Foreign Ministries Science & Technology Advice Network (FMSTAN)

The Foreign Ministries Science & Technology Advice Network (FMSTAN) is a global web of science advisors and diplomats working within countries’ Foreign Ministries.

FMSTAN began in 2016 with a meeting convened by the U.S. Science and Technology Advisor to the Secretary of State at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C. It has subsequently grown to include over 30 countries and provide a unique peer-to-peer network for science diplomats to build international networks and share their experience.

Science evidence and knowledge can play a critical part in international policy, achieving diplomatic goals, and fostering international collaboration and is the key to meeting our shared global challenges. FMSTAN provides the platform to articulate the benefits of investing in internal S&T advisory capacity within foreign ministries to more fully complement external capacity, by:

  • Raising awareness about the importance of enduring S&T advisory capacity in foreign ministries;
  • Sharing best practices and lessons learned in building S&T advisory capacity;
  • Strengthening S&T advisory capacity in foreign ministries; and
  • Coordinating respective S&T diplomacy activities.

Membership of FMSTAN is by invite only. If you are a science advisor in a Foreign Ministry and would like to join the INGSA network you can contact INGSA Programme Officer, Grant Mills, to apply.

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INGSA2024

5th Conference on Science Advice To Governments – Save the Date

From 6-9th May 2024, INGSA will be celebrating 10 years with its 5th International Conference – INGSA2024. Join us for an engaging, challenging and forward-facing meeting – our first in-person conference since Tokyo in 2018.

Join the INGSA network for information on registration

FMSTAN Meetings

Geneva, Switzerland – Oct 2022 – In parallel with 2022 GESDA Summit

In collaboration with the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) and The Graduate Institute of Geneva, and with the generous support of the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA), FMSTAN hosted its latest meeting in the margin of the 2022 GESDA Summit. The meeting attracted over 30 attendees from all around the world and provided unique access to the GESDA Summit, as well as…

Hybrid Science Diplomacy meeting at ITER – March 2022

On the 10-11 March 2022, FMSTAN convened a hybrid meeting of members, in collaboration with the sister network of Science Diplomacy Coordinators in EU Ministries of Foreign Affairs. The join Science Diplomacy meeting was held at ITER in France, the site of construction of the world’s largest fusion reactor experiment. The meeting followed on from the French EU Presidency Meeting on…

FMSTAN During Covid-19

Covid-19 marked a transition for the FMSTAN network – international travel and face-to-face meetings ceased but the need for science diplomacy and information sharing was more acute than ever. The network moved to virtual meetings to and became an even more active and useful network as members shared ideas, information, and asked advice of their fellows. As the worst of…

Science Diplomacy Meeting – Vienna – November 2019

The November 2019 meeting of SPIDER/FMSTAN took place in Vienna, in collaboration with the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, IIASA, The Diplomatische Akademie Wien and the Natural History Museum Vienna. The 2-day meeting brought together almost 80 people from around the world for a joint meeting with the non-inactive SPIDER network, to discuss the pressing issues within Science Diplomacy. Thanks to the fantastic work of IIASA…

Science Diplomacy Meeting – Muscat, Oman – February 2019

In conjunction with the Ocean Economy & Future Technology Conference In collaboration with the International Forum Science and Technology Diplomacy (IFSTD), FMSTAN hosted a vibrant meeting concurrent with the 2019 Ocean Economy & Future Technology Conference to be held in Muscat, Oman from the 11 – 13 February 2019. The members of FMSTAN also met in a joint session with…

FMSTAN meeting Nov 2018 – INGSA2018 Conference, Tokyo

The FMSTAN meeting at the #INGSA2018 conference in Tokyo was a more informal affair, bringing together FMSTAN members with relevant stakeholders to discuss the future direction and focus of science diplomacy and continued to outline the work programme for the network. The meeting was embedded in what was a highly successful conference for INGSA, a conference that attracted a truly…

FMSTAN meeting – May 2018 – UN CSTD, Geneva

In May 2018, FMSTAN was invited to host their next meeting in the margins of the 21st session of the UN’s Commission on Science & Technology for Development (CSTD). The 2-day meeting in Geneva brought together representatives from the foreign ministries of 18 countries, as well as important guests from the World Bank, CERN, and CSTD among others, to discuss the challenges and…

FMSTAN meeting – Tufts University, Talloires – Sept 2017

The 2nd FMSTAN meeting in Talloires, with hosts Tufts University European Centre and the Science Diplomacy Centre, brought together an impressive number of countries foreign ministry’s advisors for a meeting that set the tone and direction for the development of the network. 18 countries were in attendance, for a vibrant and important meeting that coalesced the intention of the network.

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