Implementing science diplomacy

By their very nature, education, research and innovation (ERI) have an international component: the exchange of ideas, knowledge and talent across national borders forms the basis for progress, expands knowledge and quality improvement. By actively pursuing cross-border cooperation opportunities, Switzerland enables its ERI stakeholders to benefit from the different strengths and perspectives of their counterparts in other countries. Together, they can develop solutions and responses to the challenges of our time. 

Bilateral agreements and local presence

Over the past few years, we at the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) have worked hard to diversify Switzerland's international ERI relations. As head of the International Relations Division, I am often asked: what exactly does this entail?

To put it simply, we focus on two approaches: firstly, fostering bilateral partnerships with selected countries and regions in strategic areas of particular interest to Swiss ERI stakeholders; secondly, the Swissnex network maintains a presence in leading innovation hubs around the world. As a global network, Swissnex helps our ERI stakeholders to pursue international networking activities. With six locations in the world's most innovative regions and through close cooperation with Swiss embassies, Swissnex plays a pivotal role in promoting Switzerland as an innovation hotspot. 

Partnerships with the US, the UK and other countries

The USA and Switzerland have signed several agreements in the last three years. One such agreement builds on existing cooperation in vocational education and training, a sector that is particularly conducive to knowledge transfer. Each year, a number of US delegations visit Switzerland to learn more about the Swiss VET system. These visits have prompted several US states to launch their own VET initiatives based on the Swiss model. Also worth mentioning is Switzerland's accession to the Artemis Accords, which are a series of non-binding multilateral arrangements, akin to a political declaration of intent, on cooperation in the space sector. Signatory states aim to explore and exploit the moon, Mars and other celestial bodies. A further milestone was the Swiss-US Statement on Quantum Cooperation, which was signed in 2022. Switzerland and the United States seek to intensify their cooperation in quantum information science and technology – a promising key field in which both countries hold leading positions globally. 

Over the past three years, we have also stepped up ERI cooperation with Spain, France, Denmark, Japan, South Korea, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the UK in 2022 focuses on improving networking ties between the research and innovation communities in our two countries. The two innovation funding agencies Innosuisse and Innovate UK launched two joint calls for proposals in 2023 and 2024, which confirms that the MoU is already bearing fruit. These calls enable funding to be awarded to collaborative projects involving research institutes and companies from both countries. 

Targeted expansion both now and in the future

These examples underscore a crucial aspect: it is always ERI stakeholders – education institutions, funding organisations, researchers, companies – that breathe life into these agreements. SERI's role is to ensure optimal framework conditions for this, using diplomatic instruments (e.g. steering committee meetings) with the relevant partner ministries. Switzerland's International Strategy on Education, Research and Innovation sets the stage for this.

We will continue to follow this strategy in the future: the federal government is selectively building bilateral partnerships, setting strategic priorities and encouraging the sharing of knowledge, ideas and talent through initiatives such as Swissnex. These efforts not only help to reinforce the global science and innovation community, but also position Switzerland as a leading player in the international research and innovation sector. Looking ahead to 2025: we intend to implement existing texts in our annual programme, will negotiate an MoU with Poland and will explore additional avenues of cooperation.