September 2020

SfN Global Connectome: A Virtual Event Scheduled for January 11-13, 2021

Mark your calendars! SfN Global Connectome: A Virtual Event will be held January 11-13. Read the September 9 statement.

Sign up to receive updates on abstract submission, speakers and other opportunities to engage with the world’s largest neuroscience community.

NeuroAdvocate Challenge: September 2020 

As SfN continually looks for opportunities to help you advocate under the changing circumstances, you can continue to carry out advocacy activities this month:  

• Refresh yourself on what advocacy is and why it matters.
• Equip yourself with all the information you need to vote in the 2020 U.S. election, if you are able to vote in the United States.

Tell Congress to Support Biomedical Research Funding in FY 21 and the Next COVID-19 Relief Package 

The House and Senate are negotiating details for FY 21 funding levels as well as the next COVID-19 relief package. This includes funds for research at NIH, NSF, VA and other agencies. Join your fellow NeuroAdvocates and tell Congress to ensure that funding for biomedical research is included at adequate levels and not to forget the relief needed by researchers and investigators across the country.  

Federal Advocacy News   

• The House and Senate returned September 8, marking the end of the August recess.  
• Negotiations stalled between House leadership and the administration, which has signaled support for tying COVID-19 relief to a Continuing Resolution on appropriations.
• The Senate released the text of its proposed “skinny” COVID-19 relief package, which does not include funding for biomedical research relief.

NIH Grant Awarded To Primate Centers To Expand Marmoset Colonies for Neuroscience Research

The Wisconsin National Primate Research Center (WNPRC) and the Southwest National Primate Research Center (SNPRC) were awarded a grant from NIH to double their yield of marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) for neuroscience research. The WNPRC currently has 247 common marmosets and the SNPRC has nearly 400. The grant addresses a rise in demand for work with common marmosets that has grown in the past five years, particularly in neuroscience.

RFI on Flexibilities for Conducting Semiannual Animal Facility Inspections

The NIH Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare put out an RFI on flexibilities for conducting semiannual inspections after a report identified semiannual inspections as an area to potentially reduce administrative burden. Each animal care committee of a research entity is required to review the care and treament of animals in all animal study areas. NIH has identified and seeks comments on 10 flexibilities. The deadline for the RFI is Oct. 22, 2020.

House Science Committee Introduces Bill To Create New Early Career Fellowship Program

The Supporting Early-Career Researchers Act was introduced to prevent the loss of research talent due to the widespread disruptions and economic instability caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The act would create a new postdoctoral fellowship program at NSF to help early-career researchers maintain employment stability. Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX-30) said in a statement, “the Supporting Early-Career Researchers Act would provide a much-needed bridge to help early career researchers weather this storm and prevent a permanent loss of STEM talent our nation can ill afford.”  

SfN Releases Resources for Investigators Under Attack From Animal Rights Activists

Plan protocols for yourself and your lab in the event of an attack on animal research with this one-pager from SfN. This resource prepares researchers with steps to carry out under various types of attack and encourages researchers to gather emergency contacts in the event of an attack.

International News Headlines

• ‘Make research fun again’: UK’s powerful funding chief is on a mission to change scientific culture.
• ‘We’re losing an entire generation of scientists.’ COVID-19’s economic toll hits Latin America hard.
• Indonesia’s scientific diaspora launches ‘matchmaking’ scheme to boost global research collaboration.
• COVID-19 puts health research to the test in Africa.
  
   

SfN Advocacy Resources

• Contact your legislator about research funding 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 persuasively 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.