What we are looking for at the Future Summit are ground-breaking trends and innovations in areas as wide-ranging as peace, finance, the management of global shocks, gender diversity, age roles in society, mobilisation for climate and biodiversity, and support for science and digital cooperation. These proposals must be capable of having a long-term impact on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and facilitate the engagement of all people and stakeholders. A very special blend of all this has come to be known as participatory research Participatory Research see : http://www.voyages-scientifiques.com , which allows citizens to create their own solutions while supporting government policies for the SDGs.
Participatory research Participatory Research see : http://www.voyages-scientifiques.com consists of real research projects carried out by young people or non-scientist adults. Anyone can become a science volunteer, regardless of their knowledge or skills. Our trained science educators, scientists using educational tools developed by NGO Objectif Sciences International, help volunteers acquire the skills they need to take part in their participatory research project (involvement, empowerment and empowerment). Science education, scientific reasoning and (re)connecting with nature are incredible ways of enabling people to take responsibility for the sustainable development of our planet.
Today’s environmental challenges demonstrate the importance of helping the citizens of today and tomorrow to acquire the critical thinking and rigour that comes from practising science. It also helps young and old alike to take responsibility and develop their autonomy, so that they can play a leading role in the changes they want to see.
As for reinforcing the 2030 Agenda and eradicating poverty in times of multiple crises, as for providing effective deliveries of sustainable, resilient and innovative solutions, as for shaping a great future, participatory science has the potential to facilitate and reinforce government policies in favour of sustainable development objectives. A research project that is decided to identify the details of a problem to be solved is carried out with the citizens concerned. This bottom-up approach to community involvement can be applied to any subject (biodiversity, food, living conditions for women and children, renewable energy, and many others). So, when a government policy is defined, citizens are, on the one hand, already involved in the decision, since they are the co-authors, and on the other hand, they have acquired a better understanding of the issue. This makes it doubly easy to implement the policy. What’s more, it is supported over time by generations and has a long-term impact.
However, the benefits of participatory science go much further (responsibility, social inclusion, adaptability, etc.). They can be implemented in many different ways, and their educational and scientific power can make a major contribution to sustainable development and peace in the world.
All United Nations countries members and agencies and programmes can be directly involved. From UNESCO to UNDP, UN Women, UNICEF, UN Desert, UN Habitat, UN Water, UNHCR and all the other organisations, not forgetting the UN’s internal services, absolutely every type of objective can benefit greatly from participatory science to achieve their goals more effectively.
Some points on the benefits of participatory science and research for government policy in the context of the SDGs : Community engagement, Holistic perspectives, Data accuracy, Innovation, Capacity building, Bottom-up approach, Accountability and transparency, Social inclusion, Education through project-based learning, Adaptability and Long-term impact.
