Progress for Obama’s science diplomacy

In June, US President Obama announced at Cairo University in Egypt a proposal to develop scientific and technological partnerships with Muslim countries.

At the recent meeting of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology held in Washington, DC, White House science adviser John Holdren confirmed that the administration is actively working to develop such plans.

State help

The program will be run by the National Security Council (NSC) and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) as an interagency project, with strong support from the US State Department and US Agency for International Development .

“Obviously everyone is paying attention to [this issue] as it’s the President’s wish,” said a source at the State Department. “And we’re very enthusiastic that science and technology are taking such a central role in the President’s diplomacy efforts,” he adds.

Although it is hard to pin down the exact number of scientists working overseas for the State Department, nearly every US embassy has at least one or two officers devoted to science and technology, environment and health issues. The larger embassies, such as in Paris, Tokyo, and Moscow have a small staff of senior and junior foreign service officers, and local contractors working on S&T issues. In addition, agencies such as the Department of Energy, NASA, and NSF will have experts assigned to countries that they work closely with, such as France, Mexico, Japan, and China.

Among the career foreign service, few have a science or engineering background, although this situation has been improving in the last few years, said the State Department source. “Recruitment is more robust and starting to build back capacity that was lost during the last twenty years,” he says.

The proposal

Obama’s June proposal suggested appointing regional science envoys and a new fund to encourage and support technological and research centers in developing countries in Africa, the Middle East, and southeast Asia.

The first of these proposals is gaining traction, says the US State Department source, who is helping NSC and OSTP create a list of candidates for the proposed science envoy positions. “These will include distinguished scientists in their field, such as National Medal of Science winners,” he says.

These envoy trips will be similar to existing programs run by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Academy of Sciences, which send experts abroad to build and strengthen research links. The main difference will be in the length of the trips abroad—envoys will be expected to take trips lasting several weeks—and the high level of support and trust the administration will put behind the envoys in arranging bilateral deals.

In this regard, the OSTP, working with the State Department, has asked US embassies to identify themes of mutual interest, such as the environment and professional development, and collate existing links with research centers abroad.

The first appointment of a science envoy is expected in the coming weeks, according to the OSTP.

Paul Guinnessy