Further on the NSF Wokeness Pivot

pursuing the science of social justice

I wrote recently about the National Science Foundation and its pivot from an original mission involving “basic scientific research in the mathematical, physical, medical, biological, engineering, and other sciences” to an emerging agenda of intersectionality, allyship, and DEI.

The second part of that discussion involves the creation, in March, of a new NSF Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP). At first glance the new directorate just looks like more of the NSF, promising a focus on things like “advanced manufacturing, advanced materials, advanced wireless, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, quantum information science, and semiconductors and microelectronics.”

But the NSF already supported research in all of those areas, so the need for a new directorate isn’t immediately clear. A first clue about the change in focus comes from the way the NSF’s director explains the new arm of the agency he runs: "NSF's TIP Directorate will accelerate discovery and innovation to rapidly bring new technologies to market and address the most pressing societal and economic challenges of our time." The National Science Foundation is pursuing an initiative to address societal challenges. You can probably see what’s coming next.

The new directorate now oversees a program that predates it, the Convergence Accelerator: “Launched in 2019, the NSF Convergence Accelerator builds upon basic research and discovery to accelerate solutions toward societal impact. The program funds teams to solve societal challenges through convergence research and innovation. To enhance its impact, the Accelerator also places teams together in cohorts, synergizing their work through facilitated collaboration.”

Here are some examples of the kinds of science for societal challenges the Convergence Accelerator has been funding:

They’ve Nina Jankowiczed science. Here’s a Convergence Accelerator-funded project at the University of Wisconsin:

So the National Science Foundation is funding the scientific journalism of making sure you don’t have crimethink about elections.

Looking ahead, here’s the next round of funding opportunities offered through TIP’s Convergence Accelerator (you can get to the same document by clicking on the embedded link above or by clicking on the PDF file link below):

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Sample funding track:

The overarching goal of the NSF Convergence Accelerator's Track J: Food & Nutrition Security will be to accelerate convergence across food and nutrition sectors to address intertwined challenges in supporting population health, combating climate change, and addressing the nutritional needs of the most vulnerable by empowering youth, women, and disadvantaged communities.

Another funding track, on Persons With Disabilities, seeks to “enhance equity, inclusion, and accessibility for PWDs,” and scientists applying for NSF funding are encouraged to work on funded projects with people and organizations that don’t do science:

Advancing substantive innovation requires that researchers work cooperatively and collaboratively across different sectors including private industry, government, academia, advocates for PWDs, associations of employers and trades, and all types of problem solvers from all sectors of the community. Such collaborations could also help to further enhance equity, inclusion, and accessibility for PWDs.

So the National Science Foundation is proposing to fund, for example, trade associations. Look at all the science:

As noted, race and ethnic background, gender, socioeconomic and LGBTQIA+ status, and societal attitudes can affect whether and how PWDs address and mitigate core barriers that hinder gainful employment and full inclusion in the community. Proposals that specifically address the needs of these groups are strongly encouraged. Projects should focus on achieving tangible and significant outcomes to empower PWDs or communities in which they interact or work. All proposals should be explicit in explaining how diversity, equity, and inclusion are incorporated into the overall project.

A third funding track, on environmentally sustainable materials, requires that research teams “must be truly converged with the humanistic fields including history, social sciences, science, technology and society studies, social justice, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.”

With little publicity, the National Science Foundation is directing significant resources to politics and social justice — which means less funding for basic science that isn’t primarily focused on activism, the actual core mission of the National Science Foundation.