Scientific Social Responsibility (SSR) is currently a trending topic in local news. The recent 107th Indian Science Congress highlighted the significance of communication and community outreach programs in raising awareness about scientific research. The Department of Science and Technology also focused on the government’s plans to implement a Scientific Social Responsibility policy.
What is Scientific Social Responsibility?
Scientific Social Responsibility is the combination of scientific knowledge, visionary leadership, and social consciousness. It involves creating synergies among all stakeholders in the scientific knowledge community and fostering connections between science and society.
The Need for Scientific Social Responsibility
The SSR policy aims to facilitate easier access to resources and information concerning investments and impacts of Science and Technology on society. This policy hopes to cultivate a sense of moral responsibility within the scientific community, potentially sparking social entrepreneurship and start-ups that positively impact the S&T ecosystem and society at large.
Objectives of Scientific Social Responsibility
The primary objective of SSR is to harness the voluntary potential of the country’s scientific community to enhance science-society linkages. This primarily involves bridging gaps between science and society, science and science, and society and science, thereby fostering trust, building partnerships, and bolstering the responsibility of science in a way that accelerates the achievement of social goals.
| Key Objectives | Description |
|---|---|
| Enhancing Science-Society Linkages | Bridging gaps between science and society to form meaningful connections and partnerships. |
| Fostering Trust | Through transparency and open communication, SSR aims to establish trust between the scientific community and society. |
| Bolstering Responsibility | Increasing the accountability and commitment of the scientific community towards social goals. |
SSR Policy and Its Implementation
Under the SSR policy, researchers working on science projects funded by any of the Ministries under the Central government are required to undertake activities that popularise science and make it more accessible to the public. This can include activities like delivering lectures in educational institutes, writing articles for magazines, or participating in extracurricular activities.
Scientific outreach is mandatory under this policy, and researchers must include this as part of their outcome report. In the near future, the government plans to list activities that could be taken up under the Scientific Social Responsibility programme, a concept similar to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Last Modified: February 7, 2024