Latest news

Future Earth German National Committee launched Mar 25, 2013

Germany has replaced its National Committee on Global Change Research (NKGCF) with the German Committee Future Earth (D-FutureEarth). The German Committee Future Earth will act as a national research advisory board on global sustainability and focal point on all international issues related under the framework of Future Earth.

Nature publishes paper on SDGs by team of authors from ICSU, IGBP and other organisations Mar 21, 2013

Today, Nature published a commentary by an international team of authors, including Gisbert Glaser from ICSU, Owen Gaffney from the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme and Johan Rockstrom from the Stockholm Resilience Center.

Dr. Boshra Salem inducted into U.S. Department of State’s Women in Science Hall of Fame Mar 12, 2013

Dr. Boshra Salem, a member of ICSU's Committee for Scientific Planning & Review, will be inducted today to the U.S. Department of State’s Women in Science Hall of Fame by the U.S. Ambassador to Egypt, Anne Patterson.

Expert Group Meeting at UN on «Science and Sustainable Development Goals» Feb 19, 2013

The United Nations Department of Social and Economic Affairs (UN-DESA), ICSU and the International Social Science Council (ISSC) will jointly organize an Expert Group Meeting on “Science and Sustainable Development Goals” at UN headquarters in New York from 20-21 March.

ICSU co-sponsors 3rd World Conference on Research Integrity Feb 01, 2013

The 3rd World Conference on Research Integrity will be held in Montréal, Canada, May 5th to 8th. It focusses on research integrity, responsible conduct of research, and publication of research.

IPBES holds first plenary meeting in Bonn Feb 01, 2013

The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) held its first plenary meeting from Jan 21-26 in Bonn, Germany. During the meeting, the science panel was appointed.

Black carbon report from IGBP project generates significant media coverage Jan 25, 2013

A report issued by a project of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP), providing new evidence that black carbon is the second largest man-made contributor to global warming, has triggered tremendous coverage in the media. Outlets such as the BBC, the Economist, the New York Times and the Washington Post picked up the story and reported that black carbon's influence on climate has been greatly underestimated.

Call for Nominations - Celso Furtado Prize for Social Sciences Jan 25, 2013

The Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS) is inviting nominations for its TWAS-Celso Furtado Prize for Social Sciences 2013.

UN announces list of countries for Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals Jan 16, 2013

The United Nations has announced the list of countries that will form the Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals. A total of sixty-nine countries will share thirty seats on the body charged with developing a set of goals following last year's Rio + 20 conference.

IRDR host organisation in major merger Jan 16, 2013

Beijing's Center for Earth Observation and Digital Earth has merged with the Institute of Remote Sensing Applications.

Call for nominations for Future Earth Science Committee Jan 14, 2013

The Science and Technology Alliance for Global Sustainability, which comprises ICSU, ISSC, the Belmont Forum, UNEP, UNESCO, UNU and WMO as an observer, is currently seeking nominations for experts to serve on the first Science Committeee of the Future Earth initiative.

CFRS concerned by mounting pressures on academic freedom Jan 07, 2013

Concerned that academic freedom is increasingly being encroached upon by political, religious and commercial pressures, the ICSU Committee on Freedom and Responsibility in the conduct of Science (CFRS) reached out to ICSU’s Members to assess their situation.

IRDR Scientific Committee gets new Chair Jan 03, 2013

New Zealander Prof. David Johnston takes over as Chair of IRDR Scientific Committee, replacing Dr. Sálvano Briceño.

Vacancy: Future Earth Interim Director Dec 21, 2012

Future Earth is looking to recruit an Interim Director who will lead the programme during the transition phase to it becoming fully operational in 2014. Applications are now open and close on February 15th.

Call for Applications: Urban Dynamics and Health Conference Dec 19, 2012

As part of our new interdisciplinary initiative "Health and wellbeing in the changing urban environment", we are co-organising a series of international conferences on urban dynamics and health. Applications for the first conference, to be held in Paris in September 2013, are now open and will close on January 31st.

Call for Applications: Food Futures Young Scientists Networking Conference Dec 03, 2012

The ISSC, ICSU and the DFG are organising a networking conference in April 2013 in Villa Vigoni at Lake Como in Italy. Young scientists working on integrated science on food systems are invited to submit their proposals. The deadline for applications has been extended to December 31st.

ICSU paper on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) published by Nature Oct 30, 2012

ICSU asserts that the best interdisciplinary research should underpin the development of goals, targets and indicators at global, regional and national levels.

The International Council for Science pledges support for scientists in the L’Aquila case Oct 26, 2012

The International Council for Science (ICSU), as representative of the global scientific community, expresses its strong concern regarding the case of the six scientists who have been found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to six year prison terms because of their role in providing scientific advice prior to the earthquake in L’Aquila, Italy, in 2009.

Future Earth regional workshops Oct 18, 2012

Future Earth seeks to provide knowledge at multiple scales - global, regional and local – and to address the connections among these scales. The Science and Technology Alliance for Global Sustainability which is establishing Future Earth is keen to seek inputs which can drive regional partnerships and engage a broad range of stakeholders. ICSU will organize an initial series of three regional workshops in Cape Town (31 October-2 November 2012), Kuala Lumpur (21-23 November 2012) and Mexico City (3-4 December 2012). Options to organize meetings in the Middle East and Europe are still in planning.