Science-Diplomacy

The fourth summit of the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA) foundation will take place in Geneva from 9 to 11 October 2024. Under the motto 'The Great Acceleration', the impacts and possibilities of rapid scientific progress on diplomacy, the environment, the economy and society will be discussed. Using the example of the Transnational Red Sea Center, the role of science diplomacy in the implementation of global environmental goals will be explored in depth.

Switzerland has organised a meeting of the UN Security Council on 17 May 2024 to strengthen the interaction between the scientific community and the Council. The inclusion of science in the Council's decision-making process has the potential to promote mutual trust and contribute to conflict prevention, sustainable peace and an effective Security Council - both priorities of the Federal Council for Switzerland's 2023-2024 Council membership.

With an eye to the future, the Swiss government co-founded the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA) in 2019. As part of its third summit, GESDA, in collaboration with the FDFA, CERN and UBS, has launched an institute dedicated to quantum computing: the Open Quantum Institute. We take a look at this technology of the future and the promise it holds with representatives from the worlds of diplomacy and science.

The Climate Change Conference in Glasgow includes a pavilion devoted to Earth's frozen surfaces. This initiative is backed by Switzerland, whose world-renowned scientific expertise in the cryosphere may help to advance the climate negotiations. Part of the pavilion will feature virtually in Geneva.

Mining asteroids for their natural resources and downloading the contents of the human brain are quickly moving from the realms of science fiction to reality. The Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator builds capacities to spot future scientific and technological breakthroughs before they happen. The independent foundation, which enjoys FDFA support, is set to unveil its Breakthrough Radar at its upcoming inaugural summit.

Xavier Mertz was the first Swiss polar explorer to set foot in Antarctica in 1911, but his drive to explore the region came at a bitter price. Although polar exploration today is less dramatic, it is even more urgent than ever before. To mark Swiss Polar Day, the head of the FDFA's Prosperity and Sustainability Division, Stefan Estermann, talks about the role Swiss polar research has to play and how Switzerland is stepping up its commitment to scientific diplomacy.