Science Diplomacy as a New Perspective on Global Challenges

How did your interest in science diplomacy begin?

It all began with a question I asked myself: What does the Costa Rican government need in order to promote and develop the country based on current capacities? And I realized that this was precisely the realm of science. I found that there was a great effort to connect Costa Rican scientists abroad.

While working at the Directorate for Cooperation, I began to realize the growing importance of projects that could benefit from international cooperation, in terms of knowledge generation needs and knowledge networks in the field of science.

When I was at COP21 in 2015, I noticed the fundamental role that scientists played in carrying forward the Paris Agreement that had taken so many years to adopt. All these elements came together, and I realized there is something that we have been doing but that we have not consolidated as an integral task within diplomacy. I thought that maybe we have always done science diplomacy, but in a very specific way, not with that vision of transversality.

"Challenges are of such magnitude on a global level that they can no longer be addressed from local spaces, but rather on a planetary scale, as everyone has a shared responsibility."

When we adopted the 2030 agenda and the Climate Change Convention, we realized that the challenges are of such magnitude that they can no longer be addressed from the local space, but from a planetary perspective, and that in these spaces governments no longer have the capacity to advance alone. Everyone has a shared responsibility. Also, we need to work permanently with science to strengthen the action and political incidence of the State, but also to identify the risks we are facing, and their urgency or priority, and what the possible solutions might be.

How can science diplomacy innovate decision-making in our region?

The first thing that science diplomacy in the region must do, and I believe that the IAI is promoting it very strongly, is to bring the scientific communities of the region closer together, but bring them closer together with politicians, decision-makers, the private sector, and other sectors, which appear totally disconnected. In Western thought, we are very binary. Sometimes we believe that science is one thing and diplomacy is another. We learned to specialize in the 20th century, and we lost the perspective of integrated knowledge, and so now the great challenge is how to return to bringing together all these areas of knowledge to find out how we can jointly respond to all those challenges of global change that we are facing.

"Science diplomacy must bring scientific communities closer to decision-makers, with the private sector, with other sectors that are totally disconnected"

Science diplomacy must be very clear that it has two minimum components: one is diplomacy, involving political support, spokespeople and knowing how to negotiate; and the other is science, like the compass that the states can have to use to guide their efforts. The field is also concerned with how to become closer in the language, because many times the scientists are on one side and the diplomats on the other. This has made us lose the ability to influence; if we bring our efforts together, it is very likely that we can maximize our results.

What advice would you give scientists to also improve their own science diplomacy skills?

The pandemic was a clear example that showed how important it is to share knowledge in the face of a scourge like this one. And also how important it is to make knowledge available in international repositories so that we can join forces. Because these are issues that go beyond the borders and that have to be addressed by everyone.

What is important for a scientist to learn? Let's say to make the language accessible so that it is understandable for decision-makers. This will also help actors know each other,  discover what others do, so that we identify in which fields we can help local science to develop and expand, and also to see how science may help us support us to move the international community.

“In the 20th century, we learned about specialization, and we lost the perspective of integrated knowledge. Now the great challenge is how we bring together again the knowledge to respond to the challenges of global change”

Scientists may now have the possibility to venture into other areas of knowledge. For example, our Academy, which was previously open to lawyers, economists and international relations specialists, changed its curriculum so that scientists who may be interested can obtain a master's degree in diplomacy. The support of science is not there simply to be able to be in a negotiating delegation. It is there to be able to advise long before in a delegation, where we should walk, what things are being dangerous or threatening.

What can you tell us about the IAI’s Science Diplomacy Center?

The recently launched Science Diplomacy Center is a hub in charge of launching spaces for the exchange of knowledge, the creation of research networks, the mobility of professionals, and discussions from public policy to science and from science to public policy. It also concerns itself with sharing advances in science and technology so that their benefits reach humanity and not only reach some groups. So I believe that there all these types of perspectives among multiple actors, with multiple challenges, at different levels, can come into play under an ordering framework that drives them and stimulates them.

What recommendations do you have for scientists and other professionals with an interest in science diplomacy?

Some universities offer courses in science diplomacy, however, courses do not necessarily require a structured framework. The conceptual base needs to be strengthened, but one of the fundamental roles that the IAI’s Science Diplomacy Center can have is to continue fostering the growth of the conceptual base.

For a young scientist, for a young diplomat, I would recommend that they study, that they read. There is a wealth of information now circulating freely. If they can pursue the carrier of science diplomacy, it would be wonderful, because I think they are going to give it a new air and they are going to enrich our exchanges.

"Hopefully, the young people of today will return to that Renaissance mentality that overflowed with new perspectives and a new way of seeing the world."

Science diplomacy does not necessarily mean that scientists become diplomats, but that they learn how to speak with diplomats and approach them to show what they are doing, what they know, how they know it and in what way they can support governments. Science diplomacy has many areas and many perspectives where both sectors can work and put common efforts at the service of humanity.

Hopefully, the younger generations will return to the Renaissance mentality of the 12th and 13th centuries, which tried to recover all the knowledge available, which overflowed with new sensibilities, new perspectives, a new way of seeing the world, and of understanding our existence on Earth. I believe that this Renaissance spirit begins by understanding that we do not live in isolation, but that we have to communicate with each other, that we live in society and that we are capable of carrying out tasks together.

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You can learn more about the IAI’s Science Diplomacy Center here: https://www.iai.int/en/post/detail/SDC 

Watch the interview (in Spanish) on YouTube: https://youtu.be/iNeG3XXVp94