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Special issue information and aim

Science diplomacy has gained momentum in an era of heightened geopolitical instability, sustainability challenges and technological innovation, implying that it can solve interconnected global problems. In the international policy discourse, it is increasingly considered as a tool for building bridges, intersecting with sustainability in institutional level, (i.e. a new Global Framework for Science Diplomacy, as part of the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development [2024–2033) International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (2024-2033) | Science Decade, recently rolled out in the 2025 in Paris, etc.), in multilateral Frameworks, in institutions like the UN, UNESCO, IPCC, and UNEP act as nodes where science diplomacy and sustainability goals are negotiated and implemented. For example, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a prime instance of science diplomacy enabling collective sustainability action.

 The special issue aims to contribute to the rapidly expanding field of research in science diplomacy in the light of global sustainability challenges. The objective is to gather scientific contributions related to intersection of science diplomacy with sustainability, through the perspective of diverse actors. Sustainability, not in terms of specific sectoral issues, but as a governance-oriented concept rooted in international frameworks, norms, and agendas—such as the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Despite the attention of science diplomacy in public policy and academic research over the past fifteen years, there exists a substantial gap between its enthusiastic discourse and the actual implementation of policies and practices. In the broader understanding of sustainability, science diplomacy can strengthen the interface between science, technology, and international relations, for a sustainable use of shared resources, intersecting in conceptual level through shared global goals like climate change, energy security, global health, biodiversity loss etc., and evidence based decision making.

Although there is no accepted definition of science diplomacy, it is viewed as a multidimensional, exchange of knowledge and methodologies across domains. The 2025 report Science Diplomacy in an Era of Disruption, by AAAS and the Royal Society, reframes science diplomacy as a dynamic, bidirectional and co-evolving relationship between science and diplomacy in a context marked by global crises, geopolitical shifts, and technological transformation. It highlights the growing role of non-state actors (including civil society, the private sector, and scientific networks) in shaping and implementing science diplomacy agendas.

This perspective positions science diplomacy as a crucial enabler of collaborative solutions, also in the context of global commitments to sustainability, as embraced in the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development, the Paris Agreement, and the UN Pact for the Future, that on the other hand create fertile ground for it. Especially, the 2030 Agenda that has fostered the demand for evidence-based decision-making, and cooperation between non-state actors and catalyzed the emergence of a generation of "science diplomats" mobilized around sustainability goals Can Summit of the Future Support Sustainability Science Diplomats? – SDG Knowledge Hub (iisd.org).

Nevertheless, the “ownership of science diplomacy” in the recent years, is extended to a wide range of non-state actors, also due to the necessity of their engagement in global sustainability problems. 

However, there is a need for clear definitions, realistic expectations, and an acknowledgment of the complexities inherent in coordinating multiple actors to address global challenges. This special issue will address the need for more “science of science diplomacy” and will advance the research of science diplomacy in the direction of sustainability, through the prospective of engaged actors.

The collection will gather (theoretical and empirical contribution), interdisciplinary research, methodological and theoretical frameworks, case and field studies. It focuses on how science diplomacy intersects with sustainability governance, including the growing role of non-state actors, hybrid institutional spaces, and emerging diplomacy niches.

The contributions can focus (not limited to) on these potential topics addressing conceptual, institutional and emerging themes of intersections;  

• Exploring links between science diplomacy and sustainability, intersection of the concepts, research priorities, gaps, etc.;
• Understanding institutional language at the intersection of diplomacy and sustainability to diverse actors;  
• Research on growing engagement of different actors in science diplomacy in the context of global sustainability challenges; (Higher Education Institutions-curricular and extra-curricular activities; Cities; NGOS; Businesses, etc.);
• Science diplomacy under the framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; empirical evidence of global scientific inter-nations and cross-border collaboration in the context of the SDGs.  
• Science diplomacy as a future sustainability skill, the role of next generation of scientists-diplomats,  for global sustainability challenges; 
• Exploring new emerging niches, such as climate-diplomacy, education-diplomacy, water-diplomacy, cyber-diplomacy, tech-diplomacy, green-diplomacy, etc.  

Submission Guidelines: please select the ‘Science Diplomacy and Sustainability’ option from the special issue dropdown in ScholarOne.

For detailed manuscript preparation instructions and submission guidelines, please refer to the Instructions for Authors.

All manuscripts need to be submitted no later than 30th September 2026, submit your manuscript here.