Activism
Science and Democracy Internship/Senior Project
UCS is excited to announce its Science and Democracy Internship/Senior Project framework for the 2005-06 academic year. This is a unique opportunity for students who want to explore how science is used and misused in the public arena while earning class credit or completing a senior thesis/honors project.
Across a broad range of issues—from childhood lead poisoning and mercury emissions to climate change, reproductive health, and nuclear weapons—political appointees are distorting, manipulating, and censoring scientific information at an unprecedented scale. These activities threaten our government’s scientific capacity and the ability of policy makers to make informed decisions about serious issues that affect our health, safety, and environment.
To build the capacity of the scientific and academic communities to defend science from political interference, UCS is encouraging students and faculty to set up independent undergraduate internships and senior thesis or honors projects for both science and non-science majors. The internship/senior project should be tailored to the needs of the individual student based on areas of interest and institutional requirements.
Internship activities will include four skill areas: outreach, media/communications, investigative research/event organizing, and project evaluation. While the sponsoring professor will be the main point of contact for the student, UCS will provide the student with the tools that he or she needs to raise awareness about this problem on campus and in the community while building practical organizing, communications, and policy skills.
For a more in-depth description of this opportunity download the PDF above. For a full set of background materials to assist you in shaping an internship, please email rsi@ucsusa.org or call (202) 223-6133.
