COSSA Member Spotlight
AAPSS Invites Nominations for 2015 Moynihan Prize
The American Academy of Political and Social Science (AAPSS), a COSSA member, is inviting nominations for the 2015 Daniel Patrick Moynihan Prize. This annual prize honors “public servants and scholars who champion the use of social science research and evidence in policymaking.” Acceptance of the award entails a ceremony in Washington, DC in May 2015 and a public address. The 2014 Moynihan Prize was awarded to Joseph Stiglitz of Columbia University. Nominations are due September 26. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
LSA Promoting Native American Language Revitalization
The Linguistic Society of America (LSA), a COSSA Governing Member, has engaged in an initiative to educate policymakers about the value of Native American language revitalization. Two bills pending in Congress—the Native American Languages Reauthorization Act of 2014 (H.R. 726/S. 2299) and the Native Language Immersion Student Achievement Act (H.R. 4214/S. 1948)—seek to preserve and revitalize Native American languages. Interested organizations can express their support of the bills here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
GeoHumanities, New AAG Journal, Seeks Editorial Team
The American Association of Geographers (AAG), a COSSA member, has put out a call for applications and nominations for an editorial team to helm their new journal, GeoHumanities. The team should be comprised of one representative from geography and one representative from a humanities discipline. They will be appointed to a four-year term beginning in December 2014. The new journal will “draw on and further explore the multifaceted scholarly conversations between geography and the humanities that have been evolving over the past decade.” It will “serve as a home for the critical and creative interdisciplinary work of artists, authors, historians,…
COSSA Members Advocate for Disabilities Treaty Ratification
In late July, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 12-6 to move the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on to the full Senate for ratification. The scientific community is mobilizing in support of the Convention, which, among other things, affirms states’ responsibilities to ensure that persons with disabilities have equal opportunity to pursue and enjoy the benefits of scientific progress. COSSA endorsed a statement by the AAAS Board of Directors in support of ratification. In addition, several COSSA members are also urging the Senate to ratify the treaty: The American Statistical Association (ASA) released a…
New COSSA Member: American Academy of Arts & Sciences
We are delighted to welcome the American Academy of Arts & Sciences to the COSSA membership. Headquartered in Cambridge, MA, the Academy is one of the nation’s oldest learned societies and serves as an independent policy research center, providing “authoritative and nonpartisan policy advice to decision-makers in government, academia, and the private sector.” We are thrilled that they have joined the COSSA community. COSSA’s full membership list can be viewed online. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Importance of Statistics Highlighted by ASA White Papers and International Year of Statistics Workshop Report
The American Statistical Association (ASA), a COSSA governing member, has released three white papers detailing how statistics can contribute to the Administration’s research initiatives and priorities, particularly those of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).  The white papers focus on the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, the Big Data Research and Development Initiative, and climate change.  In an overview of the white papers, ASA Director of Science Policy Steve Pierson observed that the papers share several common themes: