MEDIA RELEASE
THURSDAY, JULY 5, 2018
Sir Peter Gluckman to lead new global council for sciences
University of Auckland Distinguished Professor Sir Peter Gluckman has been picked to head a new international body of
influential science institutions.
University of Auckland Distinguished Professor Sir Peter Gluckman has been picked to head a new international body of
influential science institutions.
Sir Peter was elected President-Elect of the International Science Council at its inaugural General Assembly in Paris on
4 July. The ISC is a new global body that combines two well-established and highly respected scientific organisations:
the International Council for Science (ICSU) and the International Social Science Council (ISSC).
The merger – which has a combined membership of more than 180 organisations - gives the ISC a strong and unique voice on
increasingly complex issues that require an approach that cuts across different scientific fields.
Sir Peter will hold the role of President-elect of the Council until 2021 and then will succeed to three years as
President until 2024. South African mathematician Daya Reddy is the first President and will serve from 2018-2021.
Sir Peter outlined his vision to the General Assembly.
“Our world is becoming more fractured at the very time we need concerted efforts to address global and domestic issues,”
he said. “Technological and social changes create both challenges and opportunities for enhancing the environment,
society and the economy. All knowledge disciplines and sciences ranging from basic/fundamental to stakeholder-engaged
have critical roles to play: undertaking excellent research, building capacity and global collaboration, and
communicating results and their implications to both society and policymakers.”
Sir Peter ended his tenure as Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor on 30 June and will now focus on science diplomacy.
Based at the University of Auckland, Sir Peter also chairs the International Network for Government Science Advice as
well as leading the secretariat of the Small Advanced Economies Initiative. He is currently co-developing the Centre for
Science in Policy, Diplomacy and Society (SciPoDS) as part of the University’s Public Policy Institute. He was the
founding Director of the University’s Liggins Institute, with which he will also be continuing to work.