Symposium on Science & Politics

Hosted by the Center for Science of Science & Innovation, the Ryan Institute on Complexity, and the Northwestern Innovation Institute at Northwestern University.

Oct 14–16 Kellogg School of Management · Evanston, IL In‑person

About

A two‑day convening bringing together scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to examine how science shapes policymaking—and how politics shapes science. The program features research talks and discussion panels spanning evidence‑based policy, geopolitics, funding, open science, and public communication.

Please note that this is a closed-door event; science journalists will be present but research presentations and panel discussions will remain off-the-record.

Schedule

5:30–8:00

Reception

8:00–8:30

Breakfast

8:30–8:45

Opening remarks

8:45–9:45

Panel 1: Science & Policymaking

Participants
  • Paola Maynard‑Moll, Executive Director, Scholars Strategy Network
  • David Goldston, Director, MIT Washington Office; former Chief of Staff, House Science Committee
  • Toby Smith, Senior Vice President for Government Relations and Public Policy, American Association of Universities
  • Arthur Lupia, Gerald R. Ford University Professor and Vice President for Research and Innovation, University of Michigan
  • Moderator: Ben Jones, Gordon and Llura Gund Family Professor of Entrepreneurship and Professor of Strategy, Kellogg
9:45–10:15

Coffee + Snack

10:15–11:15

Panel 2: Science and Geopolitics

Participants
  • Yasheng Huang, Professor of Global Economics and Management, MIT Sloan School of Management
  • Molly Roberts, Professor of Political Science, UC San Diego
  • Pin Ni, President of Wanxiang America Corporation; Trustee, Northwestern University
  • Jari H. Kuusisto, Visiting Scholar at MIT Sloan; Former President, University of Vaasa, Finland
  • Moderator: Nancy Qian, Professor of Managerial Economics & Decision Sciences, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
11:15–12:15

Panel 3: From Open Science to Gold Standard of Science

Participants
  • Kei Koizumi, Former Principal Deputy Director for Policy, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)
  • Stuart Buck, Executive Director, Good Science Project
  • Brian Nosek, Co‑founder & Executive Director, Center for Open Science; Professor, University of Virginia
  • Moderator: Arthur Lupia, Gerald R. Ford University Professor and Vice President for Research and Innovation, University of Michigan
12:15–1:00

Lunch

1:00–2:00

Research Presentations 1

Three 20‑minute presentations

View talks & speakers
  • The Historical Political Economy of the NIH — Bhaven Sampat, Professor, Johns Hopkins University
  • Pandemic Legacy: How the COVID Online Ecosystem of 2020–2021 Shaped Enduring Distrust in Public Health — Erik Nisbet, Owen L. Coon Endowed Professor of Policy Analysis & Communication; Director, Center for Communication & Public Policy, Northwestern University
  • Political Polarization, Perceived Scientific Consensus, & Scientific Authority — Elizabeth Suhay, Associate Professor, American University
  • Session Chair Eric Perreault, Vice President for Research, Northwestern University
2:00–3:00

Panel 4: The Politics of Science Funding

Participants
  • Daniel Goroff, Vice President, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; former Director, Division of Social & Economic Sciences, NSF
  • Peter Schiffer, Dean for Research, Princeton University
  • Matt Clancy, Senior Program Officer for the Abundance and Growth Fund, Open Philanthropy
  • Bhaven Sampat, Professor, Johns Hopkins University
  • Moderator: Dashun Wang, Kellogg Chair of Technology Chair, Northwestern
3:00–3:20

Coffee + Snack

3:20–4:40

Research Presentations 2

Four 20‑minute presentations

View talks & speakers
  • Public Sector Scientific Capacity: Keeping Pace with Genome Altering Technology at the FDA — Ann Keller, Associate Professor of Health Politics & Policy, UC Berkeley School of Public Health
  • Scientists in Congress: Congressional Treatment of Expertise — Ju Yeon (Julia) Park, Associate Professor, The Ohio State University
  • Disagreement among friends: collaborative discussion on climate change polarization — Mary McGrath, Assistant Professor, Northwestern University
  • Session Chair: Andrew Saab, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
4:40–6:00

