As global challenges become more complex, the foundations of international scientific collaboration are increasingly threatened. In this statement, the Board of the International Scientific Council emphasizes the urgent need to protect and strengthen global cooperation in science – essential not only for advancing knowledge and innovation but also for safeguarding the well-being of people and the planet alike.
Science is a special form of knowledge shared globally, which the world needs now more than ever to tackle the challenges we all face. The international collaboration that underpins science has been built over many decades, but it is now vulnerable and fragile. Given the tremendous importance of science for national and global well-being, the International Scientific Council calls on all decision-makers to ensure that the principles of science and its institutions are protected, while also maintaining and ideally enhancing international scientific cooperation.
In the last 200 years, science has played a major role in improving the quality of human life, encouraging economic growth, and deepening a broader understanding of nature and society. All nations use science to promote their interests – through health, social progress, and economic development. A large part of this national benefit is achieved through significant investments in research, including from the private sector and philanthropic organizations, and through collaborations within the global scientific community – as knowledge transcends national borders. This collective approach has become more critical, considering the existential threats to planetary and societal health that we are facing now.
Science also plays an important role in achieving the economic, security, and geostrategic objectives of nations. The increasingly used political mantra that science should be ‘as open as possible and as closed as necessary’ should not be extended beyond legitimate needs.
Science has contributed to identifying, but also to exposing the problems related to the impact of humans and their technologies on the planet at every level, from local to global. In recent decades, nations and scientists have collaborated to identify, mitigate, and adapt to these risks. This collaboration has often surpassed geostrategic tensions, as it is in the interest of every nation to protect global common goods.
What underpins all sciences is a set of principles based on empiricism, transparency, quality assurance, and openness, which allow science to be a universal system of knowledge. However, the application of scientific knowledge is determined by the societies in which it is integrated. Scientific communities are rightly concerned about the forces trying them. International scientific collaboration must continue; the responsibility for supporting research must be shared more equitably – not only to protect scientific outcomes but also so that nations that invest in and support science can benefit from its many advantages. Ignoring science increases the risks to the global common good. Scientific cooperation promotes peaceful dialogue between countries.
In turn, the scientific community must remain faithful to its fundamental principles, but it must be more closely and meaningfully connected to society. The contract between science and society must be continuously renewed, allowing science to make essential contributions to peace, security, and well-being.As a global NGO, composed of scientific unions, associations, and academies, the International Scientific Council shares the vision of science as a global public good. We call on all sectors of society to recognize that the free and responsible practice of science is a crucial community effort for the progress of all humanity.International Scientific Council, 20.06.2025
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