There’s been a lot of discussion about what we can do to help the science community, especially since the election. Want to take action but don’t know where to start? Open those wallets and donate to a science charity. In honor of #GivingTuesday, we’re listing ten organizations that are doing good work for STEM, broken down by category:
General Science:
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) – AAAS is the world’s largest general scientific society, dedicated to advancing science, engineering innovation for the benefit of all people. AAAS has members in 91 countries, and is a leading publisher of cutting-edge research. Donations help AAAS to advance science and engineering in such things as public engagement, K-12 education, and science diplomacy.
Women in academia:
Association for Women in Science (AWIS) – AWIS is the largest multi-disciplinary organization for women in STEM. Donations to AWIS provide scholarships and research awards to women, with the goal of creating gender equity.
American Association of University Women (AAUW) – Founded in 1881, the AAUW is one of the nation’s leading organizations promoting equity and education for women in girls. Your money goes toward fighting unequal representation in government and business, discrimination and harassment in the workplace and the gender pay gap.
Women in Engineering (WIE) – The IEEE Women in Engineering is one of the largest international professional organizations dedicated to promoting women engineers and scientists. They help facilitate recruitment and retention of women in technical disciplines through conferences, mentoring and scholarships.
Medical:
Consano – You’ve heard us mention this many times before, but Consano gives you the opportunity to give to specific medical research projects or labs. Your money won’t go into a general fund, instead it goes to things as specific as a new mirror for a microscope in a lab that’s researching the next cure for cancer. If you want to learn about it more, you can always listen to our podcast episode with the founder, Molly Lindquist.
Coding:
Girls Who Code – If computer science is your passion, consider donating to Girls Who Code, a non-profit dedicated to helping girls become programmers. Since 2012, the group has organized programs throughout the academic year and summer to teach high school girls computing and programming skills.
Education/Fellowships:
Carnegie Science Foundation – The Carnegie Institution for Science was founded in 1902 by Andrew Carnegie as an organization for scientific discovery. Today, Carnegie scientists work in six different departments across the country. You can choose to support the foundation as a whole, post-doc and graduate fellowships, their lecture series or one of their education programs.
Space:
Planetary Society – Want to move to Mars? The Planetary Society has three main goals: sponsoring technological development and research, education and advocacy. We may not be racing to send the first man on the moon but this organization aims to make sure space exploration is still on the agenda. Its founders are Carl Sagan, Bruce Murray, and Louis Friedman and the CEO is Bill Nye.
Environment/Climate:
National Resources Defense Council – The NRDC is dedicated to protecting the earth – people, plants, animals and natural systems. Members include scientists, lawyers and policy advocates from all across the globe. The organization was founded in 1970 by a group of law students and attorneys at the forefront of the environmental movement, and continues to work to ensure all people have access to clean air and water.
WildAid – This group’s mission is to stop illegal wildlife trades within our lifetime. While most wildlife conservation groups focus on protecting animals from poaching, WildAid works to reduce global consumption of wildlife products by persuading consumers and strengthening enforcement. When the buying stops, the killing can too.
Bonus:
Your local universities have a number of chapters for women in science organizations. If you want to help closer to home, look for the local chapters of groups like Society of Women Engineers, WISE, Women in Technology and Women in Biology.
Have a favorite STEM-related organization that’s worthy of a donation? Let us know in the comments.