On December 9, the International Science Council (ISC) announced the Global Commission on Science Missions for Sustainability, with the sole purpose of pressing the reset button on efforts to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Guo Huadong, Director General of CBAS, was invited to serve as a member of the commission.
The commission is being established by ISC and backed by the recent ISC report titled “Unleashing Science”, which makes the case for stepping out of our business-as-usual approaches towards structuring science, funding science, and doing science. The commission symbolizes strategic and concrete cooperation.
Co-chaired by Irina Bokova, former Bulgarian Foreign Minister and Director General of UNESCO, and Helen Clark, former Prime Minster of New Zealand, the commission brings together political leaders, scientists, and influential personalities tasked with co-designing and mobilizing support, aiming for a global fund for mission-oriented science as part of a decade of action. It will suggest the best ways to organize research of a global nature where there are urgent gaps to be addressed if the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is to be progressed more expeditiously. The commission will explore the concept of key mission centres/stations to ensure accelerated progress in defined areas of urgent need, and recommend a system, including an appropriate governance structure, for the delivery of mission-led scientific activities in ways that serve the global public good. Importantly, the commission will identify funding needs and assist the ISC in seeking political and funding support for such activities.
ISC is a non-governmental organization with a unique global membership bringing together over 200 international scientific unions and associations, plus national and regional scientific organizations, academies, and research councils. ISC was created in 2018 as the result of a merger between the International Council for Science (ICSU) and the International Social Science Council (ISSC). It is the only international non-governmental organization bringing together the natural and social sciences and the largest global science organization of its type.
For more details visit ISC website.