The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) serve as a comprehensive blueprint for building a more sustainable and equitable future for all. They tackle critical global challenges such as poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace, and justice. The pivotal role of science in achieving these goals is widely recognised and regularly emphasised in key international forums, including the Science Summit at the UN General Assembly.
In addition, in August 2023, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development 2024-2033, (Science Decade). This resolution calls on scientists and governments to develop perspectives and policy approaches regarding the Decade’s implementation.
Science for people
For many years, the COST Action networks have been involved with UN objectives in various capacities, whether through collaborations with UN agencies, efforts focused on advancing Sustainable Development Goals, or being officially endorsed by the UN. These pressing challenges, closely aligned with the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals, raise important questions and drive the search for solutions where evidence can be applied. At the core of the scientific community’s mission is the observation, exploration, and data analysis, enabling them to provide evidence-based insights to address these critical global issues.
On October 9 and 10, 2024, the COST Association organised a COST Connect with key representatives of UN agencies, the European Commission, and international partners for the first time.
This COST Connect event’s objective was to showcase how science, research, and innovation driven by COST Actions contribute to advancing the UN SDGs. The workshop sought to identify key challenges, explore future partnerships with UN bodies and specific agencies, and foster closer ties for COST Action researchers and innovators.
Around 30 COST Actions were invited to pitch the topic of their research network and present the natural links that their network has established with the SDGs. In some cases, concrete initiatives aligned with the SDGs and scientific needs.
A Global call
Caroline Petit, from the United Nations Regional Information Centre for Europe (UNRIC), opened the session with a short debrief of the outcomes of the Summit of the Future that was held in New York last September in parallel with the General Assembly. The summit seeks to bridge the gap between science and policy, ensuring that scientific insights and advancements shape the development and implementation of effective, sustainable, and inclusive global policies. This approach aims to address both current challenges and future needs, laying the groundwork for the post-SDG era.
Ms Petit delivered a comprehensive overview of key UN agencies, offering guidance to help COST Actions engage more effectively with specific agencies when ready to share their valuable contributions. She emphasised that science is a global priority, requiring a multidisciplinary approach to address both current and future challenges.
“We need sound policies, sound science, and solid public support if we are to mitigate the daunting crises we face. None of us can do it alone. A multidisciplinary approach to problem-solving is crucial and COST Connect provides a platform to showcase scientists’ solutions and engagement. Combining all this expertise should ensure that the complementarities between the different SDGs are better reflected in policy-making in research and innovation.”
Caroline Petit, Deputy Director of the United Nations Regional Information Center for Europe (UNRIC)
Irina Pavlova-Depret, Project officer at the UNESCO Liaison Office in Brussels, explained how the Liaison Office works and highlighted the partnership that already exists with many Horizon projects. Ms Pavlova-Depret coordinates European projects to foster relationships with EU scientific and development institutions in the field of Natural Science.
“The International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development, the implementation of which is led by UNESCO, will mobilise global scientific collaboration to create actionable knowledge and solutions that balance economic, environmental, and social goals. We call on all stakeholders – governments, private sectors, civil society, and in particular scientific communities – to actively participate in the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development, contributing to scientific initiatives and collaborations that will drive transformative progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.” says Irina Pavlova-Depret.
She adds, “A closer partnership between UNESCO and COST holds immense potential for advancing the SDGs. UNESCO’s global mandate and COST’s established interdisciplinary research networks could work hand in hand, bringing together diverse expertise to address shared challenges.”
Erik Canton Deputy Head of the Unit of the Strategy and Foresight Service DG RTD gave a presentation to recall the European Commission’s approach to implementing the SDGs and the European engagement in the world. Through reports, scientific publications, tools, and regular assessments, Mr Canton provided an overview of the progress achieved toward most goals.
In Addition, Mr Canton shared useful references such as the Science, research, and innovation performance of the EU, released last June. A comprehensive and detailed overview of how Europe is performing today in terms of science, research, and innovation and analyses the key determinants of this performance.
“The European Commission’s framework programme for research and innovation supports progress on the sustainable development goals, up to 84% of the Horizon 2020 investments relate to at least one SDG”. Erik Canton, Deputy Chief Economist, Deputy Head of the Unit Strategy and Foresight Service DG RTD
The Joint Research Centre was represented by Ms Luisa Marelli who introduced the KnowSDGs Platform. This is a web platform that provides tools and organises knowledge on policies, indicators, methods, and data to support the evidence-based implementation of the SDGs. Ms Marelli focused her contribution on the SDG Mapper. The SDG Mapper is a web application that provides automatic identification of goals and targets in real time and quickly displays the results. This provides a great tool for researchers and innovators to check how their research relates to the 2030 agenda.
Considering the agenda’s complexity, it is hard to visualise the entire picture of the 17 goals, with 169 targets with associated 231 indicators. The tool helps to concretely align policies and prioritise efforts in line with the SDGs.
“We are delighted to have strengthened our collaboration with COST through the successful COST CONNECT event, which highlighted the crucial role of science, research, and innovation in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The positive feedback on our SDG Mapper Tool is a testament to the Joint Research Centre’s work to facilitate the mainstreaming of the SDGs into policy and decision-making processes.”
Luisa Marelli Deputy Head of Unit, Sustainable Resources, Forests and Bioeconomy Unit.
André Patrocínio, Research and Innovation Attaché from the Québec’s government in Brussels focused his presentation on Québec’s case study in bridging between science and civil society. Québec is fully committed to supporting initiatives that contribute to the SDGs. Through various programs, Mr Patrocínio emphasised the necessity to feed the synergies between Europe and Québec to foster greater collaboration between COST and their research community through Horizon Europe. “I praise COST a lot as it helps internationalising our research” concluded Patrocínio.
Ms Eudy Mabuza, Senior Science and Innovation Representative from the South African Embassy gave an overview of the South African relation with the EU bodies and ongoing initiatives aligned with the SDGs.
“COST Connect represents an important effort to mobilise research and innovation in support of the SDGs. Therefore, by fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange beyond the EU and in this case with South Africa, the joint efforts will ensure that we contribute to global efforts to create a more sustainable, equitable, and resilient world” explains Eudy Mabuza.
COST Actions and the SDGs
How can COST Actions effectively influence policy decisions and shape the implementation of the SDGs? During the event, COST Action participants had the opportunity to exchange views and make new connections through interactive workshops to discuss the biggest issues they were confronted with. The sessions were articulated in six discussion topics reflecting their experiences and exchanging their insights on global and local scientific developments.
- Policy Impact and Advocacy
- Building Synergies
- Future Directions and Challenges
- Public awareness
- Ethical Considerations and Responsible Research
- Measuring and evaluating impact
The COST Connect event successfully united diverse stakeholders, facilitating the exchange of ideas, enhancing collaboration, and identifying key synergies aimed at accelerating the shift towards a more sustainable and resilient future. Acknowledging the challenges researchers and innovators often face in navigating the complex structures, processes, and agendas of institutions and international organisations. This event offered valuable guidelines and insights to help participants better understand these frameworks and identify potential entry points for their engagement and future collaborations.
Additional information
COST Action contributions to United Nations objectives
Marine Animal Forest of the World endorsed by the UN Ocean Decade
Advancing Marine Connectivity Science for the Ocean We Want
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