Just a month ago, STEMM professional Marianela Rodriguez and Argentine diplomat Malén Vazquez didn’t know each other. But after meeting though a unique program that brings scientists and policymakers together, the pair are now exploring ways that they can advance scientific diplomacy in Argentina. Similar bonds were formed between nine other pairs of scientists and policymakers from around the world at the 2024 AAAS-TWAS Course on Science Diplomacy in Trieste, Italy this past month.
Rodriguez is a researcher at Argentina’s National Institute of Agricultural Technology and the National Council of Scientific and Technical Research. She studies plant responses to environmental stress and develops biotechnological strategies to improve crop productivity in the face of climate change.
Like many researchers, she is no stranger to international collaboration. Yet these past experiences have mostly been with other scientists – more recently she has been exploring the possibilities of closer collaboration with policymakers, which led her to apply for the Course on Science Diplomacy, an annual event hosted by AAAS and the World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) for the advancement of science in developing countries.
Participants of the course apply in pairs – always one scientist and one policymaker – often from the same country. Some may have established working relationships, but others may not.
During the weeklong course, they are presented with various scientific diplomacy lectures by experts and participate in role-playing sessions. The course also involves networking events, whereby participants have the opportunity to discuss and share the current states of scientific diplomacy in their respective countries.
“For the researcher’s point of view, these kinds of courses are essential because it allows us to ‘open the laboratory window’ and look beyond, understanding the importance of getting involved and working together with decision-makers to achieve more accurate agreements,” Rodriguez explained.
Rodriguez’s partner, Vazquez, who co-applied to the program, is a science coordinator with the National Directorate of Promotion of Culture, Education and Science at Argentina’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Her experience also helped her expand her skills.
“As a diplomat, it was enriching to be able to put myself in a scientist’s shoes and understand that science has no borders,” said Vazquez, noting that, although many international collaborations may be challenging, using science to lay the foundations of new policies can be very helpful for facilitating international cooperation.
One simulated scenario at the course provided Vazquez and Rodriguez an interesting challenge to using scientific diplomacy to find a solution. They were faced with a massive dam project initiated by one country, but which had downstream effects on two other countries, including their own.
“It was a great exercise for us to understand what other types of stakeholders think, to understand their mindsets,” said Vazquez.
The simulated situations are exactly the kind of things participants are likely to encounter in their professional roles back home. For example, another attendee of this year’s course, scientist Immaculate Nakamya, is dealing increasingly with cross-border collaborations.
She is the acting head of Uganda’s Science and Technology Policy Analysis and Development Unit, and although her original role focused on Ugandan-specific science policies, it is expanding to include collaborations through a new scientific commission comprising multiple countries in Eastern Africa. Just like the simulated dam scenario, Nakamya noted that policies in one East African country can affect neighbours, and therefore this type of cross-border collaboration is very important and relevant to her work.
Through the course she said she was able to gain a lot of valuable insights into helpful communication strategies, which she plans to utilize as she collaborates with contacts in Kenya, Rwanda, Congo, South Sudan, etc. In particular, she learned ways to limit the traditional text-heavy communication tactics of diplomats to more concise or engaging tactics, such as images or shorter videos for communication.
“The course was eye opening,” Nakamya said. “I know it will help me in communicating a lot of policy options and strategies.”
Anywar Godwin is a lecturer at Makerere University, in Kampala, Uganda, with a specialty in ethnopharmacology and microbiology who was paired with Nakamya. In particular, Godwin’s work explores the medicinal and nutritional properties of traditional foods.
He emphasized the need for scientists to take their work beyond the lab and implement the results in the real-world – and partnering with policymakers is a key means for accomplishing that.
“There is often a lot of great science happening in our laboratories, but very often it doesn't reach the intended user. It doesn't trickle down,” he said. “So, it's important for scientists to work with other stakeholders. We need to have different people coming together to make the science more meaningful.”
Godwin says the opportunity to role play in simulated negotiations was a helpful lesson for not only understanding the complexity of collaborative situations, but also how to more accurately define roles and identify his own contributions to solving problems.
“We want participant pairs to become agents of change back in their home countries,” said Estefania Ortiz Calva, AAAS Senior Program Associate for International Affairs and Science Diplomacy. “Through role-playing simulations, we aim not only at broadening their understanding of the ‘give and take’ of diplomatic negotiations, but also at developing lasting relationships so they can work together on building bridges between the scientific and foreign policy communities.”
Since the completion of the course two weeks ago, each pair has returned to their home country, ready to apply their learnings in their respective spheres. Already, Vazquez and Rodriguez are discussing new ways they can partner.
“We realized we share a vision about many of the topics of the course and are already planning activities in the near future,” said Vazquez, citing some ideas to coordinate webinars and seminars on scientific diplomacy in Argentina.
The pair sees the value in the course and want to emulate similar teachings back home. “Without a doubt it has been one of the best experiences ever,” said Rodriguez.