Biden Grants Cabinet Status to Science Adviser, Nominates Eric Lander
President-elect Joe Biden nominates Eric Lander as his science adviser and elevates the role to cabinet rank. Biden also outlines five key priorities for science, including pandemic recovery, climate change, and economic prosperity.
President-elect Joe Biden nominates Eric Lander, the founding director of the Broad Institute, to serve as his science adviser and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. In a major structural shift, Biden elevates this role to cabinet rank, giving science a prominent seat at the highest level of executive decision-making.
During the announcement, Biden outlines five core priorities for his administration's scientific agenda. These goals focus on managing the pandemic and public health needs, rebuilding the economy, addressing the climate crisis through American ingenuity, maintaining global technological leadership amid competition with China, and ensuring long-term public trust in science.
Biden also announces several other key science appointments to round out his team. Francis Collins continues as director of the National Institutes of Health, while Alondra Nelson joins the OSTP as deputy director for science and society. Additionally, Frances Arnold and Maria Zuber step in as the external co-chairs of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.