Scientific Committee on Problems of the

Environment (SCOPE)

Formation – 1969Type – International scientific non-

governmental organisation.(INGO) Head quarters – ParisRegion served – WorldwideOfficial language – EnglishCurrent President – Jon SamsethParent organization – International Council

for ScienceWebsite – scopenvironment.org

HISTORY:SCOPE was established by the 10th meeting of the

Executive Committee of the International Council for Science in 1969.

SCOPE's members include 38 national science academies and research councils, and 22 international scientific unions.

SCOPE exists primarily to develop scientific reviews of key environmental issues around the themes of managing societal and natural resources, ecosystem processes, and biodiversity, health and environment.

The SCOPE Series, more than 70 scientific monographs and other imprint titles, as well as the UNESCO-SCOPE-UNEP Policy Briefs convey the results of individual projects and specific programmes.

Through its continuing focus on emerging issues, SCOPE has also supported the development of global environmental programmes throughout the world.

MISSION: Today, SCOPE experts interact in a worldwide

knowledge network that is cross-sectoral, interdisciplinary and independent

to identify and provide scientific analyses of emerging environmental challenges and opportunities caused by or impacting on humans and the environment;

to review the current scientific understanding of environmental issues and identify priorities for future research;

to address policy and development needs and to inform options and recommendations for environmentally-sound policy and management strategies.

The 1998-2001 scientific program focuses on the concepts and practices of sustainability. Projects are organized under three clusters of closely related and interactive studies:

Cluster 1:Managing Societal and Natural Resources (MSNR)

Cluster 2:Ecosystem Processes and Biodiversity (EP&B)

Cluster 3:Health and Environment (H&E)

Managing Societal and Natural Resources (MSNR):

The first cluster projects are founded on scientific research, but emphasize the application of this scientific knowledge in developing options for practices and policies leading to a more sustainable biosphere. Projects include the following:

Sustainable Biosphere ProjectEconomy and environmentEcological engineering and ecosystem restorationGlobal Invasive Species Program (GISP)Earth system services and human populationEnvironment in a Global Information Society

(EGIS)

The role of environmental sciences in agricultural practice

Urban waste managementMaterial flow analysisImplications of aquaculture and mariculture

on biodiversity and ecosystem processes

Ecosystem Processes and Biodiversity (EP&B):

The second cluster of projects focuses on ecosystem processes, how these processes operate and interact with human activities, and the significance of biological diversity in relation to ecosystem functioning. Projects include the following:

Groundwater contaminationNitrogen transport and transformationEarth surface processes, material use, and

urban development (ESPROMUD)Soils and sediments: biodiversity and

ecosystem functioning

Dynamics of mixed tree/grass systemsBehavior of large-scale ecosystemsUse of stable isotopes to study biogeochemical

cycles in relation to global changeLand-ocean nutrient fluxes: silica cycleInteractions of the major biogeochemical

cyclesUse of molecular biology in the study of

environmental issues

Health and Environment (H&E) The third cluster projects develop

methodologies for assessing chemical risk to human and nonhuman targets, and use case studies of environmental contamination to assess the health and environmental risks of specific chemicals. Projects include the following:

Methodologies of assessing exposure to combustion products: particles and their semi volatile constituents (SGOMSEC 14)

Radioactivity from nuclear tests (RADTEST)Mercury transport and transformation

Cadmium in the environmentRadioactivity at nuclear sites (RADSITE)Vector-borne diseases and environmental

changeEndocrine disrupters/modulators