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World Science Day for Peace and Development, 10 November

What is the purpose of World Science Day for Peace and Development?

• To strengthen public awareness of the role of science for peaceful and sustainable societies;
• Promote national and international solidarity for shared science between countries;
• Renew national and international commitment for the use of science for the benefit of societies;
• Draw attention to the challenges faced by science in raising support for the scientific endeavour.

2020 theme:

Throughout this unprecedented heath and sanitary crisis, UNESCO has endeavoured to bring science closer to society and to bolster the critically needed international scientific collaborations. From the science perspective, UNESCO’s response to COVID-19 is structured around three major pillars: promoting international scientific cooperation, ensuring access to water and supporting ecological reconstruction. UNESCO (2020)

Promoting international scientific cooperation:

To tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative to strengthen international and national scientific cooperation, as well as the dialogue between scientists, policymakers, private practitioners, industries and health professionals, civil society and public at large. This calls for open access to scientific knowledge and know-how, data sharing and evidence-based policy and decision making and an urgent transition to Open Science globally.

Improving access to water and sanitation:

Access to clean and safe water and sanitation is critical and is indispensable to avoid the spread of COVID-19 and to fight the pandemic. UNESCO provides scientific and technical advice and builds capacity for evidence-based and inclusive water policies and for the sustainable management of water resources towards ensuring access to clean and safe water and sanitation for all.

Supporting ecological reconstruction:

The pressure on biodiversity and its natural habitats favour the emergence of zoonotic diseases such as COVID-19. More than ever, there is a need to rethink the links between people and nature. UNESCO’s designated sites, such as Biosphere Reserves and Global UNESCO Geoparks, are powerful tools for bringing people closer to nature by testing and applying integrated approaches to biodiversity conservation and sustainable use and sustainable development. 

Science for Peace: A message from UNESCO Special envoy HRH Princess Sumaya bint el Hassan:

Source: UNESCO. (Producer). (2018). Science for Peace: A message from UNESCO Special envoy HRH Princess Sumaya bint el Hassan. [Online video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/embed/FVobUTb7eaE.

Frontier technologies for a sustainable future:

Source: UN DESA. (Producer). (2018). Frontier technologies for a sustainable future. [Online video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzFTbhmiMyk

In addition to making science more inclusive, we need to be able to tell good science from bad! Click on the banner below to find out how: