The CERN model, United Nations and global public goods: addressing global challenges

Transcription

1 The CERN model, United Nations and global public goods: addressing global challenges Report on the symposium that took place on 2 November 2015 at the Palais des Nations, Geneva. by Anaïs Schaeffer Edited by: Herwig Schopper, Michel Spiro and Maurizio Bona 1

2 Contents Foreword...p.3 Introduction...p.4 The United Nations: global public goods and sustainable development...p.5 The CERN model: why can CERN have a role in this?...p.11 Conclusion: what comes next?...p.17 Afterword...p.18 Official program of the event.....p.19 Concept Note.....p.22 2

3 Foreword In past centuries, states largely dominated international relations, but today they no longer enjoy this monopole. From a political point of view, the role of international organisations, as well as of other actors, has grown in importance. This represents a profound change in international relations in general and in the role of states in particular. It modifies decision-making structures and compels us to design a new global architecture. We need a more plural vision of governments. We have entered a polycentric world, where local, regional, national, and global processes are interlinked. This vision gives importance not only to states, but also to local governments, multilateral agencies, transnational actors, businesses, scientific forums, non-governmental organisations, civil society groups, human rights, and advocacy groups. The provision of global public goods is a major issue for global survival. We are all aware of the importance of controlling and limiting climate change, as well as ensuring essential public goods both material and immaterial, such as water, biodiversity, education, health, peace, and welfare, though it may be less evident to establish the immediate link between global public goods and CERN. However, by looking in more detail at CERN and its history, it emerges that the Organization is a successful example of peaceful international scientific collaboration, based on transparency, openness, and inclusion. Introductory keynote address by Micheline Calmy-Rey, Former Foreign Minister and President of Switzerland 3

4 Introduction The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was approved on 25 September 2015 by the United Nations (UN) Member States. As stated by the official declaration, the document is a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity. It identifies 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for the whole planet to take action on over the next fifteen years. With the view to contribute to the realisation of the Agenda, a one-day symposium was co-hosted by the United Nations Office at Geneva and CERN, with the support of Switzerland and France in their capacity as the two CERN host states. The symposium explored the value of the CERN model of cooperation in building trust across boundaries and strengthening the provision of global public goods in a rapidly-changing international context. The event brought together policy makers, diplomats, scientists, epistemic associations, representatives of international governmental and non-governmental organisations, and representatives of civil society in a new debate about how to build synergies across communities to move forward global objectives. The aim was to stimulate an innovative exchange that can help to shape more creative approaches and partnerships in addressing the challenges of today. How does CERN work? How are goals achieved in such a complex environment, where diverse communities work together in the interests of science? The CERN model for international scientific collaboration is being looked at with growing interest by an increasingly large community of experts in various fields. Scientific advances and accomplishments are testament to the effectiveness of the model and prove that ambitious scientific programmes can be carried out only by communities collaborating in the long-term. During this symposium, speakers discussed if and how this model can be used effectively in other contexts for the good of society. Indeed, just as in the particle physics community, many of the challenges that society faces today, including understanding climate change, dealing with shrinking biodiversity, and ensuring access to safe water, health, Internet and education for all the inhabitants of the planet, involve several stakeholders and must be addressed, in a coordinated way, by experts coming from a number of different disciplines. Indeed, with the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the United Nations Member States face new challenges that will require the implementation of new tools and the development of an innovative approach to the provision of global public goods. How to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 related targets embedded in the 2030 Agenda? How to reconcile open collaborative efforts and market approaches; bottom-up initiatives and topdown strategy and regulation; local and global policies? How to choose the appropriate model for a given situation? 4

5 The United Nations: global public goods and sustainable development A universal agenda for the provision of global public goods In September 2000, building upon a decade of major United Nations conferences and summits, world leaders came together at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to adopt the United Nations Millennium Declaration, committing their nations to a new global partnership to reduce extreme poverty and setting out a series of time-bound targets that have become known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). 15 years later, on 25 September 2015, the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which seeks to build on these Millennium Development Goals and complete what these did not achieve. But what is the purpose of such agendas? Why do the nations need such official frameworks? Frédéric Bontemps, Director of global public goods department, MFA (France), gave an insight into the intrinsic purposes of these agendas. He explained that the consumption by all individuals of some global public goods, especially climate and biodiversity, has an effect on the well being of each of us, and that is justifying the implementation of an international regulation on these global public goods. And to ensure that the international community respects this regulation and follows a direction that will reach populations expectations and conserve the planet, a universal agenda has to be adopted. Sustainability is not any more about environment or health or development only, it is about human well-being, defined holistically in all those terms. Liliana Andonova, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva Up until now, he explained, there were two agendas: one for global public goods (the Millennium Development Goals) and one for sustainable development. They had different governance and follow-up systems, and seemed sometimes to be in conflict. Developing countries were saying to developed ones: You have built your growth by using global public goods, such as nature, the climate, etc. and now you re saying that these ways of growth are not sustainable, that we have to find different methods of growth, so you are getting in the way of our development. But Frédéric Bontems insisted on the fact that there should no longer be developed and developing countries, but all countries on the pathway to sustainable development. So over the past two years, he explained, the international community has made an effort to bring these two Agendas together, and this has been done through the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Everything existing in the Millennium Development Goals was included in the 2030 Agenda. But the important thing here, as Frédéric Bontems underlined, is that there is now one single mode of 5

6 governance over all of the subjects, a common expression of the needs and the goals, and one single way of monitoring them. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development The 2030 Agenda is a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity. It seeks to strengthen universal peace in larger freedom. It includes a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 related targets to end poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change by We have to be very mindful that statistically speaking you can reduce by half the poverty, but if the inequalities remain what they are today or widen, the global problem will still be there. Gilbert Houngbo, International Labour Office (ILO) Deputy Director-General for Field Operations and Partnerships Oh Joon, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), insisted on three important aspects of the Agenda, which are central to the UN role in providing global public goods: - The fundamental objectives of the Agenda are the eradication of extreme poverty and the protection of our planet. These objectives are the epitome of the role of the UN for the well being of humanity; - The UN has a unique role to play in advancing sustainable developments of economic, social and environmental dimensions. Indeed, the new Agenda is based on the determination to act simultaneously on various fronts, putting an end on poverty and hunger, protecting the environment, combating inequalities, promoting human rights and gender equality, and building more peaceful societies; - The UN act for the promotion and sharing of scientific knowledge as a tool for achieving sustainable development. The UN is a unique global body to address these challenges and ECOSOC stands ready to play its part as a platform of partnership and multi-stakeholders engagement. Oh Joon, President of ECOSOC Maria Luisa Silva, member of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (Geneva), also drew the attention of the audience on the how. Achieving the 2030 Agenda will require the right policies and tools, backed by robust and quality data, and reinforced by clear and transparent monitoring processes. Silva observed that, in the past, implementation of the Agendas Goals has shown to be successful in the places where it was internalised and localised, involving governments and the civil 6

7 society at all levels, and in some places, having also the private sector joining efforts, with the support of the international community. All countries have pending homework to meet the Sustainable Development Goals ambition of leaving no one behind and putting those most vulnerable first. Maria Luisa Silva, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Geneva By embracing universality, the 2030 Agenda directs the attention to the collaborative action needed to provide the global public goods embedded in it. Indeed, Beris Gwynne, from World Vision, pointed out that academic studies on global governance raised very serious concerns about the lack of real progress in important aspects of global trade, investment, debt, but also human rights. She suggested that the politicisation that has come with the notion of a governing body the United Nations which is composed of 193 Member States, and the emergence of other powerful actors, may be an explanation. She regretted the fact that the UN system, regarded with such certainty as a multilateral system, is today showing signs of strain, internally and in relation to the emergence of those powerful actors. Maria Luisa Silva also emphasized that innovations and improvements in governance will be needed at all levels, including the global one, and resources will need to multiply. At the most fundamental level, she said, it is a set of objectives that have to be adapted to domestic realities, as there are still some important discrepancies, in particular between the global scope of today key challenges and the national boundaries of most policy makers. States operate predominantly according to the principle of authority; markets operate predominantly according to transactions; and communities operate predominantly according to the principle of solidarity. So the cooperation between these actors is not an easy task Alberto Martinelli, Professor at the University of Milan and President of the International Social Science Council (ISSC) During the question session, a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) tackled this question of global governance and questioned in particular the effectiveness of the UN system. Oh Joon used the model of the European Union (EU) as a point of comparison: Do we want the UN to become more like the EU government, with the capability to make more binding decisions on states and deliver more effective policies? he asked. Indeed, he reminded that, today, the decisions taken by the UN General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) are only recommendations. So should the UN bodies be able to make more effective decisions and policies? Is this the only way toward more effectiveness? Wouldn t this be contradictory with the CERN model? 7

8 The first challenge: definition of global public good According to its Charter, signed in 1945, the United Nations works to maintain international peace and security, to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion. But the reality proves us everyday how difficult this mission is. So many obstacles are still in the way of a global development. During the symposium, Cédric Dupont, from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (Geneva), reminded the long list of factors still hindering development: conflicts, social and political instabilities, insufficient education, hunger, diseases, extreme climate and environmental conditions, close world market, financial instabilities, and the list goes on. How to get rid of these obstacles? What solutions could answer these problems? Cédric Dupont asked the audience: Would these problems disappear, if mankind had access to all the desirable global public goods? So, is the response to development problems the provision of global public goods? Cédric Dupont gave parts of an answer by admitting that it is, indeed, very obvious that development would benefit from the provision of some key global public goods, such as peace and climate stability, but he also insisted on the fact that it is essential too to preserve the instruments for example, the international organisations such as the United Nations or the funds for development which help providing these goods. Before going any further, however, it is important to define what is a global public good and, in particular, whether CERN can be considered such. Experts analysed the concept of global public good and agreed on three properties defining it, which are: - It is non-competitive: the consumption of a global public good by somebody does not prevent somebody else to consume it; - It is non-excludable: no one can prevent somebody to consume it; - It is non-rivalrous: it can be consumed by many without becoming depleted. For example, peace, nature, biodiversity, climate stability, food and water security, education, scientific knowledge, access to the Internet, are all considered global public goods. So what about CERN? The various speakers seemed to agree on the fact that, although the laboratory itself cannot be considered as a global public good, the scientific knowledge it produces definitely is. This makes CERN a tool for the provision of global public goods. Nevertheless, as Alberto Martinelli, Professor at the University of Milan and President of the International Social Science Council (ISSC), underlined during the symposium, further discussions are needed to better clarify the concept of global 8

9 public good, as, for certain topics, there is still no agreement among scientists. He gave an example: some would consider equality as a global public good, but others as a public goal, because of its rivalrous aspect: to have more equality or to fight against inequality, one must take away from some and give to some others. Alberto Martinelli insisted on one important thing, which is that the international community must agree on the objectives that must be pursued collectively. Health: a global public good? Various examples of global public goods were presented more in depth during the symposium, including health. Marie-Paul Kieny, World Health Organization (WHO) Assistant Director-General, gave a very eloquent presentation on health and its status of global public good. But is health really a global public good? she pondered. She explained that if goods and services necessary to provide and sustain health are predominantly rival and excludable, there are nevertheless important aspects of health having undeniable public goods properties: - Knowledge and technologies are global public goods; - Information, such as on health risks and treatments, is in principle both nonexcludable and non-rivalrous. So health has indisputably a global public good aspect, but, as Marie-Paul Kieny underlined, not enough in fields that would benefit poor countries. Why? Because, as she explained, although the public and the non-for-profit sectors historically carried-out research resulting in new drugs and treatments, the private for-profit sector today plays the largest role. And as pharmaceutical companies invest primarily where profitable market exists, the system tends to neglect innovation for diseases that disproportionately affect poor populations, because of their inability to pay. Marie-Paul Kieny reminded that the World Health Organization position has long been simply stated: no one should be denied access for life saving and health promoting interventions for unfair reasons including an inability to pay. In an equitable world, people should not suffer from diseases that have no vaccine or therapeutic options because market forces have fail. As a conclusion, she addressed the audience with a crucial policy question: how to engage the private sector in research benefiting poor countries and poor populations? Could parts of an answer come from the CERN model? As Oh Joon acknowledged in his keynote, CERN is a great example of creating synergies across different partners, including through public-private partnerships. So the question remains open as to how can this experience serve to further develop knowledge and capacities and how to move this process forward within organisations such as WHO and the UN? 9

10 Ebola crisis: a global response to a global threat There are fortunately examples of successful collaborations between the public and the private sectors in the field of health. Marie-Paul Kieny explained how the management of the Ebola crisis, in , proved that partnerships otherwise unlikely can be formed for the benefit of global health. Indeed, under the threat of an Ebola epidemic, some extraordinary things happened for the development of Ebola vaccines as a global public good: large pharmaceutical companies openly shared data of their research protocols, clinical trial designs and production capacity; they offered to include vaccines from other companies in their own clinical trials; researchers from academic and government agencies shared innovative design for rapid yet highquality clinical trials that could yield robust results under emergency conditions; and regulatory agencies agreed to allow phase 2 and 3 to take place in parallel instead of sequentially. Now how to create an official framework in which such partnerships would become a standard? Is the fear of a global threat the only valid motivation? Epistemic communities: examples to follow? It is now clear that the pursuit of the 2030 Agenda s Goals requires a multilevel and multi-actor governance all the speakers during this symposium agreed on that. In concrete terms, what would be the best way to make all these actors work together? The answer may come from epistemic communities. As Alberto Martinelli explained to the audience during his presentation, there is no doubt that epistemic communities among them international scientific associations such as CERN are international in scope and transnational in their outlook. They do not base their conduct on national interests or profits. Beris Gwynne also applauded the fact that they are able to bring together people of light mind with the appropriate qualifications and good will to reach a common objective based on universalistic values. Alberto Martinelli denounced that the convenience of trade or the requirements of diplomacy often persuade governments to close one eye or even both in face of violations of basic human rights, whereas epistemic communities can be much more outspoken and explicit in defence of those rights. They can help global governance and the provision of global public goods by enriching the knowledge of key issues through their scientific achievements, and by playing a key role in monitoring the degree to which the Sustainable Development Goals are really pursued. Beris Gwynne suggested that, following the example of epistemic communities, the 2030 Agenda has to take the opportunity to gather together collectives to bring their imagination and perception to the table and to develop systems where mankind can 10

11 anticipate the changes that are ahead and agree to a mutual accountability going forward. So partnerships will be an important element in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda s Goals, and the example mentioned earlier about partnerships between the public and private sectors in the field of health is perhaps the most eloquent. So more thinking definitely needs to be done about what partnerships means, as Liliana Andonova, member of the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (Geneva), also underlined. What is a partnership at the UN level? How can more partners be mobilised to help hit the 2030 Agenda s targets? Here again, CERN and its ability to build successful partnerships across different partners are inspiring. vvvvvv The CERN model: why can CERN have a role in this? CERN was founded in 1954 under the auspices of UNESCO both organisations were born of the desire to use scientific cooperation to rebuild peace and security in the aftermath of the Second World War. CERN is a treaty-based intergovernmental organisation today composed of 21 Member States, which has succeeded in building a large scientific cooperation beyond the boundaries of these Member States. Each Member State is represented in the CERN Council CERN s decision-making body by two official delegates: one representing its own country authority, the other its national scientific interest. The CERN Council decides the scientific policy of the organisation, taking into account the advices of its scientific policy committees. These committees are composed by eminent personalities in the field of high-energy physics, who are not elected by the countries, but are co-opted by the committees themselves some of the committees members are not even citizens of a CERN s Member State. Today, CERN counts more than 3,000 staff members, scientific associates and students, and about 12,000 scientific users coming from 100 countries in all continents. These 12,000 users whose salaries are paid by their home institutes participate in CERN s activities through their experiments collaborations. For example, ATLAS and CMS, two big experiments operating at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), each bring together about 3,000 scientists from 200 different institutes and universities all around the world. The most numerous community of 11

12 users is composed by 1,800 researchers from several US institutes, although the US is not a CERN Member State. What makes the CERN model so successful? Numerous advances and accomplishments, such as the discovery of the Higgs boson particle in July 2012 and the invention of the World Wide Web (WWW) by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989, are testimony of the effectiveness of CERN s model. Various specific characteristics can explain this success, and Fabiola Gianotti, CERN Director-General, explained it in a very complete way during her presentation. She gave four reasons for that: first of all, authority comes from the intellectual contributions and not from the hierarchy. If the youngest student has a bright idea or a solution to a problem which is evaluated by a solid peer-review process within the collaboration the experiment s collaboration will follow. So everyone can contribute in a significant way to shape the strategy and course of the experiment. Secondly, the managerial and organisational structure is light. Within CERN s experiments, the leadership has no contractual power on the members of the collaborations, because the members of the collaborations are affiliated to their home institutes. Of course, some structure is needed for the collaboration to work in an effective and timely way, but the organisation remains light; it would otherwise repress the initiatives, ideas and creativity of the individuals, which are the drivers of the scientific research. For example, the invention of the WWW would not have been possible without the freedom resulting from such a light organisation. Thirdly, decisions are taken by consensus. Consensus does not mean that everybody agrees, this is impossible, it means that problems, issues, strategies, plans, are discussed all together in an open way. This process is also facilitated by the fact that CERN s scientists and scientists in general all speak a common language: the language of science, at CERN through physics and mathematics. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the key element is that people are animated by a strong common passion for science and for the scientific goals of the experiments. This passion and the awareness that these goals can only been reached by working together are much stronger than the ambitions and interests of the individuals, institutes or countries. Universal values, like knowledge, transcend the political, social, economical interests of individuals and countries, and as such, are very strong glue to bring mankind together and a very strong ally of peace. Fabiola Gianotti, CERN Director-General 12

