April 2022
Urge Congress to Support Neuroscience in FY2023
Join your fellow NeuroAdvocates in urging Congress to support neuroscience priorities and increase research funding for Fiscal Year 2023. Send your Representative and Senators a message via SfN’s Advocacy Action Center and personalize it by including why robust federal funding is critical to your research and necessary to advance our understanding of the brain.
Register for the Upcoming Advocacy Forum
Register now for SfN's Advocacy Forum webinar, How to Advocate for Mental Health Research, being held on Monday, April 18 from 1:00pm - 2:30pm ET. Come listen and ask questions to experts in the field, including NIMH director, Dr. Joshua Gordon, as they discuss how the media and neuroscience community can work together to advocate for continued foundational mental health research that has become paramount during the COVID-19 pandemic. Registration is open to SfN members and those interested in the discussion.
SfN Holds 16th Annual Capitol Hill Day
SfN successfully completed their 16th annual Capitol Hill Day from March 22 through March 24. It was once again transformed into a multiday, virtual event with 65 advocates in attendance, representing more than 27 states and Canada. These advocates held 110 meetings with congressional offices, advocating for robust funding for the NIH, NSF, and the VA Medical and Prosthetic Research Program as well as support for the continued ethical use of animals in research. We want to thank everyone who participated in Hill Day and used their voice to advocate for neuroscience priorities.
President Biden Releases FY2023 Budget Request
The Biden Administration released their FY2023 budget request proposal, providing Congress funding recommendations and priorities for the upcoming fiscal year. Included in the budget proposal was nearly $49 billion for the NIH, including $5 billion for ARPA-H, $10.5 billion for the NSF, and $916 million for the VA Medical and Prosthetics Research Program. Similar to FY2022, the proposal also included $30 million in funding to improve infrastructure at the National Primate Research Centers (NPRCs).
Report Shows the Impact of NIH Research Funding
United for Medical Research released a report, NIH’s Role in Sustaining the U.S. Economy, detailing the national- and state-level impact of NIH research funding. The report shows in FY2021, the $35.73 billion in NIH funding awarded to researchers in the U.S. supported an estimated 552,444 jobs nationwide and produced $94.18 billion in new economic activity. Despite this growth, the need to maintain robust increases to the NIH budget is as urgent as ever in order to keep up with increasing inflation and continue funding groundbreaking research.
Published Article Explains the Necessity of Nonhuman Primates in Alzheimer’s Research
Matthew Bailey, President of NABR and FBR, that was published in Florida Today detailing why nonhuman primates, specifically monkeys, are a critical necessity for conducting Alzheimer’s research. He explains how “nonhuman primates are the key to understanding and defeating the fatal dementia, which currently afflicts about 6 million Americans” and if animal activist groups are able to pressure lawmakers into limiting the use of NHPs, then “they’ll slow down – and potentially prevent—medical discoveries that could save millions of American lives.”
NASEM Committee on Nonhuman Primates Holds Public Session
An ad hoc committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), the Committee on the State of the Science and Future Needs for Nonhuman Primate Model Systems, held a public session to discuss the objectives of the committee and answer questions. The committee is tasked with examining the current and future role of nonhuman primates in NIH-funded research to report back to Congress. Committee member and former Committee on Animals in Research chair, Dr. Peter Strick, was a featured speaker during the session.
Register for Upcoming Webinar on the BRAIN Initiative and Funding Opportunities
The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), one of 10 Institutes and Centers at the NIH that make up the BRAIN Initiative, is organizing a public webinar for potential BRAIN applicants on Tuesday, April 19 from 1:00pm – 2:20pm ET. Covered topics will include information about the BRAIN Initiative program priorities, an overview of various funding opportunities, and guidance to potential NIDCD applicants.
SfN Advocacy Resources:
- Introduce yourself to the new Congress via the Advocacy Action Center.
- Watch the Neuroscientist’s Guide to Advocacy series to understand the tools you need to help advance the field.
- Learn how to engage your members of Congress and effectively advocate for science with SfN's Advocacy Best Practices.
- Get involved in global advocacy.
- Talk to the public about the importance of animal research.
- Reach out to advocacy@sfn.org for assistance in preparing for your next advocacy effort at home or on Capitol Hill.
