A few reflections on science diplomacy.

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” – Jesus (Matthew 9:37-38 NIV)

Diplomacy frequently consists in soothingly saying “Nice doggie” until you have a chance to pick up a rock – Walter Trumbull[1].

A recent AGU announcement of an upcoming (August 20^th; that’s this Tuesday!) webinar on science policy skills caught my eye. Turned out it’s part of a Global Policy Webinar Series they’re offering. Scientists might want to give the topic some thought. Here’s a definition of diplomacy more broadly, to get things going:

• the profession, activity, or skill of managing international relations, typically by a country’s representatives abroad.
• the art of dealing with people in a sensitive and effective way.

It’s but a short step to zero in on science diplomacy. Googling this term provided this material courtesy of generative AI:

Science diplomacy is the use of scientific collaboration and exchanges to help achieve diplomatic goals in international relations. It can involve scientists and scientific organizations working together across borders, or nations coming together to negotiate agreements. Science diplomacy can take many forms, including: 

• Science for diplomacy

Using science as a soft power to build goodwill between nations and advance diplomatic goals. For example, scientists might collaborate on multi-national projects in physics or astronomy, and their nations would then negotiate agreements on financing and management. 

• Science in diplomacy

Using science to directly support diplomatic processes. For example, scientists might provide evidence and advice to inform decision-making in foreign and security policies. This can help ensure that global policy efforts and foreign policies are informed by scientific evidence. 

• Diplomacy for science

Using science to help in times of political strain. For example, joint research efforts can help nations keep talking and build trust when their political relations are strained. 

Science diplomacy has occupied the minds of scientists and national political leaders for quite a while – dating back, say, at least to Leonardo da Vinci. Wikipedia’s article on the man provides a fair amount of detail. In 2019, Australian historians Susan Broomhall and Joy Damousi provided a sparkling little piece entitled How Leonardo da Vinci made a living from killing machines. Da Vinci made his science and inventions for war available to multiple city states over his lifetime. All these transactions were accompanied by diplomacy.

Of course, the roots of diplomacy itself go back much further. An account, one of many, from the Bible: Early in King David’s reign, he reached out to a king of the Ammonites whose father had just died. The diplomatic act was misinterpreted (or was it?) by that king’s advisers, with tragic results  for the Ammonites, and for their allies, the Arameans (2 Samuel 10).

Some reflections:

The harvest is plentiful. Science diplomacy became a thing during the Cold War because science and technology (notably the atomic bomb, radar, and penicillin) played a pivotal role in the outcome of World War II. It’s even more consequential today. Nations are racing to advance and harness AI; energy-, agricultural-, water- and technologies; and biological and medical science. The outcomes will not only shape geopolitical security and the overall welfare and future prospects for humanity as a whole, but also the allocation and distribution of those benefits across the eight billion of us. The National Academies have been asked several times to provide advice on the topic – resulting for example in the 2015 study: Diplomacy for the 21st Century: Embedding a Culture of Science and Technology Throughout the Department of State.

The laborers are few. If science diplomacy is so consequential why do so few scientists and engineers enter the field? Some possible explanations (you may readily form your own superior list). Start with the superficial. The U.S. Foreign Service at one time had an S&T career track but then did away with it. On a deeper level, the reward structure (salaries, promotion, reputation, and more) for scientists and engineers favors staying within discipline. And though scientists and diplomats are both in the business of problem solving (and therefore both rely on observation, critical thinking, and logic), they approach problem solving in quite different ways. (With enormous over-simplification) scientists rely on experiment, curiosity, logic, creativity, skepticism, objectivity, and conflict-resolution-through-peer-review. Diplomats need these same qualities, but place emphasis on adaptability, empathy, patience, and conflict-resolution-through-compromise. Loyalty to country also matters.

Add this: Scientists can make a hundred mistakes, but so long as none of these make it into print, a much more limited number of successes can make their careers golden. By contrast, diplomats can make a single mistake and (like those Ammonites and Arameans) never get another chance to put things right. “Move fast and break things” doesn’t work at the State Department.  

Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. But it’s not a simple matter of disparate skill sets or approaches. Da Vinci’s life experiences and the Walter Trumbull quote remind us that diplomacy lies at the razor’s edge separating the most high-minded of human ideals (the welfare of another; cooperation; working together to build a better world) and naked power. Diplomacy is a quite different matter for haves- and have-not nations. For the former, diplomacy is a choice (we’d win if we went to war over this, but we’d rather talk it though). For the latter diplomacy looks different (we know you’d win if we went to war over this, but it’s a moral issue, and after winning the war you wouldn’t be able to look yourself in the mirror, or hold you head high in the assembly of other nations).

Scientists and engineers might be forgiven for feeling uncomfortable near this precipice. Bad enough to see nations’ ravenous appetite for applying S&T to the tools and practice of war.

Science diplomacy should therefore not be taken lightly. But after deep thought (including, perhaps, prayer?) some might find themselves called to enter the arena.

To close: Science diplomacy is not simply an international matter. Scientists (and engineers) have a diplomatic problem at home, in-country. Since Sputnik, the U.S. educational system has fostered STEM education for a favored few versus vigorously encouraging that for all. To our detriment, this elitism (a reality, even though not an avowed policy) has over time created an artificial but visible divide between scientists and the public at large – a culture of we-they versus building a culture where we are one-and-all “scientists.” At the same time (and partially as a result), public trust in scientists is declining. Going forward, scientists need a more empathetic, considerate, respectful outreach to others – more diplomatic outreach – in many cases, starting with our own families and neighbors.

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[1] This quote is usually attributed to Will Rogers, but Quote Investigator tells us one Walter Trumbull, a sportswriter, is the more likely source. Sigh. Is no attribution sacred? (Well, perhaps, literally, the quote attributed to Jesus might be correctly so.)