13 CERN, a model? As mentioned earlier, CERN s close ties to UNESCO date back to the 1950s. Since then, the two organisations cooperate on many projects, mainly in the field of education. So having Flavia Schlegel, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, giving her presentation in the panel entitled The CERN Model, Science, Education, and Global Public Goods is no surprise. And, in fact, she gave a very comprehensive description of CERN s model. Here is what she said: CERN is a model for truly multilateral cooperation with peaceful and civil application for all its research and programmes the most prominent example of it being portrayed in SESAME. SESAME (Synchrotron-Light for Experimental Science Applications in the Middle East) is an international laboratory currently under construction in Jordan, which is based on the CERN model. It was established under the auspices of UNESCO, as was CERN, and it has the dual mission of providing a centre of excellence for science and a catalyst for peace in a troubled region, as was CERN 60 years ago. CERN is a model for convening power to gather scientists and other stakeholders from countries and regions around the world. It is a model for development and transfer of knowledge and technology and for capacity building. It is also a model for the importance of fundamental research which is at the beginning of all future solutions imaginable to global challenges we are facing today and of consensual governance. CERN is a model for open-access, open-science and open-innovation, which strongly resonates with UNESCO s mandate. It is essential that science and technology be rendered more accessible worldwide, both in training and practice. In this spirit, CERN and UNESCO s developed and implemented a project for opendigital library and open-access to scientific information called Invenio. The World Wide Web is also a good example of the benefits of open-access for the society: in 1993, CERN put the WWW software in the public domain, allowing everybody in the world to contribute to its development into the essential tool of the Internet it is today. Like in the case of the biological evolution of the species, discoveries are driven by ideas and inventions, which progressively develop in a competitive way in which the new idea is instantly eliminating the previous one. Carlo Rubbia, Nobel Prize in Physics and former Director-General of CERN The CERN model of capacity building and education for children and young adults is exemplified by initiatives such as the School lab. This programme allows school students from all over the world to get in touch with high-standard particle physicists. CERN also developed a training programme for schoolteachers: once received the training at CERN and returned to their schools, the teachers can in turn teach other teachers and students in their country. 13

14 CERN can be looked as a model of gender equality. The Organisation has raised a percentage of female staff within the last decade and, even if there is still much to be done, CERN shows that the issue of diversity in general, and gender equality specifically, is being addressed. Finally, CERN is also a model of interaction between scientists and policy makers. The status of CERN as an observer to the United Nations is a great example of how scientists and policy makers can interact in a structured way. Actually, these interactions between scientists and politics, and the way they articulate, raised various questions within the audience, the main one being how to improve these interactions? Michel Jarraud, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Secretary General, gave the example of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He explained that one of the founding principles of IPCC is that it is policy-relevant, but not policy-prescriptive. Its decisions are based on the best possible information available, in particular best scientific information. This information is passed onto decision makers (governments, private companies, NGOs, but also farmers, etc.), who will use it to decide what actions to take. Marie-Paul Kieny regretted that, in health as in climate change, there is a gap between the knowledge and the implementation of solutions. Science always comes up with new responses, but it takes a long time to implement them. How to reduce this gap? she wondered. How can we better define the interactions between the scientists and the politics? Do we have to leave the framework where scientists give information for a framework where they listen to what politicians want to know and adapt to their demands? Jovan Kurbalija, Head of DiploFoundation and Geneva Internet Platform, suggested that, to begin with, a lot of awareness building needed to be done on both sides. Epistemic communities to face climate related issues We don t know what science we will produce. This is one of the big principles of fundamental research. At CERN, if it is true that certain theories have been confirmed, some have not. And the same applies to climate change: we don t know what climate change will be. Will it be worse than we think? We don t know; so we don t know what to do to change the scenario: the presentation of Armand Hatchuel, from the École des mines de Paris and member of the French Academy of Technologies, focused on what he called desirable unknowns. So why should we let the scientific community be so predominant in governance? he asked. Because it is flexible, reactive and, above all, it can accept that there are various paths to be followed. Indeed, he rightly observed that if we all follow the same path, we can either all succeed, or all fail. There cannot be creative science unless there are divers approaches and contradictory ones. Science drives technology and has a big impact on society. The future is bright but cannot be predictive, but science is going to be essential. Nigel Lockyer, Director of Fermilab 14

