As respect for scientific freedoms and adherence to scientific responsibilities decline around the world, the global scientific community faces significant pressure to address the multiple, intersecting, and existential threats confronting our societies.
In this context, the ISC’s Committee for Freedom and Responsibility in Science organized a webinar for the ISC network to reflect on how the right to participate in and benefit from science can be upheld to benefit all, and on its practical significance for the scientific, human rights, and policy communities and beyond.
This webinar raised awareness of the ISC’s work around the ‘right to science’ as much as gaining feedback and identifying priority concerns from our members.
The webinar concluded on June 11 and the recording can be viewed below.
You can watch the recording by clicking here
The right to participate in and benefit from science – a suite of rights and obligations often referred to as ‘the right to science’ – remains poorly understood and underdeveloped. The state’s role in upholding this right, in particular, is often neglected, and its implications for scientists and global society are frequently underappreciated. The ISC’s interpretation clarifies what ‘the right to science’ means for the practice of science and the use of the knowledge it generates, framing science as a fundamental part of human culture and firmly situating equitable access to education, the protection of knowledge producers, and the societal benefits of freely and responsibly practiced science as critical components of this right.
The ISC’s interpretation serves as a powerful normative framework, emphasising the need to safeguard freedoms, fulfil responsibilities, and establish limits – all to ensure that scientific progress benefits all. In this way, it complements the ISC’s Principles of Freedom and Responsibility in Science, and aligns strongly with the ISC’s vision of science as a Global Public Good.
The Right to Participate in and Benefit from Science
Download and print our poster on the ISC’s interpretation of the right to participate in and benefit from science. Support the ISC’s mission to raise awareness by displaying it in your office, lab, or classroom, and share it with your colleagues and community.
DownloadTo learn more about our interpretation please visit our range of expert blogs, which explore its development and implications in more detail: