SACRAMENTO, Calif., Jan. 14, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — As a part of a brand new Science Residency Program to embed impartial scientific experience immediately in California state authorities, the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) introduced that Andrew D. Jones, PhD, started his residency as the primary Science Advisor to the California Natural Resources Secretary. The placement, which started January 5, 2026, is in partnership with CCST, the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA), and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.
CCST’s new Science Residency Program helps evidence-based policymaking on California’s most urgent challenges, together with local weather resilience, biodiversity, adaptation to wildfire dangers, water administration, and ecosystem well being.
“We are thrilled to launch the CCST Science Residency Program with this first appointment at the California Natural Resources Agency,” stated Julianne McCall, PhD, CEO of the California Council on Science and Technology. “Embedding trusted scientific expertise directly in support of executive leadership ensures that the best available evidence is part of crafting solutions for California’s most complex environmental and natural resource priorities. Dr. Jones brings exceptional depth, interdisciplinary perspective, and a deep commitment to bridging science and policy that will strengthen decision-making across CNRA.”
Dr. Jones is a analysis scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) the place he leads the Earth Systems and Society Program Domain, specializing in human-Earth system interactions and local weather resilience at decision-relevant scales. His work brings collectively quantitative modeling and collaborative engagement with useful resource managers, city planners, and stakeholders throughout sectors to tell actionable science for coverage and planning. He can also be an Adjunct Professor within the interdisciplinary Energy and Resources Group program at UC Berkeley.
“I am honored to serve as the inaugural Science Advisor to Secretary Crowfoot and to partner with CCST and the Natural Resources Agency,” stated Dr. Andrew Jones. “California’s environmental challenges are urgent and multifaceted. I look forward to supporting CNRA’s mission by helping integrate rigorous scientific insight into cross-agency collaboration and policymaking that advances resilience, equitable outcomes, and sustainable resource stewardship.”
In this position, Dr. Jones will advise Secretary Wade Crowfoot and the CNRA management crew on science and expertise points affecting pure useful resource coverage, join scientific and coverage communities, and assist cross-sector collaborations to strengthen California’s response to complicated, evolving points.
“At this important moment, science must guide how we tackle climate change and other pressing environmental challenges,” stated California Natural Resources Agency Secretary Wade Crowfoot. “Appointing Dr. Jones as the first CNRA Science Advisor is a watershed moment. Our partnerships with California’s world-class academic and research institutions build on the strong work of state scientists and point the way forward. Dr. Jones’ renowned expertise and leadership will strengthen how we use science to protect Californians and build a bright future for our state.”
This Science Advisor placement, the primary of CCST’s Science Residency Program, is facilitated by CCST with assist from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, reflecting a shared dedication to fostering efficient pathways between analysis, proof, and public coverage.
“Partnerships like this, launched in this case thanks to CCST and the Natural Resources Agency, can accelerate progress and enable evidence-based decision-making on urgent issues,” stated Genevieve Biggs, Program Director, Wildfire Resilience Initiative and Special Projects on the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, “and offer a model for how scientific expertise and public institutions can together make a tangible, positive difference.”
About CCST
The California Council on Science and Technology is a nonpartisan, nonprofit group that engages main specialists in science and expertise to advise state policymakers — making certain that California coverage is strengthened and knowledgeable by scientific data, analysis, and innovation. Established through a unanimous vote of the Legislature in 1988, CCST has been making California’s insurance policies stronger with science and expertise for almost 40 years.
About CNRA
We are on a mission to assist all Californians and nature thrive collectively. Home to over 25,000 staff, our Agency protects, manages, and restores the state’s setting and its huge pure, cultural, and historic assets. We advance this work with science as our basis and inclusion and collaboration as our guiding rules.
About the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation advances scientific discovery, environmental conservation, and the particular character of the San Francisco Bay Area. Visit moore.org and comply with @MooreDiscovered.
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