Karl S. Pister
Board Chair
Lawrence T. Papay
Council Chair
Cornelius W. Sullivan
Council Vice Chair |
CCST's mandate is to keep California informed about science and technology issues with economic, social and policy ramifications. For over a decade and a half, we have worked to achieve this goal through an expanding series of reports, conferences, and direct dialogues with California leaders, policymakers, agencies and offices, both in Sacramento and in Washington, DC. However, it is not enough to simply know things. In order for knowledge to make a difference, it must be translated into action.
Action can take many forms. At times, it involves the creation of a policy framework based on research and recommendations developed by CCST, as was the case with the Federal Laboratories Contracting Act and the state's focus on Intellectual Property. More and more frequently, we provide a significant component, the expert voice, of the rich and complex debate surrounding major science and technology related issues in the state.
In recent years, we have experienced a substantial increase in the requests for advice and assistance by state decision and policymakers, which we feel is a significant step toward the continuing fulfillment of our mission. Throughout CCST's history, council members have independently identified important issues requiring the attention of policymakers. We continue to develop an agenda of important science and technology areas to work on, but today, more often than not, policymakers are bringing issues to us for analysis and advice at a much earlier stage in the game. We are helping the state to look at long-term strategies for energy, healthcare information technology, high-tech workforce development, and science and math education; we are helping build a proactive, rather than reactive, vision for handling California's science and technology issues. In this, we feel that CCST has truly succeeded in its mission.
We are confident that CCST provides an increasingly valuable contribution to California policymakers. We continue to work on more efficient ways to connect California's broad spectrum of science and technology expertise and to increase our capacity to provide high-quality, evidence-based science and technology advice to the state.
Karl S. Pister, Board Chair
Lawrence T. Papay, Council Chair
Cornelius W. Sullivan, Council Vice Chair