Research Presentations 3

Four 20‑minute presentations

View talks & speakers
  • Examining the Politicization of Science: When is a political influence legitimate? — Heather Douglas, Professor, Michigan State University
  • The Cultural Legitimacy of Science and Democracy — Gordon Gauchat, University of Wisconsin‑Milwaukee
  • Industries of Ideas: New measurement for a frontier at risk — Jason Owen Smith, Associate Vice President for Research‑Institutional Capabilities & Research Intelligence; Professor, University of Michigan
  • Restoring public trust in science — Jevin West, Associate Dean for Research, Information School, University of Washington
6:30–9:00

Dinner

Evanston Corner Bistro

8:00–8:45

Breakfast

8:45–9:45

Panel 5: Science and the Public

Participants
  • Heather Douglas, Professor, Michigan State University
  • Toby Smith, Vice President for Policy, Association of American Universities (AAU)
  • Elizabeth Suhay,Associate Professor, American University
  • Jevin West, Associate Dean for Research, Information School, University of Washington
  • Moderator: Alexander Furnas, Research Assistant Professor, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
9:45–10:15

Coffee + Snack

10:15–11:15

Research Presentations 4

Three 20‑minute presentations

View talks & speakers
  • The Policy Agenda of Academic Social Science — E.J. Fagan, Associate Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago
  • The Structure of Scientific Misinterpretation in Policy‑making — James Evans, Max Palevsky Professor; Director, Knowledge Lab, University of Chicago
  • The Effects of Training Politicians in Evidence‑Based Policymaking — Adam Zelizer, Assistant Professor, Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago
  • Session Chair: Brian Uzzi, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
11:15–12:15

Panel 6: Communicating Science to a Polarized Public

Participants
  • Stephanie M. Lee, Sr. Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education
  • Brad Wible, Commentary Editor, Science
  • Lisa Jarvis, Columnist, Bloomberg
  • Gordon Gauchat, Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin‑Milwaukee
  • Max Kozlov, Science Reporter, Nature
  • Moderator: Jessica Love, Senior Director, Ryan Institute on Complexity, Northwestern University
12:15–1:00

Lunch

Times and speakers subject to change.

Participants (A–Z)

Headshot of Stuart Buck

Stuart Buck

Executive Director, Good Science Project

Headshot of Matt Clancy

Matt Clancy

Senior Program Officer, Abundance & Growth Fund, Open Philanthropy

Headshot of Heather Douglas

Heather Douglas

Professor, Michigan State University

Headshot of James Evans

James Evans

Max Palevsky Professor; Director, Knowledge Lab, University of Chicago

Headshot of E.J. Fagan

E.J. Fagan

Associate Professor, University of Illinois Chicago

Headshot of Timothy Feddersen

Timothy Feddersen

Wendell Hobbs Professor of Managerial Politics and Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Research, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Alexander Furnas

Alexander C. Furnas

Research Assistant Professor, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Gordon Gauchat

Gordon Gauchat

Associate Professor, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee

Headshot of David Goldston

David Goldston

Director, MIT Washington Office; fmr. CoS of the House Committee on Science

Headshot of Daniel Goroff

Daniel Goroff

Vice President, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; fmr. Division Director for Social and Economic Sciences at NSF

Headshot of Ryan Hill

Ryan Hill

Assistant Professor, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Yasheng Huang

Yasheng Huang

Epoch Foundation Professor of International Management, MIT Sloan School of Management

Headshot of Kaye Husbands Fealing

Kaye Husbands Fealing

Professor and fmr. Dean of the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, Georgia Institue of Technology

Headshot of Ben Jones

Ben Jones

Gordon & Llura Gund Family Professor; Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Lisa Jarvis

