Some, especially in the scientific community, get frustrated at the seeming lack of scientific literacy among the general public and policymakers. This is a two-part problem, however. The general public must understand the implications of science and data, yes, but it is also important for the scientific community to effectively convey their work and educate the next generation.

A new report from the U.S. National Science Foundation Advisory Committee for Environmental Research and Education, on which I serve, recognizes that the United States is at an environmental crossroads where the confluence of unprecedented global change and transformative new capabilities create both an imperative and an opportunity.  

As the report notes, there is a pressing need for investment in research, data analysis, and education that can contribute to changing the trajectory of current trends “away from global warming, stress, conflict, and vulnerability, and toward resilience, wellbeing, stewardship, and prosperity.”

We are seeing that economic growth can be decoupled from environmental destruction, but new investments in research and education are needed to properly support this shift. Data producers and users need the tools to anticipate and shape our future, not merely adapt – “to design resilient landscapes, productive ecosystems, sustainable urban spaces, and a healthy planet.”

The report articulates a vision in which environmental research and education contribute to long-term societal wellbeing and economic prosperity.

Three key elements outlined in the report are:

Understanding Emerging Challenges

How can we support the belief that the integration of social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering is a critical characteristic of resilience? We must improve our understanding of how the components of complex socio-environmental systems interact if we are to move from responding to change to anticipating it, averting harm, and creating opportunity. Harnessing the power of big data will require improvements to our capacities to forecast, anticipate, and predict future states of the environment.

Designing the Future and Changing Forecasts

When we better understand the future, the next step is to leverage that knowledge and take steps to adjust environmental trajectories before irreversible harm has occurred. This approach is part of a shift from observation and projection toward the people-centered design of adaptive systems that reduce vulnerability to changes and extreme events. The participation and input of a diverse range of end-users, through partnerships with scientists, practitioners, and project managers, will facilitate not only the design and construction of resilient systems, but their usefulness and social acceptance.

Enabling and Securing the Future

To enable these shifts, the committee recommends the National Science Foundation increases and stabilizes environmental research and education funding. Funding for these activities to this point has been sporadic and inconsistent. To encourage stronger interdisciplinary partnerships – and greater connections between the scientific community to society and industry – will require a greater commitment.

Global Implications: The SDGs

This report highlights the need for a more resilient America, but has applications beyond the United States. With the emergence of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are more comprehensive and more numerous than the Millennium Development Goals, there is a need for more data and more cross-sectoral policy responses, especially with regard to environmental programming. This has implications for data producers, users, and validators in a variety of sectors including governments, citizen groups, the military, philanthropy, and the private sector.

The report touches on at least three common areas of growth in environmental research and education to enable this ambitious effort:

Develop a More Scientifically Capable Workforce

The report emphasizes that “the skillset required of the scientific community in this endeavor is an unprecedented combination of multi-scale, systems-thinking skills, innovative and collaborative research and design capacity, the ability to co-create and share scientific knowledge with the citizenry, and to engage with individuals and institutions that implement solutions.” In order to build the capacity of this workforce, all countries need to focus on science education and literacy, and increase the demographic diversity of the scientific workforce. More diversity means more capacity and new perspectives.

Build Openness and Transparency for Data Production and Use

The Open Government Partnership is a multilateral initiative that brings together government and citizens to make data more accessible and transparent. With so much data being collected – and the potential for so much more – this is an important global effort. An important dimension to track for the SDGs will be more South-to-South collaboration – developing countries learning directly from each other. Open data is a key component of sustainable and resilient development in this respect – to track government commitments and results, support civic participation, implement the highest standards and best practices, and increase access to new techniques.

Build Synergies to Find Solutions

This report identifies the importance of garnering new data and better utilizing existing sources for sustainable development. A new initiative, the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data, for example, is looking to help fill data gaps globally – critical places or sectors that we do not have accurate or up-to-date information on. Not every gap needs to be filled with brand new initiatives, however; there are opportunities to improve coverage or accuracy simply by encouraging more collaboration across sectoral and organizational lines.

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As we think about a more resilient America, indeed a more resilient world, and as we embark on a trajectory to realizing the Sustainable Development Goals, let’s not forget the role of science and data. This report provides an opportunity and direction for scientists and the general public to understand the opportunities and to formulate appropriate responses to protect us against emerging shocks and threats and secure a prosperous and equitable future.