Information for the Public

There's a lot of material to explore in the area of Earth & Life Studies at the National Academies. This page can help guide you through our resources.

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The Role of the Public in Our Studies

The Current Projects System makes it easy for members of the public with interest in a particular subject to follow the progress of a study and submit comments. For example, formal comments on provisional appointments to a committee of the National Academies are solicited during the 20-calendar day period following the posting of the membership.

The Current Projects System provides information about our current committee activities that are subject to the requirements of Section 15 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act Amendments of 1997 (FACA). A Public Access Records Office has also been established to provide access to project materials available to the public.

Many of our meetings and events are open to the public. Events associated with specific projects are posted in the Current Projects System; you can also sign up to receive notifications of upcoming events by subscribing to Our free e-mail notification service.

Citizen Assistance Liaison

The Citizen Assistance Liaison is an employee of the National Academies who provides information for the general public and who facilitates citizen participation in Earth & Life Studies at the National Academies. The Citizen Assistance Liaison serves the following functions:

• Answers questions from the general public about the National Academies and its committee process.
• If needed, directs citizens to appropriate National Academies' staff persons to obtain more information.
• Looks into issues raised by citizens about studies at the National Academies.
• Informs citizens of ways to provide input to studies at the National Academies.

The Citizen Assistance Liaison reports directly to the Executive Director of the Division on Earth and Life Studies. The Citizen Assistance Liaison is independent from the study committees and staff, and he/she does not have the authority to change decisions made by the study committees and staff.

Contact Information:
Call (800) 842-8813 or email citizen@nas.edu.