May 2024
An update for Council from the International Secretary and International Committee:
Recent Activities
S7/SSH7 – 2024 Process (Science Academies of the G7)
The presidency of the G7 for 2024 is Italy and the Lincei National Academy is coordinating the S7/SSH7 process for 2024 in order to submit science advice and recommendations to the G7. This process at the RSC follows a rigorous expert review which we have established over recent years and is as follows:
The original documents are shared with Academy and College Presidents and the International Committee for information, comments, and suggestions. The statements are then reviewed by RSC experts (selected academy fellows and college members) and these are forwarded to the Lincei. These reviews provided excellent advice and suggestions during the review iterations with the other G7-Science Academies. This resulted in finalized updated statements which were subsequently endorsed by all the G7 Academy Presidents. These statements are then submitted to the government Sherpa to go forward to the G7 political process and meetings. The final summit meeting of the G7 national academies on “Science for the Future” and handover of statements to the government of Italy took place in Rome in April and was attended in person by the RSC President, Professor Alain Gagnon and International Secretary, Professor Paul Young.
The finalized statements from the G7 academies can be seen at the RSC website.
Currently the RSC is formulating a research summit programme for COEE-24 that will discuss the many faceted components of one of the 2024 S7/SSH7 statements that is focused on “Cultural Heritage”. This event will include indigenous culture and work from the tripartite collaboration between the RSC and the New Zealand and Australian academies.
G7 Academies Meeting, 2025
Work is progressing for 2025 when Canada will hold the presidency for the G7 and the RSC will hold the presidency for the G7 academies process. A verbal report will be given to council on current plans and proposals.
S20 – 2024 Process (Science Academies of the G20)
The presidency of the G20 in 2024 is Brazil and the S20 usually follows a similar process of expert peer review to that outlined above for the S7. The process is currently being coordinated by the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. The initial meeting of the S20 academies was held in Rio and attended by the RSC Executive Director Darren Gilmour. The S20 overall theme is “Science for Global Transformation” and will focus on five topics, Artificial Intelligence, Bioeconomy, Energy Transition, Health Challenges, and Social Justice. The G20 academies will conclude with a summit in July when the statements will be forwarded to government Sherpa for consideration at the G20 political summit later in the year.
Frontiers of Science Meeting on Artificial Intelligence, Ottawa (February, 2024)
The Royal Society of Canada and the the Royal Society, UK, held a 3-Day Frontiers of Science dialogue meeting in Ottawa, Canada (February 13-15, 2024) on the future of AI involving multidisciplinary experts to discuss potential opportunities and threats. Thanks to participants from both the RSC and RS and our other partners, CIFAR, NSERC and NRC, it was a great event involving current and future leaders in AI. The details and programme for the meeting can be found here.
2023 RSC G7 Research Summit on Healthy Ageing (November 2023)
Following the inaugural G7 Research Summit on One Health in November 2022, the 2023 RSC G7 Research Summit on Healthy Aging was inspired by the declaration of the G7 Academies of Science on health and well-being, as well as by RSC Policy Briefings on Post-Pandemic Healthcare in Canada, The Future of Long-Term Care, and Investing in Canada’s Nursing Workforce Post-Pandemic. The two-day meeting was held in Niagara Falls, Ontario in advance of the COEE-23 meeting at the University of Waterloo. Further details of the research summit can be found here.
Acknowledgment and Thanks
The International Secretary would like to thank and acknowledge the numerous experts and members of the RSC who have been consulted, provided advice, reviewed documents or accepted invitations to participate in events. He also thanks the current International Committee, RSC President, Academy Presidents and Executive Director and staff for their contributions.