The Science for the Carpathians Network (S4C) and the Scientific Network for the Caucasus Mountain Region (SNC-mt) joint hands to link scientists working in the Carpathians and Caucasus, empower academic and scientific institutions and establish prerequisite to level the playing field for research and development in these countries.
On 24thof June Scientific Network for Caucasus Mountain Region represented by Scientific Steering Group (SSG) and Science for the Carpathians represented by the Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) sign a memorandum of understanding for the following years. The objectives of the cooperation are the exchange of information, experiences, sharing success stories, as well as elaboration, financing, and implementation of joint activities, with the aim of reaching these goals for both S4C and SNC-mt networks.
The Science for the Carpathians Network (S4C) and The Scientific Network for the Caucasus Mountain Region (SNC-mt) (with its secretary Sustainable Caucasus) both constitute networks of researchers working on mountainous regions with similar aims. The research agendas of both S4C and SCN-mt contain many similar focus areas aimed at understanding the socio-ecological systems of the respective mountain regions and their transitions. These networks are supported by and cooperate with the UNEP Office in Vienna, Secretariat of the Carpathian Convention, which works on international mountain ecosystems. The aforementioned organisations are partners and have invested time and resources in the promotion of both networks.
The memorandum of understanding will be signed at the International Scientific Conference 6th Forum Carpaticum. The Forum Carpaticum is an open meeting of the Science for the Carpathians (S4C) initiative. S4C – Science for the Carpathians – connects scientists in Central Europe, defines research priorities for the region, provides applicable findings for the politics of the region and enhances international collaboration with partners from outside the Carpathians.
Both S4C and SCN-mt are coordinating their activities and cooperating with the Mountain Research Initiative (MRI), the International Scientific Committee on Research in the Alps (ISCAR), and other relevant scientific networks, but at the same time, are committed to developing scientific and transdisciplinary approaches fitted to the respective context of the Carpathian and the Caucasus regions.
Cooperation between these networks will ensure the coordination of research and collaboration across disciplines and national boundaries, advocate a pan-Carpathian research area, facilitate the development of research capacities and fostering dialogue between research, policy and practice as well as improve research capacity for and within the Caucasus region (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Russian Federation, Turkey), to make the Caucasus more prominent in European and global contexts, to strengthen the nexus between scientists, practitioners, and decision-makers and to link research to the needs of sustainable development and environmental protection.