Lisa Jarvis

Columnist, Bloomberg

Headshot of Ann Keller

Ann Keller

Associate Professor, UC Berkeley

Headshot of Taegyoon Kim

Taegyoon Kim

Assistant Professor, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Headshot of Brayden King

Brayden King

Senior Associate Dean, Strategy and Max McGraw Chair in Management and the Environment, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Kei Koizumi

Kei Koizumi

Former Principal Deputy Director for Policy, OSTP

Headshot of Max Kozlov

Max Kozlov

Science Reporter, Nature

Headshot of Jari H. Kuusisto

Jari H. Kuusisto

fmr. President, University of Vasaa; Visiting Scholar, MIT Sloan

Headshot of Stephanie M. Lee

Stephanie M. Lee

Sr. Writer, Chronicle of Higher Education

Headshot of Alicia Loffler

Alicia Loffler

Executive Director, NI Institute, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Jessica Love

Jessica Love

Senior Director, Ryan Institute on Complexity, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Arthur Lupia

Arthur Lupia

Gerald R. Ford University Professor; VP for Research & Innovation, University of Michigan

Headshot of Paola Maynard‑Moll

Paola Maynard‑Moll

Executive Director, Scholars Strategy Network

Headshot of Mary McGrath

Mary McGrath

Assistant Professor, Northwestern University

Headshot of Pin Ni

Pin Ni

President, Wanxiang America; Trustee, Northwestern University

Headshot of Erik Nisbet

Erik Nisbet

Owen L. Coon Endowed Professor; Director, Center for Communication & Public Policy, Northwestern University

Headshot of Brian Nosek

Brian Nosek

Co‑founder & Executive Director, Center for Open Science; Professor, University of Virginia

Headshot of Jason Owen‑Smith

Jason Owen Smith

Assoc. VP for Research; Professor, University of Michigan

Headshot of Ju Yeon (Julia) Park

Ju Yeon (Julia) Park

Associate Professor, The Ohio State University

Headshot of Andrew Papachristos

Andrew Papachristos

John G. Searle Professor, Director of Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University

Headshot of Eric Perreault

Eric Perreault

Vice President for Research, Northwestern University

Headshot of Nancy Qian

Nancy Qian

James J. O'Connor Professor of Economics, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern

Headshot of Andrew Saab

Andrew Saab

Post Doctoral Scholar, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Bhaven Sampat

Bhaven Sampat

Professor, Johns Hopkins University

Headshot of Peter Schiffer

Peter Schiffer

Class of 1909 Professor of Physics and Dean for Research, Princeton University

Headshot of Molly Roberts

Molly Roberts

Chancellor’s Associates Endowed Chair, UC San Diego

Headshot of Elizabeth Suhay

Elizabeth Suhay

Associate Professor, American University

Headshot of Toby Smith

Toby Smith

Senior Vice President for Government Relations and Public Policy, Association of American Universities (AAU)

Headshot of Kristen Lunz Trujillo

Kristen Lunz Trujillo

Assistant Professor, Boston College

Headshot of Brian Uzzi

Brian Uzzi

Richard L. Thomas Professor of Leadership and Organizational Change, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Dashun Wang

Dashun Wang

Kellogg Chair of Technology, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Headshot of Jevin West

Jevin West

Professor and Associate Dean for Research, University of Washington

Headshot of Brad Wible

Brad Wible

Commentary editor, Science

Headshot of Adam Zelizer

Adam Zelizer

Assistant Professor, University of Chicago

Venue & Logistics

Center for Science of Science and Innovation
Northwestern University, Evanston, IL

  • Primary sessions held at 1800 Sherman Ave, Evanston IL 60201
  • Dinner: Evanston Corner Bistro (off‑site).
  • Accessibility: Please contact us for any accommodations.

Contact

Questions or updates? Email cssi-events@kellogg.northwestern.edu.