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Opening speech by the Director-General of UNESCO,
also available in French (PDF format)

Proceedings of the conference:

Europe: Expectations and Reality. The Challenge for the Social Sciences. edited by L'ubomír Falt'an, with support of the UNESCO MOST Programme, the Slovak Commission for UNESCO - National Committee, the Institute for Sociology - Slovak Academy of Sciences, 1999

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS of the conference The Second European Social Science Conference, organized under the auspices of UNESCO, brought together representatives of UNESCO national commissions, members of social science organizations, of international organizations and individuals from 31 European countries. The Conference aimed at promoting transnational, transdisciplinary and practically relevant social science. It continued and accentuated efforts already made in this direction by the First European Conference held in Santander, Spain, in 1991.   The participants in the Conference, · guided by mutual respect and willingness to cooperate, · inspired by the principles of UNESCO for freedom of research and communication, · led by the vision about an European continent free of mistrust and hostilities, of excessive inequalities and injustice, · aware of the challenges to social sciences posed by the current processes of globalization, regionalization and national transformations, · convinced in the enormous capacities of social sciences to enlighten public mind and to influence decision-making at major social institutions, · also convinced that the funding for international, transdisciplinary and future oriented social science research must be significantly increased, discussed the problems of social sciences at plenary sessions, in four Working Groups on "The Social Impact of Ecological Problems", "The Social Problems of a Changing Europe", "Democratic Europe" and " Europe's Role in a Global Society" as well as in a Round Table on funding social sciences. They approve the following Conclusions and Recommendations:   Changes in the Thematic Orientation of Social Science Research It becomes more and more obvious that the destiny of human kind in general and of the European continent is powerfully shaped by global trends. Deepening environmental imbalances, growing inequalities between regions, nations and groups, increasing incapacity of governments to cope with national problems, looming educational and cultural disparities are of increasing concern to the social sciences. That is why · special attention in social scientific research should be paid to global trends and to their regional and local implications. In the beginning of the nineties the belief was widespread that fast and easy solutions to major social problems might be found and successfully applied. The recent sobering experience of economic instabilities, ethnic and religious clashes and military operations leads to a different assessment of expected developments on the European continent. The research on poverty and unemployment, on the changing role of the state, problems of democracy, innovations in mass media, in religious orientations and issues of multiculturalism and social ecology can tangibly contribute to the assessment and management of risks in the current social transformations. That is why · the topics of social, ethnic and cultural integration and exclusion, social cooperation and conflict should be paid well-balanced attention in social scientific theorizing, research and teaching. The transformations in Europe, especially in Central and Eastern Europe, underline the need of comprehensive theoretical models of social development. There can be substantial tensions and time lags between transformations of economy, politics and culture. The needs of diagnostic and prognostic work in social sciences require that sectoral developments should be analyzed in the context of a holistic approach to societal development. It should be applied to regions as Central and Eastern Europe or the Mediterranean as well. The guiding normative principles of this approach should be · the vision of sustainable economic, political, cultural, social and environmental development oriented to universal ethical principles. New Patterns of Organization of Fundamental and Applied Research The organizational changes in social sciences are especially intensive in the eastern part of the continent. In Central and Eastern Europe, a proliferation of independent research units (associations, institutes, centres, groups, clubs) is taking place. Most of them focus their activities on applied research. The new research units are open to thematic, organizational and methodological innovations but most of them are too much market oriented. The quality of their research has been questioned on many occasions. The crucial organizational problem in this context concerns the fast retreat of the state from organizational obligations to science. We recommend that · the institutional support to social sciences in Central and Eastern Europe should be strengthened. During the nineties we have witnessed an important turn towards internationalization of social science through the activities of international research teams. They have been fostered by national bodies or by international organizations like the European Union. The further development of European social science cooperation requires an increased opening to and collaboration with social science communities from other regions of the world. Thus, the Conference recommends that · every effort be made to foster the social science cooperation between Europe and the rest of the world. A special case in this organizational development is the establishment of the new social scientific programme of UNESCO Management of Social Transformations (MOST) which originated from the First European Social Science Conference. In only few years the MOST Programme became an inspiring nucleus in the efforts to establish functioning international research teams and to foster the practical application of their research results. We recommend to the national social scientific communities · to strengthen their organizational links with the MOST Programme by establishing MOST liaison committees and by participating in research projects, exchange of data, scientific meetings and publications initiated or endorsed by the Programme. The participants in the Conference also support the programmes co-ordinated by the International Social Science Council like the Programme on Poverty and the International Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change Programme. As a result of the discussions, the proposal was made · to consider the establishment of an European Network for Sustainable Urban and Regional Development. Trends in Funding Social Sciences At present, all over Europe social sciences have difficult times in raising the necessary financial support at national level. However, the financial difficulties of the national scientific communities vary substantially. Social sciences in Central and Eastern Europe are most affected by the cuts of budgets for research. This is understandable with a view to the serious economic problems of most countries in the region. The participants in the Conference would like to underline the point that social sciences are a valuable national resource. Given the difficult funding situation, it would be advisable · to look for new ways of funding of social sciences by national science foundations, UNESCO, ILO, UNDP, the European Union, as well as from the private sector. The Practical Application of Social Sciences Social sciences are playing an increasingly important role in the preparation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies intended to handle major social problems, such as unemployment, impoverishment, drug abuse, crime and other phenomena. We urge decision-makers and the public at large · to make use of the full potential of the social sciences for making social policies more rational and better adapted to human needs. In the course of the nineties a new practical need became increasingly visible and relevant namely the need to prepare and apply strategies for sustainable development of communities, regions, countries, and of the whole world. This is a typical multidisciplinary task which will very much foster the development of European social sciences. Its resolution will need a free access to data of various origins. That is why · the operationalization and practical applications of the concept of sustainable development requires an intensive involvement of disciplines from all areas of social sciences. Social sciences can facilitate the efforts to cope with the major challenges in contemporary world not by producing knowledge alone. The knowledge itself should be disseminated through formal education at all levels in order to enable individuals to better cope with the changing social world. That is why, · governments and international organizations together with social scientists themselves should pay more attention to the teaching of social sciences at all levels of education. The Social Sciences at UNESCO Over the last 50 years UNESCO has played a valuable role in developing research and teaching in social sciences. The Organization has also fostered the application of the social sciences to major fields of activity such as education, environment, development, poverty, peace, democratization and human rights, multiculturalism and urban issues. The Second European Social Science Conference notes with satisfaction that UNESCO is attaching a central importance and gives visibility to its social science programme. The Conference requires · that the UNESCO's social science programmes and notably the MOST Programme continue to be supported so as to materialize their contribution to policy-making in the member-states and in all the fields of competence of the Organization. As seen in this broad intellectual and organizational contexts, social sciences can do much for the future of Europe. It depends on social scientists to make this promise come true.   Contact persons: L'ubomír Falt'an Institute of Sociology Slovak Academy of Sciences Klemensova 19 813 64 Bratislava Slovak Republic Tel./Fax: 00421-7-362315 Fax: 00421-7-361312 E-mail: sufaltan@klemens.savba.sk Paul de Guchteneire UNESCO Division for Social Sciences, Research and Policy Fax: 33 1 - 45 68 57 24 E-mail : p.deguchteneire@unesco.org

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