GoKawiilNeuroscientist Stefano Cataldi has realized that defending science through his policy and advocacy work has become just as important as doing bench research. Credit: Alissa de Chassey
These days, Stefano Cataldi, a neuroscientist studying complex cognitive abilities at Columbia University in New York City, is considering something that, to him, was once unthinkable: giving up his promising career as a researcher.
With the administration of US President Donald Trump increasing pressure on science, research funding becoming more uncertain and federal science agencies continuing to be battered by sweeping changes, Cataldi, who for years has been a science advocate, says it is his opinion that defending science has become just as important as doing research.
Cataldi is a delegate at the United Auto Workers (UAW) labour union, which represents many workers in higher education. He represents Columbia’s postdoctoral and associate research scientists, advocating for better working conditions and increased science funding.
Alongside that work, last year, he launched Science Careers and Opportunities in Policy and Education (SCOPE), a virtual programme sponsored by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York. It helps scientists to navigate science policy, education and communication through conferences, peer networking and a centralized collection of resources.
How I’m advocating in Congress for the next generation of US scientists
As an associate research scientist, Cataldi studies the role of the neurotransmitter serotonin in complex cognitive abilities, such as social interaction and aggression. But in the past year, Cataldi has devoted more time to working on SCOPE and UAW initiatives, driven by the growing attacks on science, the impact he has seen union organizing have on researchers’ working conditions and a desire to equip more scientists to engage with science policy.
Cataldi is now considering stepping away from the laboratory bench to focus fully on science advocacy. He tells Nature about the day-to-day realities of science advocacy, and why he wants to make it his full-time job.
What do you do with the Columbia postdoctoral workers’ union?
My role involves attending bargaining meetings with the university administration, to ensure that postdocs and research scientists can afford to live in the city. We negotiate over salaries, childcare and working conditions. During our first contract, which began in 2020, the union secured a minimum annual salary of US$60,000 for every postdoc, up from $47,000.
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