Session 3: Inclusive Excellence for Sustainable Societies: Making Space for At-Risk and Displaced Scholars

When it comes to the integration of displaced academic colleagues, professional societies, academies, and other research-focused organizations have an important role to play. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is shining a bright light on the long-standing issue of at-risk, displaced, and refugee scholars. Goal #16 of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals emphasizes the need “to promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”. When a researcher is displaced, brain power and training are often the only capital they possess and so greater efforts from national academies must be made to ensure dignity and protected spaces. Ensuring a healthy global research ecosystem requires the input and commitment from all stakeholders. Recognizing the damage that war, conflict, sanctions, and threats of violence have on individual researchers as well as their institutions is an important first step.

This panel brings together an innovative group of at-risk scholars and advocates from a collection of young academies who have been at the forefront of various young academy efforts to facilitate the integration of displaced academics. In highlighting some of the principle challenges as well as examples of programs designed to ensure displaced academics at the early and mid-career stages are included within host-county research networks, this panel will demonstrate how we can work together to preserve research capacity and integrate the voices of displaced researchers into the broader academic community.

Primary session organizer: Dr. S. Karly Kehoe, Royal Society of Canada

To attend online, register at https://nasem.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_2T_qNKgtTdWb794BHxtxgA.