By Hannah Frank

“I grew up in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania” is my most impressive credential. 

I work in agricultural research, at the intersection of fungi and plants, so being from the Mushroom Capital of the World--and the home of the nation’s best public garden--carries some weight. More importantly, growing up here taught me what strong community looks like and instilled in me a sense of obligation to my neighbors and society at large. I bring these values to my work, which is focused on helping farmers achieve better output with fewer inputs, and helping them stay resilient in the face of uncertain weather patterns. These days, I’m anxious for these farmers, and for everyone who depends on the food that they produce. This is because the systems we have in place to ensure a safe, reliable, and resilient food supply in this country are being destroyed.

I am three years into my doctorate program in Horticulture at Cornell University, studying beneficial soil fungi in vineyards. They are called arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, or AMF, and they grow in the soil and into the roots of around 80% of plants on earth. No, they do not produce mushrooms like the ones we are known for in Kennett, but they are critical for plant growth. They deliver nutrients from the soil to the roots of the plant in exchange for the sugars the plant has produced through photosynthesis. This mutually beneficial relationship, or symbiosis, has evolved over millions of years and is an unseen but fundamental aspect of food (or in the case of my research, wine) production. One of the goals of my work is to assess whether or not the commercial products sold to boost these fungi in the soil actually benefit the vines, and therefore if they are worthwhile investments for farmers to make. My research, like most other agricultural science, is funded by the USDA. I am trying to build my career around helping farmers rely on fewer inputs, which means I am more focused on management practices than profit-driven product development.There is no alternative to federal funds.

I know there are frustrations with how our government is run and I share many of those. I have worked as a laborer at the USDA two separate times, including during the longest government shutdown in U.S. history in 2019. But the cuts we are seeing to our scientific institutions today terrify me. Not only will research like mine be cut, but the impact this will have on our farmers and our food supply will be disastrous. The scientific community will lose years of work to improve agricultural efficiency, as well as a generation's worth of scientists who will be needed to train the next, and farmers will lose resources they depend on.

Here’s just one example of many. In the Finger Lakes, grape growers are bracing for their introduction to the spotted lanternfly, something we southeastern Pennsylvanians are all too familiar with. While this invasive pest decimated vineyards in Berks County a decade ago, the overall impact on the wine industry in PA (and its inevitable spread to other states) has been far less catastrophic than it could have been. This is thanks to the impressive public awareness campaign as well as research into the lanternfly’s biology and how effective pesticides are in controlling populations. Much of this work was funded by the USDA. We will not be able to help handle the next invasive pest with the drastic reductions in USDA research spending.

I am not asking you to pick a side; quite the opposite. I am asking you to actively support investments in people and projects that benefit us all. There should not be sides to this. 

For our part, the scientific community is realizing that we must be better at communicating how our research leads to real-world improvements. For me, I’m starting this work by writing to you. And for anyone who has questions about what I am saying, please reach out— [email protected].  I by no means think I have all the answers, but I can speak on what I know and care about to the community I know and care about.

Join me in this effort. Call Senators Fetterman and McCormick and tell them to pass legislation that maintains or increases funding for scientific research. Tell them you demand support for medical innovation so that it continues to move forward. I was lucky to go to Mary D. Lang Elementary through Kennett High School and, until starting my Ph.D, had only attended public schools. Demand that the government funds public education and research institutions. Our investment in one another benefits us all and instills in us the sense of care for and obligation to our society that makes a town like Kennett a place to brag about.

Hannah Frank is a member of the Kennett High School class of 2013 and a recipient of the American Mushroom Institute scholarship. She is the youngest of the four Frank kids. This piece is part of a larger effort to improve communication around federally funded research outside of academic institutions. More general feedback regarding the state of scientific funding is welcomed at http://tiny.cc/sciencepledge.