Buffy Hamilton's Unquiet Commonplace "Book"

Michael F. Adams is president of the University of Georgia. G.P. “Bud” Peterson is president of the Georgia Institute of Technology.

But now, much of the federal funding for this important research is in jeopardy because of the so-called fiscal cliff, or sequestration, which is scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1.

If sequestration becomes a reality, it will affect every major public research university in the nation — and this will impact jobs, the economy and, most importantly, our state’s future.

Nearly everyone agrees that sequestration would be a disaster. In 2013 alone, it would result in a $12.5 billion reduction in federally funded research and development across the U.S., causing an estimated 200,000 job losses, disrupting multi-year research projects, and hampering growth-inducing investments.