Facilitating Rapid Responses to SBE-Related Questions: the Societal Experts Action Network (SEAN)

National Academy Of Sciences, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted nearly every aspect of life across the globe. Furthermore, COVID-19 has illuminated issues in society that make us vulnerable to crises in general. The Societal Experts Action Network (SEAN) has the potential to help local and state decision makers better prepare for future crises by focusing on issues such as economic inequality, climate change, workplace protections, substance abuse, mental health, and education systems, among others. As decision makers at the federal, state, and local level struggle to respond appropriately, they are grappling with many complex scientific questions involving the social and behavioral sciences. The Executive Committee, Advisory Group, and larger network engages experts who can draw upon social, behavioral, and economic sciences and provide actionable answers to decision makers’ questions. The responses, which are be tailored to the question and timeline needed, contribute to our nation’s overarching understanding of how best to deploy social, behavioral, and economic knowledge to address the impacts of the pandemic and beyond. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.