If you think supporting the union of science and policy is as important as we do, please consider contributing to help develop tomorrow’s leaders bridge the gap!
Every penny counts! Donations to the Science Policy Group at Berkeley help support our organizational programming including:
- professional development and training for students;
- on-campus science policy engagement projects; and
- student advocacy trips to meet with policymakers.
Thank you!
What Does Your Donation Support?
When you donate to us, your donation will be used for several projects.
STEMVotes
The first is our STEMvotes initiative, which aims to increase the number of STEM students voting in local, state, and federal elections. In 2016, only 44% of STEM students voted, far below the national average. SPG sought to change this in 2018. We registered a dozen UC Berkeley students to vote, and we hosted a Voter Information Night, where 100 students learned about the referenda and initiatives on the ballot. Over the next two years, we want to spend time understanding what worked in our 2018 campaign and expand our efforts for the 2020 elections.
California State Capitol Advocacy Trips
Second, you can support our trips to the California State Capitol in Sacramento, where our members advocate for science-based issues that are important to them. We have gone on three trips in September 2018, December 2018, and March 2019, and we plan to continue these trips on a quarterly basis. During our visits, our members have met with legislative offices and advocated for the creation of a Science Advisor to the Governor, biotechnology education in public schools, and research experience as a way for high schoolers to demonstrate proficiency in science. Your support will allow us to continue our trips and engage more science policy students from around the state.
Hosting the 2020 National Science Policy Network Symposium
Finally, your donation will support large-scale events that we hold for the Berkeley community. At this time, we are fundraising to host the 2020 National Science Policy Network Symposium. This event will bring hundreds of students from around the country to explore how the emerging field of bioethics is linked to some of the biggest questions in science policy, industry, and society.
Keep an eye out for our crowdfunding efforts!
In April 2019, we crowdfunded over $2,400 for our science policy projects from nearly 40 donors. This was 160% of our original goal of $1500! We’ve already begun utilizing these funds for the projects described above. While our crowdfunding page is no longer accepting donations, you can still check out descriptions of our projects there or donate directly to SPG through the link above!
Your donation is tax-deductible!
As an official student group, we have non-profit status, allowing any support to be tax-deductible. If you would like to support these initiatives, please donate above or contact us.