17 to 19 October 2018, Panama City, Panama
Highlights Videos Photos Presentations Program Reading Material
Speakers Participants Content Organizers Venue Logistic
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) and the National Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation (SENACYT) have organized the Workshop on Science Diplomacy held in Panama City on 17 to 19 October 2018. The course took place in the week prior to the Latin America and the Caribbean Open Science Forum (CILAC 2018), in order to promote an exchange of knowledge and experiences among scientific researchers, managers and other experts and leaders from Panama and the Latin American Region, on various themes associated with global changes (health, energy, climate change, water, etc.).
Highlights
The Science and Diplomacy workshop, organized jointly by the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), the Panamanian National Secretary for Science, Technology, and Innovation (SENACYT are its initials in Spanish), and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), was held from October 17th – 19th, in Panama City, Panama. The workshop brought together over 30 scientists, decision-makers and diplomats from Central American and Caribbean countries, including Panama, to discuss strategies and experiences implementing science diplomacy in the region.
The first day, participants were given a brief overview of science diplomacy, where speakers painted a broad picture of basic concepts and terminology, what work has been done internationally on science diplomacy, and how it can shape future work. The second day was structured so that participants shared their perspectives on how science diplomacy takes place in their respective countries by presenting specific case studies within their national context. These sessions covered a number of topics, ranging from public health issues, to conservation, to risk management, to help convey the universal applicability of science diplomacy as a whole. The last day, discussions focused on the importance of science diplomacy in the international sphere, centering on the role of multilateral organizations in bringing together groups of people from different countries and disciplines to work on wide-reaching problems.
Entering the workshop, many participants were unsure of what science diplomacy was and the different ways it could be implemented; however, by the end of the third day, participants were better able to articulate the meaning of science diplomacy to them, its importance, and its applications. Many of the participants were enthusiastic about taking their new-found knowledge of science diplomacy back to their home countries to apply there. Throughout the workshop, individuals from different countries bounced ideas off each other and discussed successes as well as obstacles and limitations to implementing science diplomacy in Latin America. Furthermore, throughout the sessions, many participants connected and discussed potential collaborations to continue to work on in the future. Overall, the workshop was successful in providing a roadmap and platform for individuals interested in science diplomacy to work off of and build connections and strategies into the future.
Highlights:
30+ participants from 9 Latin American countries came together for three days in a collaborative learning environment to learn about science diplomacy and its application in the region
Participants shared past experiences with science diplomacy (both successes and challenges) and exchanged ideas with each other to build regional, collaborative science diplomacy networks.
The workshop discussions and recommendations will be used by SENACYT and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support the new Science Diplomacy strategy that will be developed by Panamá’s government. The country is establishing a committee to implement this strategy. The workshop was jointly organized by IAI-AAAS-SENACYT Panama.
Videos
Photos
Group photo
Presentation – Carlos Matsumoto, Brasil
Presentation – Aldo López, Guatemala
Presentation – Dr. Jorge Motta, Panamá
Presentation – Carol Franco, USA
Work group
Presentations
17/10
Marcella Ohira
Marga Gual Soler
18/10
Carlos Matsumoto
Carlos Alberto Méndez y Grelia López
Angel Javier Vega
César Flores
Joanna Valois
Rodrigo Vargas
19/10
Roberto Sánchez-Rodríguez
Program
The program of the course will include the following activities:
• Conferences (more academic with the facilitation of regional experts in different areas of knowledge and the different fields of diplomacy).
• Case studies (communication skills development, team work, problem solving initiatives)
• Exchange and interaction between participants.
• Development of cooperation networks and planning of national and regional collaboration activities.
• Development of a publication with case studies of science diplomacy of the lecturers and participants.
Suggested reading material
Marga Gual Soler
https://www.aaas.org/scidip-online-course
Franklin A. Carrero-Martinez
https://sites.nationalacademies.org/PGA/sustainability/
https://sites.nationalacademies.org/PGA/sustainabilitytopics/index.htm
https://www.nap.edu/catalog/21730/diplomacy-for-the-21st-century-embedding-a-culture-of-science
https://www.nap.edu/catalog/9688/the-pervasive-role-of-science-technology-and-health-in-foreign-policy
https://www.nap.edu/catalog/10577/knowledge-and-diplomacy-science-advice-in-the-united-nations-system
Carol Franco
Research Article – Politics and Governance: Can Climate Change Negotiations Succeed? – Jon Hovi, Tora Skodvin and Stine Aakre. September 2013 – DOI: 10.12924/pag2013.01020138.
