REPORT OF THE SCIENTIFIC BOARD OF THE INTERNATIONAL BASIC SCIENCES PROGRAMME (IBSP) ( ) OUTLINE

Transcription

1 38th Session, Paris, 2015 rep Report 38 C/REP/14 2 September 2015 Original: English REPORT OF THE SCIENTIFIC BOARD OF THE INTERNATIONAL BASIC SCIENCES PROGRAMME (IBSP) ( ) OUTLINE Source: Article 7 of the Statutes of the IBSP Scientific Board. Background: The present report is hereby submitted to the General Conference by the IBSP Scientific Board in accordance with Article 7 of its Statutes as approved by 169 EX/Decision of the Executive Board, and with reference to 32 C/Resolution 15. Purpose: To inform the General Conference of the principal IBSP activities during the biennium, and of the opportunities the development of this programme offers Member States for the use of the basic sciences to foster innovation that will improve human wellbeing, help protect the environment and human health, and build up competitive technology and agriculture. The Board also appeals to the Member States gathering at the General Conference of UNESCO to reconsider the low budgetary ranking given to the basic sciences by the Executive Board.

2 38 C/REP/14 I. INTRODUCTION 1. Established by UNESCO as one of its International Science Programmes (ISP) with a specified mandate, strategy, content, and expected results, the International Basic Sciences Programme (IBSP) is providing an overarching platform to fulfil UNESCO s unique mandate in the basic sciences within the United Nations system. Based on this mandate and the Organization s long-standing fruitful activity in the basic sciences, the Executive Board in its 185 EX/Decision 11 set up the principal elements for UNESCO s future engagement with the basic sciences, and invited the Director-General to further develop the International Basic Sciences Programme in line with the recommendations of UNESCO s Ministerial Round Tables on The Basic Sciences: The Science Lever for Development (2005) and Science and Technology for Sustainable Development and the Role of UNESCO (2007), and in line with 181 EX/Decision 10, and 182 EX/Decision 14. With this background, the present report informs delegates of IBSP s main activities of the biennium, with some particular highlights, as well as about future opportunities that IBSP may offer Member States in its capacity as a science lever for development. It is also with this background that the Scientific Board of IBSP appeals to UNESCO s Member States to reconsider the current low budgetary priority assigned to the basic sciences (category C), bearing in mind their vital role for scientific innovation, which is at the root of any knowledge-based sustainable development, and especially in light of the formulation of the post-2015 development agenda, which has put a new emphasis on the role of STI for sustainable development. II. BIENNIAL DEVELOPMENTS 2. According to the Statutes of IBSP the composition of the Scientific Board is to be renewed every three years. By the end of 2013, the mandate of the previous Board Members had expired and, after consulting UNESCO s Electoral Groups, and the Organization s partners in the basic sciences (ICSU Scientific Unions, TWAS, research centres, universities, and regional and international NGOs), the Director-General appointed new Members. The IBSP Board now consists of 19 world renown scientific researchers (9 female and 10 male), representing all regions Africa (3), Asia and Pacific (3), Arab States (3), Eastern and South Eastern Europe (3), Western Europe and North America (4), and Latin America and the Caribbean (3). At the first meeting of the newly composed Board, a Chairperson, Professor Berhanu Abegaz (Ethiopia, chemistry), the Executive Director of the African Academy of Sciences, was elected from among the Members, as laid down by the Statutes. 3. During the biennium, IBSP succeeded in attracting substantial extrabudgetary funds thus allowing the successful continuation of the programme, despite budgetary constraints in the regular budget. Further, thanks to efficient cost-sharing partnerships already developed within the programme, and the determination of, and generous support from, partner organizations, IBSP was able to implement several major priority actions necessitating UNESCO involvement, including its work with partners in the process of establishment of 10 new category 2 centres among the 19 proposals made by the Natural Sciences Sector. The following detailed examples of programme actions undertaken in are representative of what has been implemented. 4. The IBSP extrabudgetary PhosAgro/UNESCO/IUPAC Partnership in Green Chemistry for Life was created thanks to an agreement signed between UNESCO and the Russian agricultural fertilizer producer PhosAgro. The programme, which had its two first editions in 2014 and 2015, aims at generating and applying new scientific knowledge in green chemistry through the promotion of the activity in this area among young scientists. It also aims at reinforcing green chemistry research in the participating institutes and cooperation between them, and at increasing awareness of policy- and decision-makers in governments, science and industry, and the public at large, of the opportunities offered by advances in green chemistry. Over 120 applications from all over the world were received for the first round of applications for the PhosAgro/UNESCO/IUPAC research grants. And for the second the figure was over 130. A total of 12 awards, six per call, each to the amount of US $30,000, has so far been awarded to young scientists from all continents.

