About the Center

International scientific cooperation advances both science and the broader relationships among partner countries. Such cooperation serves an important role in initiating relationships, building trust and expanding understanding between countries and societies. Past examples of science diplomacy efforts include high-profile and productive engagements between U.S. and Soviet scientists throughout the 1970’s and 80’s as well as science engagement with the People’s Republic of China before official diplomatic ties were fully established.

Today, science and technology agreements form the backbone of many efforts to incorporate science into the broader diplomatic relationships between and among countries.

While governments have an important role in facilitating science diplomacy, civil society—including scientists— participation is essential in this diplomacy of deeds. In order to promote and support the role of science and scientists as bridge builders and to raise the profile in both the foreign policy and scientific communities AAAS has established this Center for Science Diplomacy.

The Center is to be guided by the over-arching goal of using science and scientific cooperation to promote international understanding and prosperity. It approaches this goal by providing a forum for scientists, policy analysts and policymakers through which they can share information and explore collaborative opportunities. We are particularly interested in identifying opportunities for science diplomacy to serve as a catalyst between societies where official relations might be limited, and to strengthen civil society interactions through partnerships in science and technology.

Focus

The Center’s core activities are built on three key theme areas:

• Inspirational: Raising the profile of science diplomacy as an important element of a broader foreign policy mix by convening events and activities and building a community of stakeholders for science diplomacy activities;
• Operational: Assembling delegations and bilateral activities to put science diplomacy into action;
• Intellectual: Creating a foundation of literature and think pieces that identify and define key issues in science diplomacy and possible best practices.

The Center’s specific action will include:

• Analyze current and past domestic and international science diplomacy efforts and derive lessons learned from those that have succeeded;
• Characterize the major barriers to successful science diplomacy, such as educational and human resource issues, funding problems, or other policy issues; and
• Leverage existing and build new partnerships with appropriate stakeholders in both the scientific and the international affairs communities to develop new initiatives and projects and expand ongoing successful ones.

Latest Events and News

New article from the Center: "The Science of Diplomacy," posted on-line May 2009 in Foreign Policy magazine.

A position is currently open in the Center.

Streaming videos of the following events are now available:
(April 13, 2009) U.S.-China Science and Technology Cooperation at 30: Looking Forward
(March 26, 2009) U.S.-Syria Engagement: The Role of Science, Health and Higher Education Cooperation

Other non-Center News

(June 22, 2009) An editorial by Prof. David Kerr in the science blog of UK's Guardian newspaper.

(June 8, 2009) International Science and Technology Cooperation Act of 2009 has passed the House (see external link for legislation).

(June 4, 2009) U.S. President Obama's speech in Cairo and science, as reported by ScienceInsider.

(May 5, 2009) U.S. Senator Lugar's bill, S.838 (AAAS Legislative Tracker), establishing "United States Science Envoys" passes the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (see external link).