At the G20, Brasil leads efforts to advance Research & Innovation
The Brazilian presidency at the G20 has created a Research & Innovation Working Group with a focus on "Open Innovation for Fair and Sustainable Development". The goal is to reduce inequality through access to technology and knowledge transfer, promoting inclusive and sustainable economic development
In an effort to boost international cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation (ST&I), the Brazilian presidency at the G20 has launched, alongside the Sherpa Track, a Research & Innovation Working Group (WG) focused on "Open Innovation for Fair and Sustainable Development". The main goal is to advance access and transfer of technology to countries in the Global South; reduce inequality; and promote inclusive economic development.
The WG will also encourage mobility between students, academics and researchers, reducing barriers to inter institutional collaboration. The Brazilian Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Ministério de Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação/MCTI) will coordinate these efforts.
In a meeting with members of the European Union, Brasil’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Luciana Santos emphasized the prominent role of ST&I in Brazilian foreign policy. “Brasil proposes to place—at the center of its presidency—issues related to global asymmetries in access to science, technology and innovation through the topic ‘Open Innovation for Fair and Sustainable Development’,” she explained. “The idea is to find a bridge between developed and developing countries towards real advances in this agenda,” she added.
Santos met with the director for Global Approach and International Cooperation in Research and Innovation at the European Commission, Maria Cristina Russo, who believes in the importance of the partnership between Brasil and the European Union. Brasil seeks to lead not only the G20 in the field of research and innovation, but also to strengthen strategic ties with global partners to boost sustainable and fair development on the international stage.
WG History
Recently incorporated into the G20 structure, the Group is an offshoot of the Research & Innovation Initiative created in the 2021 Academic Forum promoted by the Italian presidency. The WH follows the G20 Research & Innovation Initiative Meeting held in Indonesia in 2022, where priority topics such as sustainability, biodiversity, energy transition, sustainable blue economy, and materials for sustainable energy were discussed. Brasil proposes to continue these discussions, now in a working group format, so as to transform research and innovation ecosystems.