15 Armand Hatchuel remarked that, today, we respond to the issues of climate change by building economical and political models, which do not respond to the issue of climate change by referring to desirable unknowns from scientific research. If we give economical and political answers to a crisis, he explained, then the agenda and the stakeholders will be economical and political. It is important that we admit that we have options. We have to think outside the box. Shouldn t we have a world scientific roadmap or a technological roadmap on this issue? It is up to us to answer the challenge of climate change through science, not just through economical and political models. Hervé Le Treut, member of IPCC, insisted on the fact that the expertise must not just be focused on warnings. We need to move towards actions now: to what extent are we going to reduce CO 2 and how? How will we deal with climate adaptation? Some countries are already victims of climate change, he insisted, and they need help. During the session of questions, an interesting discussion about education, and in particular the role of education in climate related issues, took place. Hervé Le Treut reminded that the problem of climate change has developed very rapidly and can t be isolated from biodiversity, problems of society, energy... These problems will hardly be resolved without the entire society to be involved and understand what is going on. So he explained that the education factor is very important to combat climate change. One of the attendees also said that when the political and economical interests are put aside, the universal interests become central, and a kind of human fraternity emerges. CERN shows that a scientific unity is possible. The question is: should the educative model be modified to reproduce that unity within the civil society? Modified how? A representative from the International Federation of University Women (IFUW) specifically wondered if CERN s model could be used more globally in science education? Other successful examples IPCC, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, set up in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is based on a similar model to CERN: it incorporates a global network of scientists, all working together on the issue of climate change. The role of the IPCC is to review and assess the most recent scientific, technical and socioeconomical information produced worldwide and to study its relevance for the understanding of climatic change and of its potential environmental and socioeconomical impacts. As mentioned earlier by Michel Jarraud, one of the founding principles of IPCC is that it is policy-relevant, but not policy-prescriptive. Its decisions are based on the best possible information available, in particular best scientific information. By every possible means, conflicts of interest must be avoided, so it is important to separate the research from the assessment of research. As for CERN, IPCC makes all its figures available, as, as Hervé Le Treut underlined, transparency is key, especially in climate related issues. Actually, this matter of openness regarding the data gave rise to an interesting question, raised by a 15

16 representative of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU): how can we harness those open-data so that we make it a development revolution? The question remains open. Michel Jarraud presented World Weather Watch, the spinal core of WMO activities. It is a programme in which countries exchange, in real time, all their observations and data about meteorology for the protection of goods and people all around the world. Indeed, all countries of the Earth have committed to exchange their data unconditionally, i.e. freely and free of charge. This is an impressive example of close cooperation between countries, but also between disciplines: climatologists, meteorologists, economists, etc. all work together in this field. This opens new ways of cooperating. The mission of the International Council for Science (ICSU) is to strengthen international science for the benefit of all societies and all people. As described by Gordon McBean, President of ICSU, ICSU is working with many organisations to build the scientific capacity needed in all countries to develop pathways for a sustainable development. ICSU and its sponsors developed a programme called Futurearth research for global sustainability, which aims to provide the knowledge required for societies in the world to face the risks posed by global environmental changes and to seize opportunities in a transition to global sustainability. 16

