ABSTRACT
The relevance of science diplomacy and open science in today's world is undeniable. Science diplomacy enables countries to jointly address pressing global challenges, such as climate change, pandemics, and food security. Open science, promoting accessible and transparent research, plays a pivotal role in this context. Nevertheless, the degree of openness is subject to specific circumstances, contingent upon varying factors, including local knowledge and resources. Latin America has not only been at the forefront of pioneering open access strategies, making it an interesting case to study, but it has also shown a tangible interest in using science diplomacy. Our research employs a mixed-methods approach, incorporating a quantitative survey involving 50 organizations and initiatives dedicated to promoting open science in Latin America, along with two qualitative focus group studies. Our primary objective is to assess if and how these entities use science diplomacy to achieve their objectives. Non-policy entities were prioritized due to their institutional stability in the region. We highlight successful strategies and delve into the existing barriers hindering the full implementation of open science principles. Our research aims to enhance collaboration between these organizations and policy and decision-makers by providing a set of recommendations in that direction. By shedding light on the current landscape and dynamics of open science in Latin America, we aspire to focus on science diplomacy, facilitate informed decision-making, and formulate policies that further propel the region along the path of openness, collaboration, and innovation in scientific research.
ABSTRACT
The current knowledge society has driven an unprecedented mobility of people, especially scientists, from emerging economies to developed countries. This mobility can allow the development of human talent and the access to first class infrastructure and resources, but it can also mean a loss for emerging economies due to the phenomenon of brain drain. To counteract this situation, some countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have developed models for the articulation of their scientific diaspora in projects and programs, with the aim of exchanging knowledge and capitalizing on human and technical resources to advance science, technology and innovation systems. Likewise, science diplomacy has become a tool for interlinking the work of various actors in order to advance the solution of national, transnational or global problems through scientific advice. Scientific diasporas are vital in new structures of cooperation, enabling them to innovate and solve problems jointly, advising their countries of origin and articulating policies and programs. This research seeks to analyze the interactions and initiatives identified between the organized scientific diaspora from Latin America and the Caribbean and their countries of origin in relation to science diplomacy processes, providing recommendations and proposals for public policy to improve the interaction between the diaspora and the governments of their countries of origin. Results show that diaspora organizations from Latin America and the Caribbean engage with governmental and non-state actors and are active science diplomacy stakeholders promoting the scientific developments of their country or their researchers, as well as enabling access to research resources creating alliances for scientific, institutional and academic collaborations. In the cases studied, these efforts are planned and executed by the diaspora without responding to any science diplomacy strategy of the country. Policies and programs are needed to effectively link the scientific diaspora organizations to the interests of the countries.
