Journal of Science Policy & Governance
​Volume 20, Issue 03 | August 22, 2022

Policy Memo: The Need for American Scientific Diaspora Networks

Isabel Warner, Elana R. Goldenkoff, Barbara Del Castello, Dorothy L. Butler, Steve Elliott, Alessandra C. Zimmermann
Science Diplomacy Exchange and Learning, National Science Policy Network
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​Corresponding author: [email protected]​
Keywords: networks; brain circulation; brain drain; researcher emigration; global competitiveness; STEM Workforce
https://doi.org/10.38126/JSPG200308​

Executive Summary

The global nature of science and technology enables professionals in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to emigrate in pursuit of educational and professional opportunities abroad. To support and access these highly skilled expatriates, many countries develop scientific diaspora networks. These networks act as hubs to connect diaspora scientists to each other and to their country of origin, strengthening research collaborations and scientific diplomacy between nations. The U.S. does not have any formal networks for its scientists working abroad. These émigré researchers therefore represent an untapped resource of soft power and diplomacy. U.S. networks would help provide information on current innovation strategies worldwide, promote positive and peaceful relations between the U.S. and the host country, and foster cross-country research collaborations. We recommend the development of scientific diaspora networks for U.S. researchers abroad. We review three organizational and funding structures that the U.S. can use as models to develop its own science diaspora networks: government affiliated, NGO-managed, and grassroots-initiated. Given these, we make the following policy recommendations: 1) The Department of State and other federal agencies should help develop and support U.S. diaspora networks, 2) The U.S. government should create a ‘network of networks’ to scale support and resources for U.S. diaspora networks, and 3) The U.S. government and philanthropic groups should fund programs to establish professional organizations for U.S. scientists abroad. ​

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Background header image courtesy of  James Watt
Isabel Warner is a member of the National Science Policy Network, through which this work was performed. She is a final year Ph.D. candidate in Microbiology in the Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) at the University of Queensland in Australia and a Future Leader Fellow at the American Society for Microbiology. The perspectives in this piece do not represent any organization for which she is or has been a part. 

Elana Goldenkoff is a member of the National Science Policy Network, through which this work was performed. She is also a Ph.D. Candidate in Kinesiology at the University of Michigan. She studies how non-invasive brain stimulation can alter neural plasticity and help with rehabilitation for motor control disorders. The perspectives in this piece do not represent any organization for which she is or has been a part. 
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Barbara Del Castello is a member of the National Science Policy Network, through which this work was performed. She has an M.A. in International Policy from the University of Georgia. She is currently a final year Ph.D. candidate in Genetics at the University of Georgia and the ’22- ‘23 capacity focal point for the UN Major Group for Children and Youth Science Policy Interface. The perspectives in this piece do not represent any organization of which she is or has been a part.

Dorothy Butler is a member of the National Science Policy Network, through which this work was performed. She has a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Vanderbilt University and did her postdoctoral research at the National Cancer Institute. She is currently a science policy project manager at the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. The perspectives in this piece do not represent any organization for which she is or has been a part.

Steve Elliott is a member of the National Science Policy Network, through which this work was performed. He is affiliate faculty at Arizona State University (ASU), where he completed postdoctoral training at the Center for Gender Equity in Science and Technology, and where he received his Ph.D. in Biology through the Center for Biology and Society. He is currently a Science and Technology Policy Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C. The perspectives in this piece do not represent any organization for which he is a part.

Alessandra Zimmerman is a member of the National Science Policy Network, through which this work was performed. She has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Maryland, has previously worked on the Peer and Expert Review Laboratory, a project looking at the impacts of peer review comments on early career applicants through her position as Executive Director of Proposal Analytics. She now works as a R&D budget policy analyst and writer at the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Her views do not represent any organizations she is a part of.

​Acknowledgements 
We thank the Office of Science and Technology Austria Washington, D.C., and the National Science Policy Network’s Science Diplomacy Exchange and Learning (SciDEAL) program for convening our research team. We would also like to thank our editors for their comments, which greatly improved the manuscript.

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