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  • CAREER FEATURE

Science-policy advisers shape programmes that solve real-world problems

Four scientists discuss how they broke into the field and how they use evidence to tackle society’s problems.
By
  1. Amy DePaul

    1. Amy DePaul is a freelance journalist in Irvine, California.

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Many researchers think that science policy is a total snoozefest. They imagine policy workers churning out boring white papers that sit idly at the bottom of a drawer, never to be read. But behind the scenes at United Nations assemblies and legislative agencies, science-policy specialists know their work will be put to the test. They brief global leaders at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on breakthrough technologies and present the White House’s climate agenda to the press, the public and government agencies. They work out how funding agencies can award research grants to a more diverse pool of scientists, and help emerging economies to reduce carbon emissions without their compromising development.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-03040-x

These interviews have been edited for length and clarity.

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