When Geneva Meets Genetics

When Geneva Meets Genetics: "This concept, labelled ‘science diplomacy’, is defined by Nina Fedoroff, the Science and Technology Adviser to the United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as “the use of scientific collaborations among nations to address the common problems facing 21st century humanity and to build constructive international partnerships”. Although ‘science’ is difficult to define exactly, scientific interactions can refer to those between individual practising scientists, officials in science-focused policy bodies and non-government organisations, or institutions such as universities, research laboratories and national, scientific academies. In these circles, science diplomacy is the subject of increasing enthusiasm. The United Kingdom appointed its first Chief Scientific Adviser to the Foreign Office last year; Fedoroff was recently elected president of the prominent American Association for the Advancement of Science; and countries from Europe to Asia are beginning to invest in similar programs. This is because politicians, diplomats and scientists all see potential benefits in the many different forms that science diplomacy can assume."