Congratulations and welcome to the fifty-five AGU members who will be the inaugural cohort of Local Science Partners, a new program empowering scientists to build sustainable partnerships with their policymakers.  

As ambassadors, the first class of member partners brings scientific expertise, passion, and a diverse range of interests to their work integrating the sciences with decision-making. The cohort ranges from early-career scientists to distinguished professors’ emeriti; from biologists to geologists to oceanographers; and from those working in academia to nonprofits to the private sector.  

The cohort is united in a shared commitment to using tools of science and policy to advance equity in the places where they live, study, and work. Critical issues of climate change and environmental protection feature prominently among their myriad interests, as does supporting STEM research and education as well as promoting science literacy. With the skills and training from the Local Science Partners program, our ambassadors will leverage their know-how to influence legislation in order to benefit humanity and the environment. 

The Local Science Partners program pairs AGU members with their legislators and provide them with the resources and training to build a sustainable relationship. Local Science Partner ambassadors will receive workshops on science policy and communication skills, participate in legislative and policy updates, and contribute to open-forum discussions. In the spring of 2022, our ambassadors will attend a congressional visits day in Washington D.C. Together, the Local Science Partners will help advance AGU’s policy agenda and diversify the sciences’ Congressional champions. 

AGU is delighted to welcome the following members as the inaugural cohort of Local Science Partners: 

Ben Alterman Southwest Research Institute 

Kristina Bartowitz University of Idaho  

Dr. Bennett Bearden Geological Survey of Alabama 

Rebecca Bearden Geological Survey of Alabama 

Julia Brodsky Blue Marble Space Institute of Science 

Emily Cardarelli NASA-JPL 

Anamika Chatterjee Washington University in St. Louis 

Ian Cohen Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory 

Ginny Cousens University of Rhode Island 

Kyle Disselkoen Stanford University 

Quincy Faber University of Florida 

Kristi Rasmusson Fink Texas Educational Seismic Project 

Douglas Foster University of Texas at Austin 

Ben Gold Vanderbilt University Medical Center 

Paul Gruber The Aerospace Corporation 

Lauren Haygood Oklahoma State University 

Lisa Hlinka Queens College, CUNY 

Zoe Kanavas University of California, Davis 

Brendan Kelly Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey 

Jisoo Kim Arizona State University 

James Kubicki Chair  University of Texas at El Paso 

Thea Louis University of Michigan School 

Mila Lubeck Massachusetts Institute of Technology  

Hannah Mast University of Virginia 

Kayla Mathes Virginia Commonwealth University  

Carrie McIntosh University of California, San Diego  

Sierra Melton Pennsylvania State University 

Jerry Miller Science for Decisions LLC 

Kim Moreland University of Texas at San Antonio 

Li Murphy BioBus, Inc 

Yanelli Nunez Columbia University  

Katelyn O’Dell George Washington University 

Hannah Palmer University of California, Merced 

Indrani Pal Columbia University 

Michael Phillips Illinois Valley Community College 

Kristina Pistone Bay Area Environmental Research Institute 

Henry Pitts Gap Year Student 

McKenna Price-Patak University of Alabama in Huntsville 

Nabila Riaz Dartmouth College 

Aradhana Roberts Center for Science Teaching and Learning, NAU  

Alyssa Rosemartin USA National Phenology Network 

Dork Sahagian Lehigh University 

Meghan Salmon-Tumas Northland College 

Christine A. Shields National Center for Atmospheric Research 

Kamini Singha Colorado School of Mines 

Arshdeep Singh University of Nebraska, Lincoln 

Joel Singley Colorado School of Mines 

Reggie Spaulding Sunburst Sensors 

Anne Tamalavage University of Montreal 

Amy Townsend-Small University of Cincinnati 

Maria Tzortziou City College of New York 

David Valentine University of California, Santa Barbara 

Joseph Wartman Natural Hazard and Disaster Reconnaissance Facility 

Michael Wiltberger National Center for Atmospheric Research 

 

Congratulations again to our phenomenal new cohort of Local Science Partners! We look forward to the crucial work you will do as on-the-ground drivers of change.