3 38 C/REP/14 page 2 5. The IBSP/ICTP longstanding joint project on Active Learning in Optics and Photonics (ALOP) seeks to introduce an innovative concept of inquiry-based science education, especially in basic and applied physics. The success of the ALOP workshops is mainly due to a dedicated team of experts running the courses, and a continuously updated programme which gained acclaim for advancing quality science education, national research, and technological applications. In 2015, the ALOP workshops are being run in association with the International Year of Light, as one of the highlight activities of the Year at a global level. 6. The Human Variome Project (HVP), an international high-priority global initiative was encouraged by the IBSP Board from its inception. Its mission is to collect and share data, and investigate human genetic variation and its impact on human health. The HVP has been granted the status of an NGO having working relations with UNESCO, as well as the status of an NGO collaborating with WHO. The fifth HVP Biennial Conference held at UNESCO Headquarters in 2014 set a roadmap for , involving IBSP as a partner. Among them is the creation of HVP National Nodes, crucial for further development of the project, such as those in China, Malaysia, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia created during the current biennium. In 2015, IBSP/HVP cooperation resulted in the Conference Breast Cancer Challenge held at UNESCO Headquarters in June 2015, which gathered scientists, policy- and decision-makers, and a wide range of stakeholders in science concerned with the genetics of breast cancer. The meeting was a landmark event that uncovered new opportunities for action within the HVP project conducive to benefits for healthcare and the understanding of the biological diversity of the human genome. 7. Science education with Microscience kits is a longstanding project stemming from IBSP collaboration with IUPAC, the RADMASTE Centre at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg (South Africa) and Somerset Educational (South Africa). It is a hands-on science education project that gives primary- and secondary-school teachers and students, as well as university students, the opportunity to conduct practical work in physics, chemistry and biology, using kits that come with booklets describing scientific experiments. These kits are veritable minilaboratories. They are cost effective and safe, as trainees never need to use more than a couple of drops of chemicals for experimentation. The project also serves as an advocacy tool among policymakers to improve science curricula by inclusion of hands-on experimentation for a better understanding of science, and to increase the interest of young people in science careers. The microscience project became very popular among UNESCO Member States, with usually about 10 microscience workshops being organized per year, co-financed by the hosting Member State. The most recent workshop was that in the Comoros Islands (June 2015). Further workshops are planned in Liberia, Zambia, Congo, Cabo Verde, and in Equatorial Guinea for the fall Activities in mathematics and mathematics education, developed through collaboration with the International Mathematical Union (IMU), the Commission on Mathematics Instruction (ICMI) and several mathematical organizations around the world. The Mathematics of the Planet Earth (MPE) initiative, launched in 2013 and continued through the current biennium, is a showcase for the mathematical sciences involvement in tackling the world s problems (e.g. mathematical modelling applied to climate change, natural disasters, monitoring migration of species or changes in oceans levels). The scientific programme of the MPE includes summer schools, workshops, thematic scientific meetings, travelling mathematics exhibitions and laboratories, collaborative projects, and a range of outreach activities. In general, the IBSP mathematics programme focuses on Africa and Gender Equality, the two global priorities of UNESCO. The best example of this is creation in 2015 of the African Women Mathematics Association, in collaboration with the African Mathematical Union (AMU) and the Centre International de Mathématiques Pures et Appliquées (CIMPA). IBSP also contributes to the Next Einstein Initiative (NEI), and the related Forum (NEF), which promotes mathematical sciences among talented young minds from the African continent with the aim that the next Einstein comes from Africa. The initiative also comprises the African Olympiads in Mathematics, contributing to identify young talents from the continent. A possibility of supporting the creation of a Mathematics Prize for African researchers working in Africa is under discussion with the Daniel Iagolnitzer Foundation.

