Based on the recommendations of the European Commission’s 2025 expert report on a European Framework for Science Diplomacy, Council recommendation on a new framework for science diplomacy have been adopted in the final week of May 2026.
This exciting development was immediately followed by implementation steps as a new Horizon Europe project started: “Consolidating European Science Diplomacy (CUSP)”. Over the next three years, CUSP will work along three core lines:
- Mapping Europe’s science diplomacy ecosystem: Producing an open, evidence-based picture of the actors, strategies, and initiatives that shape science diplomacy across Europe and globally.
- Building an online European Science Diplomacy Hub: An open online platform serving as a central hub for European Science Diplomacy, convening ten thematic Working Groups and building engagement across Africa, Asia, the Arab States, Oceania, and the Americas.
- Training and capacity-building: Developing a Competence Framework, curricula, and pilot training for diplomats, science counsellors, policymakers, and researchers.
CUSP brings together 11 expert organisations, involving also a core of the S4D4C project:
- Zentrum für Soziale Innovation (ZSI) – coordinator of CUSP and former coordinator of S4D4C
- Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) – lead in capacity building and training, also formerly involved in S4D4C
- Charles University (Univerzita Karlova) – lead in building the knowledge base and analysis, also formerly involved in the S4D4C project
- Marie Curie Alumni Association (MCAA)
- United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
- Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
- Aarhus University
- Fundación Española para la Ciencia y la Tecnología (FECYT) – organising pilot trainings and involved in capacity building, former S4D4C project partner
- Centro Internazionale di Alti Studi Agronomici Mediterranei (CIHEAM Bari)
- ENRICH Global
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR)
The project is funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe (Grant Agreement No. 101287256).
