Yale researchers to join March for Science

April 12, 2017

Yale faculty, researchers, and their supporters will celebrate the vital role that science plays in improving our daily lives and the safety of our communities at the March for Science in Washington, D.C. and a satellite event, The March for Science New Haven — both taking place on Saturday, April 22. Similar marches are planned that day (Earth Day) in more than 500 cities across the globe.

According to the organizers, the non-partisan event seeks to advocate for science that benefits the common good, evidence-based policymaking, science education, research funding, and inclusive and accessible science. The marches also underscore the need to safeguard the scientific community and its findings.

“Yale joins institutions and individuals around the country in affirming the value of rigorous inquiry and education, both of which depend on a strong, well-funded system of research universities. Human health, strength in innovation, and economic competitiveness are founded on and directly tied to continued advances in science,” said President Peter Salovey. “The research being conducted at U.S. universities is a main driver of the nation’s innovation and prosperity. Scientific discoveries improve human understanding, save lives, help us live sustainably, and solve some of the most pressing issues of our time.”

Steven Girvin, deputy provost for research and the Eugene Higgins Professor of Physics, said: “As an educational and research institution, Yale supports the principles of free inquiry and exchange of ideas in the pursuit of truth in all fields from the arts and humanities to science, engineering, medicine and the social sciences. In addition to knowledge for its own sake, research in these many fields leads to numerous practical applications and forms the basis for evidenced-based policy decisions that affect all of humanity.”

The event in Washington, D.C. will take place on the National Mall, north of the Washington Monument, on Constitution Avenue between 15th and 17th streets. The grounds will open at 8 a.m., and the program will include teach-ins and invited speakers. The march itself will begin at 2 p.m. Click here for more information.

The New Haven event will take place at College Woods Pavilion in East Rock Park, across the street from Wilbur Cross High School, near the intersection of Cold Spring and Orange streets. It will begin at 1 p.m. with story tables, where scientists will tell their personal stories, and science demonstrations, where visitors can have hand-on experiences and see scientific principles come to life. There will be a rally at 2 p.m. featuring invited speakers, who will include Indy Burke, dean of Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, and Yale scientists Gregg Gonsalves, Priyamvada Natarajan, Valerie Horsley, and Daniel Colon-Ramos. The march will begin following the rally. Click here for more information.