atkins served as chair of the national science foundation’s blue-ribbon advisory panel on cyberinfrastructure. in 2003 this panel released the influential report, "revolutionizing science and engineering through cyberinfrastructure" which recommended that the nsf form a program in cyberinfrastructure-enhanced science and engineering research. he was also the director of the nsf expres project that laid the foundation for nsf's fastlane all-electronic proposal submission and management system. in 2002, atkins co-authored (with james duderstadt and doug van houweling) the book "higher education in the digital age: technology issues and strategies for american colleges and universities". he served as chair of a scientific advisory committee for the digital media and learning program for the macarthur foundation, chair of an international panel to review the uk research councils e-science programmes, as a member of a task force to draft the obama administration’s national educational technology plan 2010, and as an expert witness to the fcc national broadband plan.