Science organizations in the digital age 

Background 

In 2022, the Secretariat of the International Science Council (ISC) embarked on a transformative digital journey. This initiative emerged from an understanding of the urgent need for an inclusive, globally-oriented membership organization to adapt to the digital transformations reshaping our professional, recreational, and daily lives across diverse communities worldwide.  

In Phase I, the ISC surveyed and interviewed the Members to collected lessons learned in a report ‘Science organizations in the digital age’. This resource would be of value to organizations at any stage of their digital journeys: just starting out or even contemplating to do so, making first steps, or well into the process. The paper also contains key questions for reflection that proved to be helpful in guiding conversations around digital transformation. 

Science organizations in the digital age

The discussion paper synthesizes findings from a broad survey, detailed interviews, and case studies involving ISC Members. It serves as both a current reflection of the digital status in the science community and a guide for organizations embarking on their digital transition journeys.

View discussion paper

The Phase II of the project seeks to build on these lessons and create support mechanisms tailored specifically to science organizations in the low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

As part of it, ten ISC Members will engage in a four-month digital journey, guided by experts and supported by a community of peer changemakers. Their experiences will inform the recommendations and the support mechanisms the ISC will produce for the wider community.

The Phase II is funded through a grant of over one million Canadian dollars from the Canadian International Development Research Centre (IDRC-CRDI) to the ISC’s Centre for Science Futures.  

Activities and impact 

• Early 2022: under the guidance of Nick Scott, a digital transformation consultant, the ISC Secretariat enters the discovery stage to explore the state of the Council’s digital maturity and map out challenges and opportunities. 
• Late 2022: with the help of key internal stakeholders – including the ISC staff, Members and the Governing Board – the first draft of the ISC vision is produced. 
• January – April 2023: a broad survey of the diverse ISC Membership collects key insights from various scientific organizations, from national academies to disciplinary unions to research programmes. The survey was not designed as a rigorous scientific study but rather as a barometer to gauge the digital engagement and capacities of ISC Members. It provided a platform for identifying Members with intriguing results or comments, who were then interviewed for further insight. 
• May 2023: Findings from the survey and in-depth interviews were shared at the Mid-term Meeting of ISC Members, prompting other organizations to take inspiration from presented case studies to attempt or progress on their own digital journeys. 
• Late 2023: Responding to a popular demand, the Council organized two workshops Practical Deep-Dive on ChatGPT’ (recording available) to equip science professionals with skills to use the most widespread Large Language Model ChatGPT effectively and ethically.  
• April 2024: the newly published report ‘Science organizations in the digital age’ synthesizes the key findings and lessons learned. 
• October 2024: the Phase II starts with a call for applications from Members interested in pursuing a digital journey with the ISC guidance.

Next steps

Ten selected Members will engage in the four-month journey in 2025. Various useful tools, recommendations and other support mechanisms, resulting from this experience, will be published throughout the year.