[RNCSE] A letter from NCSE's executive director — May 2026

Dear NCSE Supporters,

This has been a challenging year and a half, to say the least, for the science community in this country. We have seen cuts to funding, the dismantling of trusted federal resources, and a rise in science misinformation being disseminated by the current administration.

Luckily, there are those who are fighting back. I feel incredibly lucky to work for NCSE, one of the many organizations that are trying to ensure that the public is provided with evidence-based science and the tools to discern fact from fiction.

Also fighting back is Climate.us and Rebecca Lindsey, that site’s director and managing editor. Lindsey was the program manager at Climate.gov, the much-loved and visited federal website that provided the public with climate information in a visually appealing and easily accessible manner, before it was summarily taken down. Learn how Lindsey is working to sustain Climate.us, a non-profit successor to Climate.gov. And consider becoming an NCSE member so you can register for a members-only conversation with Lindsey on June 9, 2026.

Another of our efforts at fighting back is My COAST (Climate-Oriented Authentic Science Teaching). We just completed our third iteration of this hands-on, minds-on professional learning experience for teachers, meant to improve K–12 teacher understanding, interest, content knowledge, and pedagogical practices related to coastal areas most threatened by climate change. We’ve now traveled to coastal Georgia, Key West, Florida, and Galveston, Texas, where My COAST received rave reviews and we have another event planned in the fall.

This issue of RNCSE also includes a timely look, given that we are hurtling towards election season, at how evolution is treated in state Republican party platforms. I’m very grateful to NCSE Deputy Director Glenn Branch for keeping a watchful eye on these documents.

We are clearly at a moment where continued vigilance is of utmost importance. Thanks to your support, we’re able to do our part in the fight to preserve and improve the public understanding of science.