Science Advocacy

Why I advocate?

All science is funded by taxpayer money. It is for this reason that scientists have a moral obligation to inform people of their findings. In addition, funding for biomedical science has decreased in the last few years. Scientists need not just funding, but consistent funding for which we must advocate effectively to elected representatives.

Cell Interview

I was interviewed for an article by Susan Matheson in the April 6, 2017 issue of Cell about advocating for science on Capitol Hill.

“It’s very empowering,” said Sloka Iyengar, an ambassador who visited Capitol Hill in 2015. She had just completed her postdoctoral work studying epilepsy and the causes of seizures at the Nathan Kline Institute in New York when she met with six different senators and representatives from New York and New Jersey. “That was my first time ever doing anything like this,” said Iyengar. The lawmakers were “quite interested” and were “very, very receptive.” Visiting lawmakers, said Iyengar, “allows you to see the impact of what you’re doing in the lab.”
Here is a link to the full article.

Society for Neuroscience

  1. I serve as the co-chair of the Advocacy division of the Greater NYC Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience.
  2. March 2015 Early Career Science Policy Fellow - I was awarded the Early Career Science Fellowship by the Society for Neuroscience. This was a year-long fellowship as part of which I went to Capitol Hill to advocate to New York and New Jersey senators and Congressmen about science funding.


  3. I wrote an article for Neuronline about my experiences on Capitol Hill.
  4. In September 2015, I co-organized an advocacy event at the Rockefeller University entitled ‘Science funding: what can we do about it?”


    Read about the program and the invited panelists here.
  5. In January 2016, I spoke at a webinar where I summarized my advocacy efforts over the 2015-2016.
  6. In February 2016, I talked to undergraduates at NYU about Science and human rights.
  7. March 2016 – I visited Capitol Hill again and talked about neuroscience funding to elected representatives from New York and Texas.


  8. In April 2016, I organized Train to Advocate at NYU, which used improv to help grad students and postdocs learn how to become better science communicators and to advocate effectively for science.

  9. I am mentoring two Advocacy fellows to guide them on how to effectively advocate for increased and sustained budget for science in the state and federal levels.

Do you have questions about the advocacy division of the NY SfN chapter? Please contact us at advocacy.nyc.sfn@gmail.com.

American Brain Coalition

I compiled the newsletter for the American Brain Coalition (ABC), a non-profit organization comprised of some of the United States’ leading professional neurological, psychological, and psychiatric associations and patient organizations, from March 2015 to December 2016.

Here are the newsletters:

  1. ABC Newsletter Dec 9, 2016
  2. ABC Newsletter Nov 18, 2016
  3. ABC Newsletter Nov 1, 2016
    1. Nov 1, 2016 Attachment - 2016 Brain Donor Project
  4. ABC Newsletter Oct 14, 2016
  5. ABC Newsletter Sep 26, 2016
  6. ABC Newsletter Sep 8, 2016
    1. Sep 8, 2016 Attachment - Fall 2016 Membership Meeting
    2. Sep 8, 2016 Attachment - TBI-CTE CNC Briefing Invitation
  7. ABC Newsletter Aug 25, 2016
    1. Aug 25, 2016 Attachment - ABC Fall 2016 Membership Meeting
  8. ABC Newsletter Aug 11, 2016
    1. Aug 11, 2016 Attachment - ABC Thank you letter to House Appropriations FY2017
    2. Aug 11, 2016 Attachment - ABC Thank you letter to Senate Appropriations FY2017
  9. ABC Newsletter Jul 28, 2016
    1. Jul 28, 2016 Attachment - REGROW Act Letter
  10. ABC Newsletter Jul 13, 2016
    1. Jul 13, 2016 Attachment - Denver 2016 Event Flyer
  11. ABC Newsletter Jun 23, 2016
  12. ABC Newsletter Jun 9, 2016
    1. Jun 9, 2016 Attachment - Hill Briefing Summary
  13. ABC Newsletter May 18, 2016
    1. May 18, 2016 Attachment - Neurodata Conference Letter
    2. May 18, 2016 Attachment - Letter in support of SB 849
    3. May 18, 2016 Attachment - Teleconference Postcard
  14. ABC Newsletter May 4, 2016
    1. May 4, 2016 Attachment - Alcohol, Stress, and the Brain Briefing Flyer
  15. ABC Newsletter Apr 14, 2016
    1. Apr 14, 2016 Attachment - ABC Spring 2016 Membership Meeting Notes
    2. Apr 14, 2016 Attachment - Using our Brains and Art briefing invitation
  16. ABC Newsletter Mar 23, 2016
    1. Mar 23, 2016 Attachment - NMEP meeting invitation
  17. ABC Newsletter Mar 9, 2016
  18. ABC Newsletter Feb 24, 2016
  19. ABC Newsletter Feb 8, 2016
  20. ABC Newsletter Dec 21, 2015
  21. ABC Newsletter Dec 2, 2015
  22. ABC Newsletter Nov 11, 2015
  23. ABC Newsletter Oct 24, 2015
  24. ABC Newsletter Oct 6, 2015
  25. ABC Newsletter Sep 17, 2015
  26. ABC Newsletter Aug 27, 2015
  27. ABC Newsletter Jul 22, 2015
  28. ABC Newsletter Jul 9, 2015
  29. ABC Newsletter Jun 25, 2015
  30. ABC Newsletter May 20, 2015

Alliance for Patient Access

I co-authored an article about improving cancer patients’ access to precision medicine for the Alliance for Patient Access.