Despite heavy rain, hundreds of APA members and staff joined thousands of other marchers on Saturday, April 22, for the March for Science in Washington, D.C., while other psychologists joined satellite marches around the country and the world.
"APA is proud to march for science and to partner with this event," says Howard Kurtzman, PhD, APA's acting executive director for science. "The march's goals of advocating for science and strengthening the role of science in policymaking align closely with APA's goal of advancing psychological science in the public interest."
APA members at the march echoed that sentiment.
"I'm in Div. 28 (Society for Psychopharmacology and Substance Use), and I'm here because I'm in favor of science funding, and of recognizing science as the way to find out the truth about things, rather than as a political game," said Micky Koffarnus, PhD, a research assistant professor at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute in Roanoke, Virginia.
The march's organizers see the event as the beginning of a new era of advocacy for science. "We have no intention of letting this stop after April 22," Caroline Weinberg, PhD, a co-chair of the march, told The New York Times.
Toward that end, on the Friday before the march APA's Science Directorate offered advocacy training—at APA headquarters and live-streamed—to give psychologists tools to communicate with policymakers about the importance of psychological research and evidence-based policy. The training offered an overview of the current state of federal science policy, plus practical advice on such topics as how to talk to policymakers, how to set up visits to psychology labs by members of Congress and congressional staff, and how to meet with them in their local and Washington, D.C., offices. A recording of the training is available online.
"APA has long been marching for science," says Cynthia Malley, science policy associate in the Science Directorate. "We are energized by the hundreds of people who responded to our call to march with us, as well as those who participated in our advocacy training in person and online."
She encourages APA members who want to stay involved to join APA's Psychology Advocacy Networkopens in new window to get updates and action alerts on policy and legislative issues affecting the field.
