Posted in BRIDGES IPO news, News on Jul 06, 2026.
Today, 6 July 2026, marks the eighth anniversary of a pivotal trip to UNESCO headquarters in Paris. This trip was the true beginning of what would become the UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Sustainability Science Coalition.
The Foundation of Our Work
On this day in 2018, our Executive Director, Steven Hartman, travelled to UNESCO headquarters to meet with key teams, in particular the Section for Research, Policy and Foresight and the Secretariat of the Management of Social Transformations (MOST) programme - then led by John Crowley with wider engagement and support from Pedro Manuel Monreal Gonzalez, Camille Guinet, and Eve El Chehaly - and the Basic Sciences Sector, then led by Martiale Zebaze Kana, with engagement and support from Christine Abdalla Iskandar.
Also connecting with us electronically was Luiz Oosterbeek, then Director-General of the International Council for Philosophy and Human Sciences (CIPSH). Last but not least, Patrick Degeorges played a meaningful role in these early scoping days, as indeed Erika Marion Robrahn-González and a number of others would do in the months that followed.
The Original Blueprint
To commemorate the occasion, we are revisiting the agenda drafted for that first exploratory meeting, which sought to build upon the momentum of the Broadening the Application of Sustainability Science project (2015–2017).
The meeting, titled "UNESCO Global Network on Transdisciplinary Capacity in Sustainability Science – exploration of pathways forward," set a comprehensive roadmap for the initiative.
The agenda focused on defining the vision, scope, and desired outcomes for the network, while simultaneously addressing the practical conditions for its creation, such as funding, responsibilities, and a realistic launch timeframe. Furthermore, the meeting explored engagement strategies for donors and partners, outlined critical processes for consultation and goal setting, and concluded with the development of a structured action plan.
Looking Forward
The UNESCO-MOST BRIDGES Coalition has come a long way since those initial exploratory steps in 2018, achieving significant progress in advancing sustainability science and transdisciplinary capacity; we invite you to continue exploring our current initiatives, projects, and mission further across this site.
