32 Policy Paper

This type of scientific communication is typically known as a “white paper”, to refer to an official government report and the type of paper it was printed on. These papers are typically regarded as authoritative and informative, while still taking a specific, principled stance on an issue.^[1] Policy papers can be commonly written by or sponsored by business and/or industry partners and targeted towards policy makers in government and academia. These types of policy papers are compiled by publishers like C&EN (Chemistry & Engineering News) or CAS.

Structure of a Policy Paper^[2]

Unlike the Decision Memo, a Policy Paper starts with the big picture and funnels the reader’s attention to the proposed solution. The expected paper length is 2–4 pages, as needed to make your policy proposal. Using the following headings will help your non-technical audience digest your argument.

Executive Summary

Your executive summary should contain a title that states the problem to be solved and your position. For instance, instead of “Teaching Students Green and Sustainable Chemistry”, a more descriptive title would be “Engaging Students Green and Sustainable Chemistry: A case study approach to defining sustainability problems and designing green chemistry solutions.”

The text of this 1-page summary should concisely summarize the scope, boundaries, and severity of the sustainability problem. It should outline key stakeholders and/or criteria or constraints on the solution design. Finally, it should preview the rest of the paper by (1) stating outright what the proposed solution is and (2) predicting what the outcome would be of adopting the proposed solution based on the analysis you conducted in beSocratic.

Problem Definition and Background

Your team should use Case Study 2 Problem Scenario and Background to provide the policymaker with an understanding of the current state of the sustainability problem. What is the general background needed to understand what is going on and how we got here? What is the underlying chemistry of this sustainability problem, and how does it work? Be sure to include a reaction mechanism as appropriate, explaining how and why the reaction occurs. Is the chemical contribution to the problem based on where the chemicals are sourced from (beginning-of-life) or what happens with the post-consumer waste (end-of-life)?

With this general background, use your understanding of the Case Study to define and analyze the problem. Who are the stakeholders? What are the criteria for an acceptable solution? What constraints or issues make this problem challenging to solve?

Summarize the potential solutions your team investigated in the beSocratic activity and your methods for analyzing those solutions. What are the opportunities to tackle this sustainability problem? What would be the challenges, strengths, and implications of each proposed solution?

Recommended Solution

Briefly, use your analysis to provide your recommendation. How would you propose lawmakers move forward with the solution you advocate for? What are the limitations, and how might future scientists and advocates address these concerns?

Conclusion

Summarize your analysis and restate your recommendation.

References

Include a set of references in ACS citation format.

Policy Paper Success Guide

This guide will be embedded into D2L for the lab instructor to evaluate your policy paper. They will provide you feedback in the comment portion on D2L of any strengths of your argument. The policy paper is a collaborative effort worth 20 points total, graded holistically.