A science fair for Congress

As researchers, we know it is vitally important to be active advocates for life sciences with the public and with our elected officials. Most of the time the personal interactions involve lectures or one-on-one conversations. This past June, I participated in the Congressional Life Science Fair sponsored by the Coalition for the Life Sciences (CLS), a coalition the ASCB founded and still supports, and the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB). There, instead of just talking with members of Congress and their staffers, which I had done the day before, I was able to involve congressional personnel and other attendees in doing their own bit of science with an interactive exhibit.

Flavors of Advocacy
The day before the Science Fair, I joined other members of the ASCB leadership, including ASCB committee members, for a day of meetings on Capitol Hill with members of Congress and their staffs. These Hill Days, held in conjunction with the ASCB Council mid-year meetings, provide senators, representatives, and their staffs the opportunity to meet with ASCB scientists and learn about our research and the important role the federal government plays in that research.

I’ve been participating in the ASCB Leadership Hill Days since 2015, and each one has been a valuable and even fun experience. The Science Fair, however, was a completely different flavor of advocacy event.

The Congressional Life Science Fair started just two years ago in 2018 as a way to celebrate the various areas of life science research. At that time, leaders at CLS and FASEB realized that all other forms of science have science fairs on Capitol Hill but not the life sciences. Since CLS and FASEB represent (combined) over 130,000 biomedical researchers they knew they had to be the ones to host a life science fair.

What Happens at the Science Fair?
So what does a science fair on Capitol Hill look like? There were about 15 individual six-foot tables. Each table had a representative from a different organization, institution, or university. Each table highlighted a different area of life science research. For example, there was a table that explained research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a table that allowed participants to try a robotic arm, and tables with model organisms such as zebrafish and tardigrades.

At my table, attendees could swab out a few of their cheek cells, label the sample with a fluorescent DNA dye, then image the nuclei in their cells and their oral bacteria with a fluorescence microscope from ECHO Microscopes. Thanks to an easy-to-use interface participants could image their cells and quickly transfer the photos to their phones, leading to quick sharing on social media.

The Congressional Life Science Fair had over 250 people attend, the majority of whom were congressional staffers. My table and others with interactive exhibits were kept busy the entire time. The fair continues to grow and become part of the important advocacy work that takes place on Capitol Hill. The CLS and FASEB hope to increase participation, which includes seeing more individuals showcase science as well as increasing the attendance. It is yet another great way to get important policymakers to feel the excitement and recognize the importance of research. For other ways to be an advocate for science and how ASCB can help you, see the essay in this issue from ASCB President Eva Nogales (p. 6).

While my table at the Congressional Life Science Fair represented my home institution, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, my participation was fully sponsored by the CLS. The CLS offers a few travel awards and opportunities to participate in this fair. If you are interested in being alerted to these opportunities, please sign up at https://bit.ly/2UOAMau. There are no dues to join the CLS. (Unfortunately, the 2020 Congressional Life Science Fair scheduled for June 11 has been cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Check the briefings calendar at www.coalitionforlifesciences.org for future events.)

Note
I thank ECHO Microscopes for providing, assembling, and staffing the microscope at my table. I also thank Lynn Marquis, Director of CLS, for supporting my attendance at the fair and for assistance in preparing this essay.