Driving Change in Science Policy Publishing, Research & Writing THROUGH JSPG

Written by Adriana Bankston

    I hope that what we have accomplished this past year as an organization will encourage others to step out of their comfort zone and follow their own path towards something they care about.

— Adriana Bankston, CEO & Managing Publisher, Journal of Science Policy & Governance

In the previous post, I focused on my own personal perspectives on leading JSPG, and how I navigated being a first time CEO. I realized that passion is really a driving force for me, and JSPG has provided that opportunity for me to find something that really gets me up in the morning and makes me want to continue going even when things are tough. 

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The idea of driving change itself is important to define for a given organization. What drives you as a leader to make change, and what kind of change do you want to see? Sometimes this means having a very focused direction, and saying no to many other things. In addition to having a limited time within any given leadership role, thinking about what you want your legacy to be is important. 

I am privileged to lead the journal at a time when we are approaching JSPG’s 10 year anniversary, which provides opportunities to highlight our accomplishments. In the past couple of years, we have grown considerably in terms of the number of volumes published, ways to showcase published authors at events and in the media, spoken about JSPG in various avenues, and expanded internationally in many aspects. 

A few things I’m proud of as an organization include:

• Establishing international partnerships for several special issues this year 
• Translating a published article into other languages, expanding from English
• Increasing opportunities for the editorial board with additional rounds of applications
• Growing our science policy podcast to showcase published work
• Offering international science policy trainings with collaborators
• Engaging trainees in workshops and webinars on science policy topics
  
• Making published work more visible and actionable in the community 
• Engaging with university and media outlets to highlight published work
  
  

Many of these areas are a work in progress, and without a doubt will need improvements in the future. But I also hope that these efforts provide opportunities for the next generation to publish in the journal and to take their JSPG experiences into the future, while taking advantage of professional development opportunities in science policy. 

Finally, I’m also personally proud to have spoken at meaningful forums about policies to support early career researchers, and for the opportunity to delve more deeply into developing the future science policy workforce through a fellowship awarded this year.

I’ve felt deeply honored for the opportunity to serve as JSPG CEO over this past year and look forward to the future. I also hope that what we have accomplished this past year as an organization will encourage others to step out of their comfort zone and follow their own path towards something they care about.

Stay tuned for more to come with and around our anniversary celebrations this year! Stay in touch with us on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, and subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news and opportunities.