17 Conclusion: what comes next? The CERN model presents very peculiar characteristics, which have played and still play a crucial role in the Laboratory s success. CERN proves that, in particle physics and more generally in science, collaboration, openness and diversity are essential ingredients for creativity. Also, other epistemic organisations, such as IPCC, ICSU and World Weather Watch, which are based on equivalent models, owe their success to the same principles. But if this model shows to be successful in science, the challenge remains to transpose it to other domains. With the adoption of the 2030 Agenda, the United Nations face challenges that require new solutions and new partnerships. The 17 SDGs will not be reached without the commitment of all stakeholders, who, following the example of CERN researchers, have to work together towards common objectives to have a chance of success. Based on the model of the peer-review process, which is the rule in science, clear and transparent monitoring methods should be implemented to control the degree to which the Sustainable Development Goals are really pursued. Transparency should also find its place in the sharing of data. The model of open-access, openscience and open-innovation exemplified by CERN shows to be highly successful in the invention and development of new ideas and techniques. Yet the speakers all agreed on the fact that the success of the 2030 Agenda will highly depend on our capacity to come up with innovative tools, and with new and diverse approaches. Through its consensual governance, CERN also shows than another kind of global governance is possible: discussing the problems, issues, strategies, plans, all together in an open way helps involving all stakeholders in the decision-making process and creates a solid and motivating working environment. The United Nations should find in this model some good practices to involve governments, the civil society and the private sector at all levels. How locked-in are we to the way the world has been, and how ready are we for it to be a different place? Beris Gwynne, World Vision 17

18 Afterword It is time for global public goods to be at the centre of our concerns. Today, many of them are threatened, and it is this threat that should lead to a transformation of our society. We should always try to reconcile what emerges from civil society with governmental decisions. Perhaps it is a dream, but it is vital for today s challenges because it concerns all of our citizens. We can see that delegation via election is not sufficient today to be able to tackle questions of this kind. Thinking of things globally, but working locally; thinking longterm, but acting short-term, is a lesson we can learn from CERN. The CERN model should become an inspiration the modern world. We need to reconcile humanity with nature. The scientific community, and CERN in particular, is at the centre of preparing tomorrow s world. CERN is central in these efforts and must continue. A lot remains to be discovered and we must achieve the progress required. Concluding remarks by Edith Cresson, Former Prime Minister of France 18

19 UNOG UNITED NATIONS OFFICE AT GENEVA THE CERN MODEL, UNITED NATIONS AND GLOBAL PUBLIC GOODS: addressing global challenges Palais des Nations, room XII Geneva 2 November 2015 Master of ceremony: Ms. Sigrun Habermann-Box, UNOG A G E N D A With the view to contribute to the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was approved on 25 September by the United Nations Member States, this one-day symposium co-hosted by the United Nations Office at Geneva and CERN, with the support of Switzerland and France in their capacity as the two CERN host states, will explore the value of the CERN model of cooperation in building trust across boundaries and strengthening the provision of global public goods in a rapidly-changing international context. The event will bring together policy makers, scientists and representatives of civil society in a new debate about how to build synergies across communities to move forward global objectives. The aim is to stimulate an innovative exchange that can help to shape more creative approaches and partnerships in addressing the challenges of today. 9:15 9:30 Welcome by: 9:30 10:00 Keynote address: Mr. Michael Møller, Director-General of UNOG Prof. Rolf Heuer, Director-General of CERN Ms. Micheline Calmy-Rey, Former Foreign Minister and President of Switzerland 10:00 11:20 Panel 1: The CERN Model, Science, Education, and Global Public Goods Moderator: Keynote: H.E. Amb. Elisabeth Laurin, Permanent Representative of France to the United-Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva Prof. Sergio Bertolucci, CERN Director for Research and Computing Dr. Fabiola Gianotti, CERN DG elect Prof. Herwig Schopper, WAAS and former Director-General of CERN Dr. Flavia Schlegel, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences Dr. Nigel Lockyer, Director of Fermilab Mr. Frédéric Hemmer, Head of CERN IT Department Questions from the floor. 11:20-11:35 Coffee break 19

