The Science Leadership Programme in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC-SLP) is a capacity-building initiative of the Global Young Academy (GYA), funded primarily by the Inter Academy Partnership (IAP), the Global Young Academy (GYA) and carried out with the support of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. The SLP supports early to mid-career researchers (ECRs) from Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in basic and applied sciences, engineering, social sciences, arts and the humanities, to equip them with leadership tools for team development, engagement and collaboration.
For the GYA, science leadership is a collaborative, reflective approach to creative thinking and cooperation related to advancing science in diverse contexts.
Download the LAC SLP Flyer: Flyer LAC Science Leadership
LAC SLP Partners:
More information on all the GYA’s Science Leadership activities can be found here: Science Leadership – Global Young Academy.
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Find out more about the GYA’s approach to Science Leadership in the video linked here and in this video on “What is Collective Leadership?” (link to YouTube).
LAC SLP fellows worked together in the development of joint written works, such as manuscripts and op-eds. Others have coordinated the beginning of new research collaborations.
Policy briefs written by the fellows were launched at the 2023 Sustainability, Research and Innovation Congress in Panama as the Leticia Declaration and will be published shortly. Numerous outcomes of the first LAC SLP are outlined below.
GYA Podcast “Voices of Young Scientists” features the Science Leadership Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC SLP).
Blog post published by Paulina Carmona-Mora (University of California Davies, USA): “Empowering Latin American Science Leaders: A Transformative Journey”.
Launch of the Leticia Declaration at the Sustainability, Research and Innovation Congress, a document and policy briefs on collaborative leadership for sustainable science, technology and innovation systems with social impact in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Leticia Declaration is a direct output of the LAC SLP. Read more here.
Latin America and the Caribbean Science Leadership Programme nominated to Falling Walls
The 2022 Latin America and the Caribbean Science Leadership Programme was nominated in the Science and Innovation Management category of the Falling Walls Science Breakthrough of the Year 2023.
Each year, one Breakthrough of the Year is selected in each of the 9 categories. Breakthroughs of the Year then get the chance to present their groundbreaking work at the Falling Walls Science Summit in Berlin from 7-9 November 2023.
LAC-SLP at World Science Forum
Paulina Carmona, LAC-SLP co-lead, presented the programme and experiences so far at the World Science Forum session: “Building bridges for early career scientists: global experiences on impactful leadership training and networking.” GYA members and alumni shine at World Science Forum 2022 – Global Young Academy.
First LAC Science Leadership Programme 2022-23
The First LAC Science Leadership Programme received 260 applications. The selected cohort brought together over 20 early- to mid-career researchers from the LAC region in Leticia, Colombia, in December 2022. The programme fully funded 8 fellows to travel to the in-person workshop and offered self-funded spots for 9 fellows to participate in the programme, including the in-person workshop in Leticia, Colombia. Additionally 2 UNAL professors joined the workshop in Leticia. Read more about the first meeting here.
These outcomes stem spontaneously from the possibilities of networking between fellows, and showcase how a collective, creative thinking training can quickly create an effective and strong network:
Arely Anaya, Autonomous University of Tlaxcala, Mexico and Eunice Enriquez, University of San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala, have created a joint international multidisciplinary seminar series. These aim to showcase ECR research and to nurture scientific networks in LAC.
Maria Isabel Arroyo, University of Antioquia, Colombia, shared her experience on the in-person workshop in Leticia, at the radio in Colombia. You can listen to her experience here.
Arely Anaya, Autonomous University of Tlaxcala, Mexico talked about the LAC-SLP on Mexican TV (watch it here).
Laisa Freire, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is already applying and transferring several SLP tools with the broader community in Brazil. This video shows her recent experience in capacity building for environmental educators:
Eunice Enriquez, University of San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala, presented the program at the Guatemala meeting of University presidents, and replicated the in person workshop with a One Health focus at the University of San Carlos de Guatemala, Guatemala.
All the fellows worked on a session proposal for the 2023 Sustainability, Research and Innovation Congress (SRI), which was selected for the program: SRI Congress | Sustainability Research and Innovation Congress
An article titled “When reason is nourished by affections: reflections of young scientists on the challenges of science in Latin America” has been published as a letter to the editor of a Peruvian journal, resulting from the SLP conversations. Read the full article here.
