Envisioning a “science diplomacy 2.0”: on data, global challenges, and multi-layered networks

The term “science diplomacy” broadly identifies interactions between scientific and foreign policy communities connected to the promotion of international scientific exchanges (also as a way to establish constructive relations between countries), and the provision of scientific advice on issues of relevance to more than one nation. Science diplomacy initiatives have been positively portrayed by practitioners, while recent scholarship has underscored the need for these actions to more directly address social and global challenges. In what follows we sketch the contours of a data-driven “science diplomacy 2.0” that could actually be seen as more directly tackling these challenges in two important ways. First, we outline a multi-layered approach that integrates data and meta-data from various disciplines in order to promote greater awareness about what kind of research should actually be prioritized in science diplomacy actions. Second, we argue for the creation of responsible innovation observatories for operationalizing such a methodology at both national and global levels.