20 2 11:35 13:00 Panel 2: The United Nations and Public Goods Moderator: Keynote: H.E. Amb. Alexandre Fasel, Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United-Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva Mr Jovan Kurbalija, Head of DiploFoundation and Geneva Internet Platform Prof. Cédric Dupont, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva Mr. Frédéric Bontems, Director of global public goods department, MFA France. Prof. Alberto Martinelli, Professor at University of Milan and President of ISSC Dr. Marie-Paul Kieny, WHO Assistant Director General Ms. Arancha Gonzalez, ITC Executive Director Questions from the floor. 13:00-14:30 Lunch break 14:30 15:45 Panel 3: The United Nations Model and Sustainable Development Moderator: Keynote: H.E. Amb. Rytis Paulauskas, Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the United-Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva (tbc) H.E. Amb. Oh Joon, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Mrs. Maria Luisa Silva, UNDP Geneva Mr. Gilbert Houngbo, ILO Deputy Director-General for Field Operations and Partnerships Prof. Liliana Andonova, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva Prof. Gordon McBean, President of the International Council for Science (ICSU) Ms. Beris Gwynne, World Vision Questions from the floor. 15:45 16:15 Coffee break 16:15 17:30 Panel 4: The CERN model and climate related issues Moderator: Keynote: Dr. Michel Spiro, President elect of the French Physics Society, former President of CERN Council Prof. Carlo Rubbia, Nobel Prize in Physics and former Director-General of CERN Dr. Michel Jarraud, WMO Secretary General Prof. Hervé Le Treut, French academicians, members of IPCC Prof. Benjamin Coriat, Economist Prof. Armand Hatchuel, Ecole des MinesParisTech, management science and design theory, Member of the french academy of technologies. Questions from the floor. 17:30 18:00 Concluding remarks: Ms. Edith Cresson, Former Prime Minister of France 20

21 3 Reminder on the Advisory Board for the Programme. The following Organizations/Institutions expressed their availability to be member of the Advisory Board: - UNESCO - WMO - UNITAR - WAAS (World Academy of Arts and Science) - ICSU (International Council for Science) - ISSC (International Social Science Council) 21

22 The United Nations and CERN are continuing to strengthen their cooperation in science, technology, innovation, education as well as in peace and sustainable development. In 2011 a Cooperation Agreement was established between CERN and the United Nations Office in Geneva (UNOG). This was followed in 2012 by the granting of Observer status to CERN by the United Nations General Assembly. In October 2014 CERN and the UN jointly held a major event in New York entitled CERN: 60 years of science for peace and development On the occasion of the 70 th anniversary of the United Nations, CERN and UNOG are co-hosting a one-day symposium with the support of Switzerland and France (Switzerland as Host Country of UNOG and both States as Host Countries of CERN). The participants to the symposium will explore the value of CERN s integrated model and how it could be of use to the work of the United Nations. One of the core aims of this partnership is to strengthen the provision of global public goods in a rapidly changing and increasingly unpredictable international environment. The event will bring together policy makers, scientists and members of civil society, to debate on how to construct synergies across communities as a means to drive global objectives. The purpose is to stimulate a creative exchange of views that can help develop an innovative approach to the preservation and strengthening of global public goods. This year this exchange is all the more significant as 2015 marked the adoption of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, an international programme that will shape the future of international cooperation. CERN s model for international scientific collaboration has proven highly successful in CERN s fields of action. Recent advances and accomplishments such as the discovery of the Higgs boson particle in July 2012 are testament to the effectiveness of the model, which is characterised by ambitious scientific programmes carried out by a large and diverse community of scientists, engineers and support staff. The CERN community, which consists of researchers coming from about 100 countries from all continents, works together in the interest of science, peace, development and a desire to discern the mysteries of the unknown. The backbone of the model is represented by a treatybased intergovernmental Organization. This in turn is financed by 21 Member States but open to worldwide participation from non-member States. Open science, technology and education are the key elements of CERN s activities. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is another example of a model which incorporates a global network of scientists. It offers a view on the current state of knowledge in climate change and its potential environmental and socio-economic impacts. It is with the assistance and support of sustainable and development-orientated social as well as natural sciences that the international community formulated and adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). An important feat that incorporated a wide range of global stakeholders, both large and small. It should be noted that there are other models of international cooperation that have led to promising results. Under the supervision of the United Nations, pioneering and original models are being used to incorporate bottom-up and top-down approaches to address global challenges. These challenges include amongst others climate change, a shrinking biodiversity, access to fresh water, health, education and the good governance of the internet. The models could adjust to cater to both the issue and overriding context. How to reconcile open collaborative effort and market approach, bottom-up initiatives and top-down strategy and regulation, local and global policies, how to choose the appropriate model for a given situation and what we can learn from our experiences at CERN, at the United Nations and elsewhere will be at the core of the discussion. 22

23 For the Organizing Committee: Mr. Michel Spiro The Organizing Committee: For CERN: Mr. Maurizio Bona and Mr. Michel Spiro For UNOG: Mr. David Chikvaidze and Mr. Salman Bal For French Mission: Mr. Sébastien Desramaut For Swiss Mission: Mr. Patrick Pardo 23