Like a warm hug

Abstract

Do you know the feeling you get after having a meal you particularly enjoyed? I’d describe it as something like a warm hug from the inside. That’s how I felt after a symposium I attended last week. It was at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., and it was organized and sponsored by the Council of Scientific Society Presidents (CSSP)—one of the largest science-based leadership development organizations in the world, comprising about 30 scientific federations and societies with a combined membership of more than 1 million scientists and science educators—and The Kavli Foundation, an organization that supports the advancement of science and works to improve the public’s understanding of scientists and their work. The appetizer was John P. Holdren, President Barack Obama’s top science adviser. He was there to receive CSSP’s Support of Science Award, the society’s highest honor, which most recently was bestowed on Obama himself. The