4 38 C/REP/14 page 3 9. Longstanding IBSP/CERN collaboration. During the current biennium both CERN and UNESCO are celebrating their respective anniversaries, CERN its 60th anniversary, and UNESCO its 70th. As CERN was created under UNESCO auspices in 1954, this prompted the holding of several joint events, conferences and workshops to celebrate the history, common vision, successes, and planning for the future. IBSP was instrumental in all these activities, organizing a CERN day at UNESCO on the occasion of the discovery of Higgs boson with the Large Hadron Collider by CERN, co-organizing the CERN anniversary at UNESCO Headquarters, the Science for Peace workshop in Geneva, a joint session with CERN on Science for Peace during the 2015 World Science Forum in Budapest, etc. At the same time, IBSP-CERN collaboration for training teachers from developing countries in modern aspects of physics has continued, with one teachers school organized at CERN in 2014, and a second in The IBSP-CERN collaboration also has been reflected in the framework of the International Year of Light IBSP-CERN- SESAME collaboration has also continued, with CERN actively participating in all SESAME Council meetings during the current biennium. III. HIGHLIGHTS 10. The intergovernmental centre for Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East (SESAME), located in Allan, Jordan and established under the auspices of UNESCO in April SESAME is a third-generation synchrotron light source in the making, to be used for research and development in the Middle East and neighbouring countries in physics, chemistry, biology, materials science, nanotechnology, healthcare, environmental research, archaeology, cultural heritage and other areas related to high technology and industry. SESAME is also an excellent example of an active science diplomacy, and science for peace initiative, being successfully established in the Middle East. Among the members are Cyprus, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Turkey. IBSP is closely involved in developing SESAME, widening participation in it, fostering support for it and promoting its users training programme. During the meeting in May 2015, the IBSP Scientific Board adopted a Declaration supporting SESAME, which reads as follows: The IBSP Scientific Board (a) (b) (c) Is pleased to note with that it is now expected that commissioning of SESAME will begin in the second half of Urges countries that do not have their own light-source, and are in reasonable geographical reach of SESAME but are not already Members, to seriously consider joining. Acknowledges the generous and very important help that SESAME has received from countries with synchrotrons, and strongly hopes their support will continue and help SESAME s scientific programme to get off to a flying start. 11. The 2014 International Year of Crystallography. The IBSP Scientific Board welcomed the successful implementation of United Nations resolution 66/284 inviting UNESCO to coordinate the International Year of Crystallography 2014 (IYCr2014) in collaboration with governments, the International Union of Crystallography (IUCr) and its associated organizations throughout the world, relevant organizations of the United Nations system, ICSU and other relevant NGOs. The Year has been particularly successful in three main initiatives. In addition to the opening ceremony held in UNESCO Headquarters in January 2014, the first main initiative was that of open laboratories in countries in the South, based on diffractometers offered by industrial partners. The open labs, usually located at universities or research centres, are functioning as hubs for training and education for the young generation of crystallographers in countries where crystallography has not been well recognized. The Openlabs so far have been implemented in more than 25 countries. They will stay active well beyond the 2014 Year of Crystallography, forming a sustainable heritage of the Year. The second initiative embraced three regional summits of crystallography that gathered scientists and decision-makers from Asia, Latin America and Africa, respectively, and

5 38 C/REP/14 page 4 helped to promote regional scientific collaboration and better understanding of the fruits offered by crystallography among decision-makers. The third initiative, the Global Crystal Growing competition, mobilized thousands of secondary school pupils in all continents to grow crystals, which in turn helped advertise crystallography among youngsters. The competition will be repeated every year, in view of its overwhelming success in 2014, and will form a second sustainable element of the Year of Crystallography s heritage. 12. The 2015 International Year of Light. The IBSP Board welcomed the United Nations decision to establish the 2015 International Year of Light, and took note of the progress report on its implementation so far, given by the Representative of the Year s Steering Committee, formed by UNESCO, ICTP, and numerous scientific organizations. The very successful opening ceremony of the Year, held at UNESCO Headquarters in January 2015, was particularly highly praised for the richness of its scientific and cultural programme, and the high level of the keynote speakers (including five Nobel Laureates Talks). The two information meetings on the 2015 International Year of Light organized for the benefit of UNESCO s Executive Board at which speakers were very eminent scientists (e.g. the 2014 Nobel Laureate Professor Amano of Japan, the inventor of blue LEDs), were also greatly appreciated. There is an exceptionally large number of national and regional organizations which have organized numerous initiatives and events under the umbrella of the Year. The International Year of Light is playing an important integrating role within the scientific and technological communities, as light is a subject that cuts across many scientific disciplines and applications, forms a basis of modern communication, is as crucial for astronomy and cosmology as it is for biology and medicine, and plays a potent role in culture and art. The final comprehensive report to be published after the official closing of the Year planned for February 2016, in Mexico, promises to be very positive. IV. CONCLUSIONS 13. Despite financial and human resource limitations, in the current biennium the IBSP has continued UNESCO s longstanding and internationally recognized work in the basic sciences, which is unique in the United Nations system, which has produced (e.g. establishment of CERN), and is still producing (e.g. creation of SESAME) remarkable results. With highlights such as the SESAME project, and the International Years of Crystallography, and of Light, or science education initiatives such as the global microscience programme and others, as well as large novel initiatives such as the Human Variom Project, IBSP has achieved visibility for UNESCO at a global scale. Still, its potential for bringing about unprecedented opportunities to meet human needs, and respond to developmental challenges, could be more fully recognized by Member States. 14. There can be no science to solve global economic, social and environmental challenges without the basic sciences and it is therefore recommended that more attention be paid to the value of the scientific returns and impact of UNESCO s programme in the basic sciences to achieve sustainable development. In the view of the IBSP Scientific Board, the limitations imposed on the 37 C/5 Expected Result related to capacity-building activity (priority C) should not have been applied to IBSP, since the programme is primarily focused on promoting science and technology innovations that nowadays are indispensable to efficiently respond to the needs of sustainable development. 15. Taking into consideration the vital role of capacity development and scientific innovation for any knowledge-based development, and in light of the formulation of the post-2015 development agenda, which has put a new emphasis on the role of STI for sustainable development, the Scientific Board of the IBSP appeals to the General Conference to reconsider the C category ranking attributed to the activities within the IBSP. Printed on recycled paper