ICSU President highlights importance of science in Agenda 2030 at UN conference

ICSU President Gordon McBean stressed the critical role of science in the implementation of the post 2015 UN frameworks at a major UN conference in Geneva this week on science and technology.

Speaking at the 19th session of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), McBean stressed the importance of enabling an effective science/policy interface within the context of Agenda 2030 and beyond. He said: “We need to build on science to see the future and through collective actions have the future we want.”

The CSTD is a body of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) which provides the UN General Assembly and ECOSOC with advice on science and technology issues. The session, which runs from May 9-13, is focused on the themes of smart cities and infrastructure and foresight for digital development.

McBean noted that the scientific community is responsible for contributing to post-2015 frameworks such as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement on climate change. He added that the policy community also has a responsibility to ensure the inclusion of scientists in the process.

He concluded by saying that ICSU has contributed to the documentation for the Geneva meeting via its Urban Health and Wellbeing research programme and the Committee on Data for Science and Technology (CODATA), an interdisciplinary body of the Council.