Sedarski '24 Advocates for Science Policy on Capitol Hill

Many of the nation’s forerunners in physics convened in Washington, D.C. in late January for the Annual Leadership Meeting of the American Physical Society (APS). Physics student Josh Sedarski ’24 was invited to attend this meeting as a Student Ambassador of the APS. He volunteered to advocated for the APS' main policy goal with physicists from across Minnesota, taking part in the annual Congressional Visits Day. Visiting the offices of Senator Smith, Senator Klobuchar, Congressman Stauber, Congresswoman McCollum, and Congresswoman Omar, Sedarski lobbied for increased appropriations to federal science agencies, measures to improve graduate student pay, increases in green card caps for international students, improved quantum competitiveness, and the development of methane monitoring technologies. Throughout the remainder of the week he participated in various workshops, panels, and talks, exchanging ideas and resources with other APS Student Ambassadors to engage their respective departments in the programs and mission of the APS. The APS is the second largest organization of physicists in the world, and publishes many esteemed scientific journals, such as Physical Review and Physical Review Letters. They hold more than 20 science meetings annually, including the upcoming March Meeting, hosted locally at the Minneapolis Convention Center.