Scientific freedom and responsibility have to be enabled and practised. They benefit both scientists and policymakers; they also benefit all of us. Yet, these benefits will not be achieved if the status of scientific freedom and responsibility as a human right, as well as their linkages with other human rights, are not well understood or are plainly neglected. This MOOC, offered in partnership with UNESCO, is the first dedicated educational engagement on the human rights-based approach (HRBA) to scientific freedom and responsibility, which is also accessible, at scale and cross-disciplinary in its engagement with human rights.
At present, we have a human rights knowledge-gap that needs to be closed if science is to be objective, evidence-based, free from undue interference and accessible. Closing this gap will enable scientific researchers to claim and exercise their rights relating to the conduct of science, and will enable policymakers to meet their human rights obligations and create a healthy environment for rights-driven science, which is a cornerstone for achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. By anchoring science in human rights, we contribute to a range of critical questions regarding: the science agenda; the protection of scientists, science-users and beneficiaries of scientific progress; and issues of access to scientific knowledge, methodologies and data.
Course Outline
The MOOC runs over 5 weeks and is organised in 2 modules.
Module 1 explains connections and frameworks and tackles two important questions:
- Why connect science and human rights?
- What is a human rights-based approach (HRBA) to scientific freedom and responsibility?
Module 2 is devoted to the HRBA in practice and responds to 3 key questions:
- What is science for human rights?
- What is an enabling environment for scientific freedom and responsibility?
- How can you use a HRBA to science to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, participants will have gained:
- Increased awareness about the connections between human rights and scientific freedom and scientific responsibility.
- Clearer understanding - through reference to available data – of the need to link science and human rights, including gender equality, in accelerating progress on the SDGs.
- Robust knowledge on human rights principles, standards and practices.
Ultimately, the course is a pathway to:
- Empower scientists, students of science, and policymakers through education on the human rights-based approach to scientific freedom and responsibility.
- Amplify dialogue on the relationships between science, human rights, ethics and law.
