The Highlights Archive | Science for a Sustainable Future

Science for a Sustainable Future

Creating knowledge and understanding through science equips us to find solutions to today’s acute economic, social and environmental challenges and to achieving sustainable development and greener societies. As no one country can achieve sustainable development alone, international scientific cooperation contributes, not only to scientific knowledge but also to building peace.

UNESCO works to assist countries to invest in science, technology and innovation (STI), to develop national science policies, to reform their science systems and to build capacity to monitor and evaluate performance through STI indicators and statistics taking into account the broad range of country-specific contexts.

Science policies are not enough. Science and engineering education at all levels and capacity need to be built to allow countries to develop their own solutions to their specific problems and to play their part in the international scientific and technological arena.

Linking science to society, public understanding of science and the participation of citizens in science are essential to creating societies where people have the necessary knowledge to make professional, personal and political choices, and to participate in the stimulating world of discovery. Indigenous knowledge systems developed with long and close interaction with nature, complement knowledge systems based on modern science.

Science and technology empower societies and citizens but also involve ethical choices. UNESCO works with its member States to foster informed decisions about the use of science and technology, in particular in the field of bioethics.

Water is fundamental for life and ensuring water security for communities worldwide is essential to peace and sustainable development. The scientific understanding of the water cycle, the distribution and characteristics of surface and groundwater, of urban water all contribute to the wise management of freshwater for a healthy environment and to respond to human needs.

Scientific knowledge of the Earth’s history and mineral resources, knowledge of ecosystems and biodiversity, and the interaction of humans with ecosystems are important to help us understand how to manage our planet for a peaceful and sustainable future. Global environmental change has profound social and human dimensions. Over 30 UNESCO programmes in ocean and natural sciences, education, culture and communication contribute to creating knowledge, educating and communicating about climate change, and to understanding the ethical implications for present and future generations.

Disaster risk reduction

25 September 2020	Kyrgyzstan: University-based Learning of Community Media Specialists in response to COVID-19
21 September 2020	Adventure of Science: Women and Glaciers in Central Asia 2020
7 September 2020	Call for Application: Webinar “Adventure of Science: Women and Glaciers in Central Asia”
5 August 2020	In Harmony with Nature: UNESCO Biosphere Reserves in Response to COVID-19 Pandemic
10 June 2020	Regional launch of the UN World Water Development Report 2020 «Water and Climate Change»
5 June 2020	World Environment Day
22 May 2020	International Day for Biological Diversity
15 May 2020	Youth discussed response to COVID-19 at regional level
1 May 2020	The findings of the UN World Water Development Report 2020 “Water and Climate Change” discussed in Kazakhstan
30 April 2020	The Vice Ministers of Education in the Central Asian countries agreed on common challenges in distance learning
29 April 2020	World Water Development Report 2020: launch in Kazakhstan
23 April 2020	International Mother Earth Day 50th anniversary
1 April 2020	UNESCO mobilizes 122 countries to promote open science and reinforced cooperation in the face of COVID-19
22 March 2020	Water resources an essential part of the solution to climate change
20 February 2020	Closing the gender gap in science

Science for a Sustainable Future

Search the Highlights Archive