National Academy of Sciences president coming to MSU

Marcia McNutt, president of the National Academy of Sciences, will deliver the Rachel Carson Distinguished Lecture at 4 p.m. on April 18 at Michigan State University Union’s Ballroom. The lecture will examine connections between science and policy in the current political climate. 

“It is nearly impossible to think of a policy decision today that would not benefit from the best available evidence from science, engineering or medicine in determining the best course of action,” McNutt said. “The challenge, of course, is delivering that information in a manner that it can be incorporated into the decision-making process effectively.”

From 2013 to 2016, McNutt served as editor-in-chief of the Science journals. Prior to joining Science, she was director of the U.S. Geological Survey from 2009 to 2013. During her tenure, the USGS responded to a number of major disasters, including earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, Japan and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

McNutt has been given numerous honors and awards. She is an elected member of American Philosophical Society, National Academy of Sciences and American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2002, she was named by Discover Magazine as one of the top fifty women in science, and in 2003 the ARCS Foundation named her as Scientist of the Year.

"Dr. McNutt has an exceptional career guiding science to best inform policy about some of the world’s greatest challenges,” said Jianguo "Jack" Liu, Rachel Carson Chair in Sustainability. He also is director of the MSU Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability. "I think the environmental movement pioneer Rachel Carson would be pleased to have such a distinguished scientist so dedicated to ensuring science is heard presenting a lecture that bears her name.”

The event is free and open to the public, and will be followed by a reception.

The Rachel Carson Distinguished Lecture Series is organized by the Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability and the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife.

The series is supported by the National Science Foundation; the MSU offices of the President, Provost and Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies; the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources; MSU AgBioResearch; the Environmental Science and Policy Program; and Sustainable Michigan Endowed Project.

Registration for McNutt’s lecture can be obtained here.