San Diego’s scientific prowess to be on display amid historic rally for science

On April 22, thousands will gather downtown to represent San Diego in the nearly 500-city strong March For Science, a once-in-a-lifetime science outreach event. In just a few short months, an innocuous internet comment has morphed into a massive, volunteer-led celebration of science across America and throughout 6 continents. Amid this historic event, San Diegans will gather to hold up our region’s scientific prowess as second to none.

8,000 San Diegans have already responded online to converge in downtown San Diego on April 22 for this family-friendly, nonpartisan, educational event. Neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran, Scripps CO2 Program Director Ralph Keeling, and others will speak at the event, and we will host a pop-up science expo showcasing San Diego’s most exciting science.

The mission of MFS-SD is two-fold. Our first goal is to encourage face-to-face conversations between scientists and the public. We want scientists to come show who they are and what they do, and for all San Diegans to come show what science means to them. We believe building trust is prerequisite for our second goal – public policy that both supports and is supported by scientific research.

This is a nonpartisan event. We are gathering to show what we are for, not to protest against. We believe that science belongs to all of us, and the best solutions come from combining scientifically-supported ideas from across the political spectrum. We applaud the long tradition of bipartisan, public support for science, and we are marching to bolster this support from all sides.

What: March for Science – San Diego will include an educational set of speakers at both the beginning and end, a short (about 1 mile) march between the two points, and a mini science expo at the end. The family-friendly science expo will feature exhibits from the Fleet Science Center, San Diego Natural History Museum, Mad Science, Taste of Science, and leading scientists from across San Diego sharing what they do every day.

Who: March for Science – San Diego is a nonpartisan group of scientists, engineers, students, teachers, and STEM enthusiasts, with all backgrounds and beliefs. 8,000 local science enthusiasts have already confirmed their attendance at our march, representing San Diego’s scientific prowess among nearly 500 sister marches across the nation and the world.

When: Saturday, April 22 at 10:00 a.m.

Where: The march will begin at the San Diego Civic Center, 1100 Third Ave, San Diego, CA 92101 and walk about 1 mile to Waterfront Park, 1600 Pacific Highway.

Why: The spontaneous emergence of nearly 500 volunteer-run Marches for Science, across America and around the globe, in just a few weeks, shows that motivations run much deeper than any single trigger. Many people clearly hold long-growing concerns about the role of science in our society, including continued investment in research and education, freedom of speech for scientists, climate change, vaccination, and genetic engineering. However, the broad support for these marches also demonstrates a unique opportunity – science is cool! Science tangibly saves lives, creates jobs, and powers our technology, but it also inspires, amazes, bubbles, and fizzes. If we can unite around anything, it’s science.

Why Here: Our city is a powerful core of scientific innovation. San Diego hosts a world-renowned community of research institutes, universities, tech and biotech companies, medical centers, and aerospace industry leaders. Our city’s non-profit research institutions alone generate a 4.6 billion dollar total economic impact on the regional economy (San Diego Regional Economic Development Council).

For more information, contact Diana Hereld at media@marchforsciencesd.com