Fukuoka Declaration on Actions to Change the Relationship between Society and Science
In June 2022, the Global Young Academy (GYA), in collaboration with the Young Academy of Japan, convened its members and alumni along with early-career researchers (ECRs), students, and science policy stakeholders from around the world to discuss ways to transcend disciplinary silos, spark a global interdisciplinary dialogue to reform the science system, and re-think the contribution of science to society.
The hybrid conference was held online and in-person at Kyushu University in Fukuoka, Japan. Conference participants discussed the importance of sharing the following common goals among scientists and citizens and developing action plans to achieve these goals:
- Empowering both scientists and societies to value creativity, curiosity, and communication.
- Building and strengthening trust between scientists, stakeholders, and citizens.
- Supporting decision-makers to become more informed by science.
- Helping citizens bring bottom-up needs to scientific processes to solve issues important to them.
GYA member Yoko Shimpuku (Hiroshima University, Japan), Chair of Local Organising Committee of the AGM and International Conference of Young Scientists, commented:
“The first step is to work with society to make science not only formally open, but also accessible and attractive substantially. Dialogue is the key to realising this. We encourage continuous dialogue among scientists, stakeholders, and citizens. Instrumental to this aim, we need to nurture not only logical understanding but also higher levels of empathy in the scientific community that will allow us to connect to different stakeholders.”
Read more and download the Fukuoka Declaration here.
About the Global Young Academy
The vision of the GYA is science for all; science for the future, and its mission is to give a voice to young scientists and researchers around the world. The GYA, founded in 2010, is an independent science academy of 200 outstanding early- to mid-career researchers from six continents who are selected from across disciplines based on their academic excellence and commitment to engage with society. GYA members serve five-year terms, and the GYA presently counts members and alumni from 100 countries. The GYA administrative Office is publicly funded and hosted at the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.
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