ocean fisheries?
  • What policies would David Lang support to ensure that America remains at the forefront of innovation?
  • How would Jedidah Isler‘s administration work to ensure all students including women and minorities are prepared to address 21st century challenges and, further, that the public has an adequate level of STEM literacy in an age dominated by complex science and technology?
  • How would Sarah Parcak‘s administration foster a culture of scientific transparency and accountability in government, while protecting scientists and federal agencies from political interference in their work?

TEACHERS TOOLKIT

Nat Geo: Top Takeaways From Presidential Candidates’ Views on Science

ScienceDebate.org: The Candidates’ Views on America’s Top 20 Science, Engineering, Tech, Health & Environmental Issues in 2016

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