FUTURE EARTH IN ASIA

Nordin HasanDirector

ICSU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Brainstorming Session on “Future Asia”8 9 April 2013‐Center for Sustainability Research, Academia Sinica

• Dynamic planet: Observing, explaining, understanding, and projecting earth, environmental, and societal system trends, drivers and processes and their interactions; anticipating global thresholds and risks.

1

• Global development: Knowledge for the pressing challenges to provide sustainable, secure and fair stewardship of food, water, health, energy, materials, biodiversity and other ecosystem functions and services.

2

• Transformation towards sustainability: Understanding transformation processes and options, assessing how these relate to human values, emerging technologies and social and economic development pathways, and evaluating strategies for governing and managing the global environment across sectors and scales.

3

Research themes

Regional workshop

51 participants; 21 countries

• Natural characteristics of the region – seismic risks, monsoons, cyclones and heat stress;

• Pressures of urbanization – megacities, health, pollution; • Coastal hazards, vulnerability and impacts on communities and new

development plans; • Climate variability and extremes; • Key social pressures - rapid economic growth, population, consumption,

global connectivity; • Water, energy, land and food security issues specific to the region; • Emerging health issues; • Green economy, new economic models.; • Valuation of natural capital; • Mountain and low land interactions – trans-boundary issues.

General priorities

Specific recommendations from KL workshop

Coordination and convergence

Learning and capacity development

Science-policy-stakeholder interfaces

Welcome

Develop an understanding of what sustainability means at the national and regional levels taking into account

varying cultural contexts

Develop global sustainability indicators that can guide implementation at the regional and sub-regional levels

Develop strong regional representation in Future Earth and regional priorities that are developed through in-

depth, long-term and sustained discussions

Create alliances of current integrated research projects and researchers upon which to build long-term strength

Define clear mechanisms, such as an endorsement process, for projects to become part of Future Earth

Develop incentive mechanisms to promote transdisciplinary research

Foster networks for scientists across regions, disciplinary fields and stakeholders

Develop an understanding of what sustainability means at the national and regional levels taking into account varying cultural contexts

Develop global sustainability indicators that can guide implementation at the regional and sub-regional levels

Develop strong regional representation in Future Earth and regional priorities that are developed through in-depth, long-term and sustained discussions

Create alliances of current integrated research projects and researchers upon which to build long-term strength

Define clear mechanisms, such as an endorsement process, for projects to become part of Future Earth

Develop incentive mechanisms to promote transdisciplinary research

Foster networks for scientists across regions, disciplinary fields and stakeholders

Coordination and convergence

Compile examples of best practices of transdisciplinary research on sustainability issues beginning with small and local scale projects that could be scaled up through programmes at the regional and national levels

Document case studies of successful integration and interdisciplinary work in the region and create guidelines on how to do co-design and co-production of research

Increase human capacity development training programs, through short-term workshops, exchange of graduate students, increasing the number of graduate research positions and Professorial Chairs within countries in the region

Develop mentoring of young scientists in least developed countries by more experienced researchers

Capacity development

Develop an understanding of what the points of entry into the policy arena are

Develop approaches and programmes to bring into dialogue groups of people who do not normally talk to each other

Translate and share models on how to influence policymakers - taking into account wide range of political systems and cultural settings and businesses, and sustain successful science-policy dialogues

Create or identify science-policy platforms to effectively inform and engage decision- and policy-makers

Engage indigenous communities and local knowledge systems in the research process

Science-policy-stakeholder interface

• International Symposium on Future Asia, December 2012, RIHN Kyoto.

• APL - SATREPS Symposium Living in the changing planet: Future Earth Designed by Simulation, JAMSTEC, Tokyo, Japan. February 2013

• MAIRS Scientific Steering Committee Meting, Guangzhou 25-26 March

• Brain-storming session on Future Earth in Asia; Academia Sinica, Chinese Taipei. 8-9 April

• OECD Global Science Forum (GSF) Workshop on Research Collaboration between Developing Countries and Developed Countries in Climate Change Adaptation and biodiversity, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. 18 – 19 March

Meetings in Asia after the Regional Workshop

• Japan GEC National Platform possibility of RIHN, JAMSTEC , MEXT, JST, JICA and SCJ playing pivotal role through SATREPS.

• China: MAIRS playing a lead role; Future Earth as theme of 1st MAIRS Open Science Conference, Beijing, April 2014

• China Taipei: Academia Sinica and the Center for Sustainability Research

Key research groups already at work

• Pacific Science Association– 12th Pacific Science Intercongress, July 2014,

Suva Fiji• Science Council of Asia– Panel 13th SCA Annual Conference. Bangkok,

May 2013– International Symposium 14th SCA Annual

Conference, June 2014

Key regional science organizations already promoting Future Earth

• Understanding nature and type of partnerships (types, interaction, communication, mutuality)

• How to effectively organise research collaboration that is – National– Transboundary

• How best to translate scientific knowledge into benefits for society

How to take it forward?

• Across economic, social and cultural divides• Significant added value by collaborating• Complementarities between competencies

and knowledge systems, and exchange on underlying values in intercultural partnerships, promote sound research contributions to development

• Enhance capacities and experience among all partners

• Contribute to evidence-based planning and decision-making

On the partnerships

Ensuring cohesion

Source: KFPE 2012

Which foci and priorities?Goal orientation of partnership-based research

Modified from KFPE 2012

Innovative

Development Societal relevance

Taking the specific recommendationsof the KL workshop as a starting point:

Coordination and convergence

Learning and capacity development

Science-policy-stakeholder interfaces

Design a coordination

facility

What would the facility do?

Facilitate/pursue coordination and convergence

• Develop an understanding of what sustainability means at the national and regional levels taking into account varying cultural contexts;

• Develop global sustainability indicators that can guide implementation at the regional and sub-regional levels;

• Develop strong regional representation in Future Earth and regional priorities that are developed through in-depth, long-term and sustained discussions;

• Create alliances of current integrated research projects and researchers upon which to build long-term strength;

• Foster networks for scientists across regions, disciplinary fields and stakeholders.

What would the facility do?Create learning and capacity development opportunities

• Compile examples of best practices of transdisciplinary research on sustainability issues beginning with small and local scale projects that could be scaled up through programmes at the regional and national levels;

• Document case studies of successful integration and interdisciplinary work in the region and create guidelines on how to co-design and co-produce research;

• Increase human capacity development training programs (short-term workshops, graduate student exchange, brokering opportunities for research positions and Professorial Chairs, mentoring of young scientists in least developed countries

What would the facility do?Enhance understanding of science-policy and stakeholder interface

• Develop an understanding of what the points of entry into the policy arena are;

• Develop approaches and programmes to bring into dialogue groups of people who do not normally talk to each other;

• Translate and share models on how to influence policymakers – and businesses (wide range of political systems and cultural settings prevalent in the region) - and sustain successful science-policy dialogues;

• Create or identify science-policy platforms to effectively inform and engage decision- and policy-makers

• Engage indigenous communities and local knowledge systems in the research process;

Organizational structure of Future Earth

Future Earth in Asia

Concept

Planning

Implementation

Analysis

Consolidate

Future Earth A-P

coordination office

• Establish a designated coordinating facility• Obtain funding support and recruit

personnel• Constitute a planning group for research

and network development• Develop an implementation strategy and

programme of work • Opportunistically commence work

Next steps (not necessarily sequential)

Questions?