Just The Facts, Please

Highly complex science is at the center of political discourse as never before, from the effects of military sonar on marine mammals to the genetic studies that increasingly define what is an endangered species. But too often science -- or what passes for science -- is misused for ideological and financial gain. To bolster its advocacy efforts, NRDC launched its Science Center in 2005, and this past fall hired its first director, Gabriela Chavarria, who completed her doctoral training under the famed Harvard biologist E. O. Wilson and who joins the organization from the Defenders of Wildlife. Under Chavarria's direction, four visiting science fellows, each specializing in a specific program -- oceans, lands, public health, and climate -- will address the new threats to environmental protections posed by complex scientific controversies. Not only will the center increase NRDC's scientific authority on such matters as the chemistry and physics of global warming and the use of genetic analyses in conservation biology, but it will also expand the organization's capacity to identify emerging environmental issues.