Group Calls for Presidential Science Debate: Says Climate, Energy, Health Are Key

A growing number of Nobel Prize winners, scientists, university presidents and business leaders are calling for the U.S. presidential candidates to hold a public debate on science and technology issues.

Science Debate 2008, a grassroots initiative launched this past December, says the presidential race needs a discussion on science and technology because they are a critically important social issue for the U.S. It formally invited all the presidential candidates this week, and has scheduled a debate for Friday, April 18, at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. That date falls four days before Pennsylvania's presidential primaries.

"Science and engineering are responsible for half of our nation's growth in GDP (gross domestic product) over the last fifty-seven years, and have come to impact every aspect of our lives, our economy, our health, our environment and our decision-making processes," said Shawn Lawrence Otto, a spokesperson for Science Debate 2008. "No other debate topic can claim anything close to that impact on voters' lives."

More than 12,000 individuals and several dozen organizations have signed on to support the Science Debate 2008 movement. Among those calling for a science debate are the National Academy of Sciences; Duke University; Arizona State University; Washington's Carnegie Institution; Columbia University; Physicians for Social Responsibility; Stanford University; the Union of Concerned Scientists; the Council on Competitiveness; Nobel Prize winner James Watson, co-discoverer of the structure of the DNA molecule; Harvard University professor Steven Pinker; Ben Schwegler, vice president and chief scientist for Walt Disney Imagineering research and development; Donna Shalala, former secretary of Health and Human Services; and Craig Bennett, the chairman of Intel.

Dozens of current and former state and federal officials have also offered their support to the proposed science debate.

"The future economic success of the United States depends on out-performing the competition with smart people and smart ideas," Bennett said. "Without the best education system and investments in basic research and development we will become a second rate economic power."

"When you think about it, nearly every major challenge the next president will face has a science or technological component," said Lawrence M. Krauss, an astrophysicist at Case Western Reserve University and a member of the Science Debate 2008 steering committee. "We owe it to the next generation to address these challenges responsibly."

Among the issues Science Debate 2008 supporters say need public debate are climate change, fresh water resources, drought, renewable energy research, the threat of global pandemics, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, improved science education and scientific integrity in government.

"Most of the major policy challenges the next president will face, from climate chance to jobs and economic competitiveness to healthcare to the health of the oceans, center on science and technology," Otto said. "Where is the next transistor economy going to come from? Is there going to be action to address climate change? Do we need a Marshall plan for science in America? What about peak oil? Why are our school children falling behind other countries in math and science, and what should be done about it?

"We are trying to elevate these important policy issues in the national dialogue," he continued. "We want voters to have a chance to assess candidates in terms of their visionary leadership on these big issues and others like them. It's not a science quiz, it's about policy. We're talking about the health of your family, the health of the economy, and the health of the planet. What are the solutions? We hope the candidates for president will want to explore these issues more thoroughly with the American people."