President of the Academy Prof. David Harel, participated on September 17 in a presidential roundtable at the Hamburg Science Summit, which focused on the resilience of science and research systems amid geopolitical tensions and growing pressures on science.
The discussion, titled “Science under Pressure: How to Enhance the Resilience of Science Systems?”, was hosted by the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and chaired by its President, Prof. Bettina Rockenbach. Joining Prof. Harel were Prof. Sherry Murray, International Secretary of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and Prof. Anatoly Zagorodny, President of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, who participated remotely. The discussion explored ways to strengthen the ability of science systems to withstand wars and crises, geopolitical rivalry, polarization, and disinformation, while safeguarding the independence of scientific institutions, academic freedom, and scientific integrity.
In his remarks, Prof. Harel identified two essential conditions for science to thrive: “Science is borderless and must remain so,” and “science must be free and independent.” Referring to Israel, he stressed that “academia and government are two very, very different things and they must not be confused.” He pointed to pressures currently facing the Israeli scientific community from two directions: growing international academic boycotts, ranging from boycotts of individual researchers to institutional and, in some cases, country-wide measures, alongside domestic attempts to limit and weaken the independence of higher education and scientific institutions.
Prof. Harel called on the scientific community to “fight fearlessly against boycotts, against science deniers, against fake news on science, against political pressures.” He stressed that “remaining silent is agreeing and implicitly cooperating with what is going on.” His second imperative was to “proactively build and cultivate broad efforts to bring scientists together internationally,” with particular emphasis on young and early-career researchers and cooperation between “unlikely partner countries.” His third message was: “Dream big and do not lose hope.”
In this context, Prof. Harel mentioned the AASPIRE network (Abraham Accords Science Partnership for Innovation and Research Excellence), established this year at the initiative of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in cooperation with the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities and non-governmental partners from countries in the region. The network aims to advance scientific and research collaboration among the Abraham Accords countries, including joint research, knowledge exchange, and the development of scientific infrastructure. Prof.
Harel also emphasized the importance of creating opportunities for early-career researchers and fostering scientific connections between countries that are not natural partners.
Prof. Harel also referred to regional research programs such as MERC (Middle East Regional Cooperation), which supports collaborative research involving scientists from Israel and other countries in the region. Programs of this kind, alongside AASPIRE and collaborations maintained by national academies, illustrate the potential of scientific ties to build and sustain international cooperation even during periods of tension.
Concluding his remarks, Prof. Harel addressed the particular position of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities as an independent institution established by law, one of whose responsibilities is to advise the government on matters relating to the sciences and humanities. He described the challenge of fulfilling this statutory role while safeguarding the Academy’s independence at a time of profound disagreement with government policies.
As he put it, his role as Academy President is “to help the government, to advise, to tell it what it should do, what it shouldn’t do,” while at the same time confronting the question of how to balance that responsibility with his opposition to the government’s actions.