Five years to course correct –  Science and engineering for a world off track

The position paper presents seven priority themes and 17 case studies illustrating how science and engineering are advancing sustainable development – and what’s needed to strengthen their impact in the final five years of the 2030 Agenda.

Five years to course correct –  Science and engineering for a world off track

DOI: 10.24948/2025.03
Publication date: 30 June 2025
Publisher: International Science Council

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Theme 1: The importance of international scientific cooperation in addressing global challenges

• Open science infrastructures partnership for SDG capacity building in the Global South
• Enabling reliable and trustworthy crisis response: Open science-based data policies for global resilience

Theme 2: Science as a tool for cooperation and peacebuilding

• Management of tuna fisheries in the Pacific Small Island Developing States
• Using international science cooperation to combat illegal logging: A global assessment to inform UN biodiversity governance

Theme 3: Harnessing technology for sustainable development

• From research to impact: transforming sustainability data disclosure from cost to investment through science-based AI modelling
• Turning industrial CO2 into aquaculture feed: Large-scale microalgae cultivation in Northern Norway
• Renewable energy meets ecological restoration: An integrated model for inclusive development in high-altitude Qinghai, China
• Science for smarter cities: Using urban systems research to reshape commuting in China’s megacities

Theme 4: Bridging science, policy and plural knowledge for transformative action

• Coordinating science advice across government: Germany’s national dialogue between scientific advisory councils
• Restoring coral reefs in Belize: A science-based, communityled approach to marine ecosystem recovery
• Bringing together Indigenous and scientific knowledge systems: Climate advice for the Great Barrier Reef

Theme 5: Multistakeholder and transdisciplinary collaboration to advance integrated SDG implementation

• Science in action for community-led forest management in Upper Katanga, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Ginger tissue culture for food security: A science-based partnership model for sustainable agriculture in Samoa

Theme 6: Building capacity and diverse leadership in science

• Reforming science from within: Advancing gender equality in global scientific organizations
• Immersive design and ancestral knowledge for inclusive education and climate action in Vaupés, Colombia

Theme 7: Public engagement and science literacy as foundations for trust in science

• Citizen science for microplastics monitoring: Empowering Malaysian schools through environmental literacy
• A-Z science and health literacy for young learners in Malaysia

With just five years to 2030, science and engineering are demonstrating their potential to drive progress across the Sustainable Development Goals, but this potential is threatened by rising geopolitical tensions, shrinking scientific freedoms, and underinvestment. To stay on course, governments must protect science as a global public good, support inclusive and transdisciplinary collaboration, and align policy and funding with long-term sustainability goals. Science and engineering can be powerful tools for peace, equity, and innovation, but their impact depends on responsible governance, diverse leadership, and public trust.

Now is the time to reinforce the foundations that connect knowledge to action – through bold political will and renewed commitment to global cooperation.

Five years to course correct –  Science and engineering for a world off track

DOI: 10.24948/2025.03
Publication date: 30 June 2025
Publisher: International Science Council

Download

Cover image: Jules Marvin Eguilos via Unsplash