IAP & Post-2015

Merit-based Academies of Science have the capability to mobilize the best brains worldwide from different disciplines to assist in addressing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and in developing the post-2015 development agenda and related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In February 2013, the IAP Conference on "Grand Challenges and Integrated Innovations - Science for Poverty Eradication and Sustainable Development" took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, hosted by the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. One of the outcomes of the Conference and General Assembly was the "Letter from Rio-2013 on the Role of Science Academies in Grand Challenges and Integrated Innovations for Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication". The Letter underlined the need for Academies of Science to affirm their responsibility to society and work individually and jointly to assess strengths and weaknesses of current science, technology, and innovation capacities worldwide for addressing scientific issues related to sustainable development and poverty eradication; and participate in and advise, at the national and global levels, the processes being set by the UN and national governments on the post-2015 development agenda.

Following the event, IAP established a new Committee on Science for Poverty Eradication, which is now addressing the issues. The Committee is chaired by the Brazilian Academy of Sciences.

News updates ...

August 2015

UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction

Call for Abstracts- Poster Session  UNISDR
The full diversity of the science and technology community, policy makers, practitioners and researchers from all geographical regions, at local, national, regional and  international levels who support the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030,  are invited to submit abstracts for posters for the UNISDR Science and Technology Conference  on the implementation of the Sendai Framework  for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 to take place on 27-29 January 2016 at the Geneva International Conference Center (CICG), in Geneva, Switzerland

Follow the link below to the instructions and guidelines. For further enquiries, please contact: unisdrstc@un.org

On a related theme, the International Geographical Union (IGU) Conference on Land Use Change, Climate Extremes and Disaster Risk Reduction is scheduled to take place on 23-25 March 2016 in New Delhi, India. A special session will be dedicated to the South Asian perspective for the implementation of the Sendai Framework of Disaster Risk Reduction, and Future Earth.   

Follow the LINK for full details on the programme and the First Circular.

March 2015

IAP representation from the Science Council of Japan (SCJ) at the UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (14-18 March 2015)

At the close of the UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (14-18 March 2015), world leaders released the Sendai Declaration in which they recognised the "increasing impact of disasters and their complexity in many parts of the world" and declared a "determination to enhance our efforts to strengthen disaster risk reduction to reduce disaster losses of lives and assets worldwide."
These efforts will be undertaken through a new framework agreement, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, which supersedes the previous Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015.
Thanks in part to the efforts of the Science and Technology Major Group, coordinated by ICSU and with input from IAP and its member academies, the requirement for science and technology in disaster reduction programmes features prominently in the new agreement.
For example, the new Sendai Framework calls to: "Promote and improve dialogue and cooperation among scientific and technological communities, other relevant stakeholders and policymakers in order to facilitate a science-policy interface for effective decision-making in disaster risk management," as well as to: "Enhance the development and dissemination of science-based methodologies and tools to record and share disaster losses and relevant disaggregated data and statistics, as well as to strengthen disaster risk modelling, assessment, mapping, monitoring and multi-hazard early warning systems," and to "Strengthen technical and scientific capacity to capitalize on and consolidate existing knowledge, and to develop and apply methodologies and models to assess disaster risks, vulnerabilities and exposure to all hazards."

IAP was represented on the Science and Technology Major Group which met in Sendai by two experts from the Science Council of Japan, Haruo Hayashi and Fumiko Kasuga. Follow the link to F. Kasuga's report HERE.

IAP and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in Geneva - November 2014

  • The second PrepCom leading towards the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, was held on 17-18 November 2014 in Geneva, Switzerland. IAP Executive Committee member, Antonio Sgamellotti (Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Italy) attended on behalf of IAP as part of the Major Group on Science and Technology(STMG) that has been convened by ICSU.
    Among the inputs of the STMG to the preparatory meeting was a STATEMENT on how science and technology can become more integrated into decision-making to mitigate against and reduce the effects of natural disasters.
    R Klein and STMG A video of the presentation is also available HERE, while a more detailed report of the event can be found on the ICSU website HERE.
    The aim of the two-day meeting was to negotiate the zero draft of the Post-2015 Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction that will be approved at the World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR), scheduled to take place in Sendai, Japan, in March 2015. The zero draft itself is available HERE for any academy members who wish to comment on the contents.
  • The preparatory committee for the 3rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) meets in Geneva, 14-15 July 2014 - IAP, represented by its Coordinator, Peter McGrath, participated in the delegation led by the International Council for Science as the organizing partner of the UN Science and Technology Major Group. The two-day meeting in Geneva (14-15 July 2014) is intended to prepare for the March 2015 conference in Sendai, Japan, where governments are due to approve a new global framework to reduce disaster risk to replace the current Hyogo Framework. For more details on the outcomes of the Geneva discussions, follow the link HERE.
  • In March 2015, at the Third World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, Sendai, Japan, United Nations Member States will adopt the successor arrangements to the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA), referred to as the Post-2015 Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. At the same time, 2015 will also see the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and a new agreement on climate change. Together these instruments should enable actions at all levels to manage disaster risks and climate change in a way that facilitates sustainable development. The first session of the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom1) of the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction will be held over two days, from 14-15 July 2014, to review the organizational and substantive preparations for the Conference, approve the programme of work of the Conference, and propose rules of procedure for adoption by the Conference. Follow the LINK to the draft proposal. In its capacity as organising partner for the Science and Technology Major Group, ICSU is putting together a delegation that would cover a broad range of expertise and regional interests, to include IAP which will be represented by Dr. Peter McGrath, IAP Coordinator.
  • 17 SDGsSee the 17 proposed Goals and Targets on Sustainable Development for the Post-2015 Development Agenda, to be attained by 2030 ...
  • An IAP Statement "Response to the Report of the High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the post-2015 development agenda - A New Global Partnership" - was released in parallel with the UN Special Event on 25 September 2013 in New York.

See links and resources below for more information.