UNESCO

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New UNESCO Science Report: Towards 2030
Every five years, the UNESCO Science Report analyses emerging trends worldwide in STI policy and
governance. The 2015 edition was launched on 10 November, World Science Day for Peace and
Development. It covers the period from 2010 to 2015, and its key message can be summarized in four
words: more research, better development. Despite austerity budgets since 2008 in many highincome
countries, global spending on research and development (R&D) grew faster (+31 per cent)
than the global economy (+20 per cent) between 2007 and 2013, driven by a business enterprise
sector which maintained or augmented its own investment in research and innovation as a buffer
against the crisis. The end of the commodities boom has exposed the vulnerability of those resourcebased
economies which failed to use the past decade of strong growth to make their economies less
reliant on raw materials and more rooted in knowledge. Others have already begun the transition.
Meanwhile, the governments of many developing countries have increased their commitment to R&D
and are seeking to empower the private sector to drive economic growth, in order to alleviate their
own development burden. Strategies include support for technology incubation hubs, infrastructure
development and investment in vocational and higher education to counter the skills shortage.
For many developing countries, sustainable development has become an integral part of their national
development plans for the next 10–20 years. Among higher-income countries, a firm commitment to
sustainable development is often coupled with the desire to maintain competitiveness in global markets
that are increasingly leaning towards ‘green’
technologies. The quest for clean energy and
greater energy efficiency now figures among the
research priorities of numerous countries. The
UNESCO Science Report: Towards 2030 provides
essential baseline information on the concerns
and priorities of countries at the time of adoption
of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
in September 2015. The next edition of this
monitoring report will offer an opportunity to
analyse progress in implementing this agenda
over the period 2015–2020.
which was also streamed live with many
participants joining in online. The theme
was ‘University Education and Training in
Science and Engineering and Technology
in Africa post 2015’, and it provided a
platform for university leaders responsible
for science and engineering and other
stakeholders to deliberate on strategic
issues in science and engineering
education, and how it could be developed
to aid implementation of the Post-2015
Development Agenda.
Taking stock of the place
of science in the world
In 2013 UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
created a UN Scientific Advisory Board.
This initiative acknowledged the need for
leading specialists equipped with the right
tools to evaluate the place of science in
society, assess its progress and consider its
influence on people’s lives, and then share
these insights to strengthen the interface
between science, policy and society.
UNESCO hosts its Secretariat.
The third meeting of the Board took
place in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) in May.
Its deliberations led to recommendations
on how to coordinate global data
collection and create access that reduces
the data divide between rich and poor,
as well as on how to improve the use of
scientific knowledge in policy-making
at all levels. It also offered advice on
identifying the greatest risks resulting
from climate change.
In December, a fourth meeting was
convened in St Petersburg (Russian
Federation). The Board offered
recommendations on the transition
from the Millennium Development Goals
to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development and the SDGs, and on
the outcomes of the 21st Conference
of the Parties to the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change (COP21).
The discussion highlighted the strong
links between climate change mitigation,
health, food security and other aspects of
sustainable development, and the need
to address these issues together. The
Board pleaded for investments in science
to help countries stay well below the
2°C threshold for the increase in global