On September 14-15, 2023, the Austrian Cultural Forum in New York organized and hosted a two-day conference entitled “Science Diplomacy in Times of Global Crises” as an official side event of the Science Summit at the 78th United Nations General Assembly.

The opening event on September 14 included welcome remarks by ACFNY Director Dr. Susanne Keppler-Schlesinger, followed by speeches from Professor Dr. Eva Schernhammer, Professor Dr. Gerald Steiner and Professor Gediminas Urbonas and concluded with a panel discussion and a reception.

The conference stimulated an interesting and thought-provoking discussion on how to bridge the gap between science and diplomacy in times of multiple global challenges. Professor Schernhammer and Professor Steiner focused on the impact of both war and the COVID-19 pandemic on science, particularly scientific research, while Professor Urbonas illustrated how swamp ecosystems react to crises and what human society can learn from it. The panel discussion following the speeches was moderated by Dr. Katja Mayer.

The next day of the event on September 15 explored science diplomacy in current global affairs from at least two perspectives in times of multiple crises: (1) the need for openness and collaboration in tackling global challenges and (2) the need for safeguarding indisputable values, principles, and interests.

The first perspective was addressed with a focus on Artificial Intelligence (Session 1: “Open Science Diplomacy For An Ethical and Trustworthy Global AI”), while the second perspective was discussed in the context of the risks of foreign interference, intellectual property rights, misinformation and manipulation in international science cooperation (Session 2: “Science Diplomacy in a Fragmented, Multipolar World.”)