Baker Institute experts available to comment on President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

EXPERT ALERT

Jeff Falk
713-348-6775
jfalk@rice.edu

Baker Institute experts available to comment on President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology 

HOUSTON – (Oct. 23, 2019) – President Donald Trump on Tuesday reestablished the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) after it had been dormant for nearly three years.

Credit: 123RF.com/Rice University

The PCAST appointments are a strong indicator of Kelvin Droegemeier’s leadership as Trump’s chief scientific adviser, according to experts in the Science and Technology Policy Program at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Kenneth Evans, scholar in science and technology policy, and Kirstin Matthews, fellow in science and technology policy, issued a report on PCAST in 2018 and provided recommendations for how the council could continue advising the president and generating science policy in the future. They are available to discuss their insights with the news media.

“Droegemeier made clear after his appointment he intended to reestablish PCAST, but it took nearly a year for the first set appointments to be announced,” Evans said. “His commitment to ensuring PCAST has a place in the administration, especially so late into Trump’s presidency, is a testament to his efforts as director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.”

The expertise of Trump’s PCAST aligns with the administration’s stated priorities in science and technology, including American leadership in artificial intelligence and quantum information science, Evans added.

To interview Evans or Matthews, contact Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

The Baker Institute has a broadcast interview studio with a high-definition television uplink and an ISDN line for radio.

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Follow the Baker Institute and its Science and Technology Policy Program via Twitter @BakerInstitute and @STPolicy.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.

Evans bio: www.bakerinstitute.org/experts/kenneth-m-evans

Matthews bio: www.bakerinstitute.org/experts/kirstin-rw-matthews

Founded in 1993, Rice University’s Baker Institute ranks among the top three university-affiliated think tanks in the world. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows, Rice University faculty scholars and staff, coupled with its outreach to the Rice student body through fellow-taught classes — including a public policy course — and student leadership and internship programs. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blog.bakerinstitute.org.