Elsevier – Research – Climate Change—Review: The 2 °C Global Temperature Target and the Evolution of the Long-Term Goal of Addressing Climate Change—From the UNFCCC to the PA – Yun Gao, Xiang Gao, Xiaohua Zhang. April 2017.
Nature Climate Change – Perspective: Science and Policy in the PA. July 2016 – DOI: 10.1038/NCLIMATE3096.
Speakers
Angel Vega
Carlos Matsumoto
Carmenza SpadaforaInstitute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services (INDICASAT)
Panama
Bio profile
Carol Franco
Claudia GuerreroNational Secretary of Science and Technology and Innovation of Panama (SENACYT)
Panama
Bio profile
Ernesto Fernández-Polcuch
Franklin A. Carrero-Martinez
Hector Guzmán
Ivan Landires
Jorge MottaNational Secretary of Science and Technology and Innovation of Panama (SENACYT)
Luz CruzNational Secretary of Science and Technology and Innovation of Panama (SENACYT)
Panama
Marcella Ohira
Marga Gual SolerAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
USA
Milagro MainieriNational Secretary of Science and Technology and Innovation of Panama (SENACYT)
Panama
Bio Profile
Roberto Sánchez-Rodríguez
Rolando A. GittensInstitute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services (INDICASAT AIP)
Panama
Bio profile
Sandra López-Vergès
Participants
Aldo Ismael López AmayaNational Secretariat of Science and Technology (SENACYT)
Guatemala
Bio profile
Amador GoodridgeInstitute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services (INDICASAT AIP)
Panama
Argentina Ying
Ariadna Batista
Axel Villalobos 
Aydeé Cornejo
Carlos Alberto Mendez
Cesar Flores
Edgardo Díaz Fergunson
Eugenia Rodriguez
Francisco GarcíaNational Secretary of Science and Technology and Innovation of Panama (SENACYT)
Panama
Bio profile
Gabrielle BrittonInstitute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services (INDICASAT AIP)
Panama
Bio profile
Grelia Lopez Alvarez
Helen Gutiérrez
Indra Candanedo
Jesus Alvelo
Joanna Valois
José LoaizaInstitute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services (INDICASAT AIP)
Panama
Bio profile
Lourdes Ginart
Luis MejíaInstitute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services (INDICASAT AIP)
Panama
Bio profile
Mónica ShipprittNational Secretary of Science and Technology and Innovation of Panama (SENACYT)
Panama
Bio profile
Oris Sanjur
Ricardo Moreno
Rodrigo José Vargas Rosales
Tomás Mendizábal
Zuleika Pinzón
Zulmarie Perez
Content
Science diplomacy workshop
Directed to: Public managers, diplomats and scientific researchers of Panama and Latin America
Language: The course will be taught in Spanish (although at times facilitators might speak in English).
Place: Hotel to be defined
Date: From Wednesday 17 at noon until Friday 19 at the end of the afternoon.
The course is designed as an exchange forum of knowledge and experiences in science diplomacy at the national and regional levels. The program will be developed in two and a half days and will combine presentations on the general framework of scientific diplomacy and experiences of scientists and managers from Panama and international experts from the region.
The course will emphasize the connection between national challenges, global challenges and the boundaries between the different areas of knowledge and the various levels of intervention of science diplomacy and their contributions to the interface between science and policy making.
Through the workshop, participants are expected to:
• Interact and exchange directly with leaders and regional experts in the field of scientific diplomacy and the borders between science and politics.
• Understand the role of science, technology and innovation in sustainable development, global and local changes.
• Identify the tools to apply interaction skills between science and diplomacy.
• Create spaces for interaction between scientists, decision makers and local leaders to connect research results, public policies and the challenges of sustainable development.
• Establish science-policy cooperation networks between participants from Panama and Latin America and plan national and regional scientific diplomacy collaboration activities.
Organizers
Coordinating Team:
• Center for Science Diplomacy of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
• Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) – Capacity Building Division
• R+D Directorate of the National Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation (SENACYT)
Venue
Hotel Holiday Inn Panama Canal
7th floor
Ave. Omar Torrijos Herrera, Clayton, Panamá, Rep. Panamá
Telephone: +507 317-4000
www.hinnpanama.com