Engaging Honduran Science Diasporas for Development: Evidence From Three Consolidated Networks.

Honduras' underdevelopment of the higher education system, national economic constraints, and low investment in science and technology (S&T) have created significant challenges in training, employing, and retaining its science workforce, resulting in what is known as "brain drain" in literature. There are no official statistics of Honduran scientists who have established their residency abroad, nor the Honduran scientific diasporas (HSD); however, various diaspora networks provide evidence of their existence and engagement in their home country. This study takes an empirical approach and explores experiences of networking and engagement of the HSD for the development of Honduras. Methodologically, a qualitative approach and a phenomenological design were used. The data were collected through documentary review and semi-structured interviews with 21 key respondents from three identified HSD networks: Honduras Global (HG), the Organization of Women in Science for the Developing World, Honduras National Chapter (OWSD Honduras), and the Alumni Association of the Zamorano Pan-American Agricultural School (AGEAP-Zamorano). The holistic analysis of HSD's engagement provides evidence of existing registry gaps. Neither the S&T agents nor the Honduras Foreign Policy have identified, mapped, and characterized Honduran scientists' emigration patterns. Evidence suggests the willingness of the HSD to transfer knowledge, build bridges, and facilitate access to world-class research practices to their peers residing in Honduras and interact with broader sectors of the Honduran society.

Connecting Scientists Residing Abroad: A Review of Converciencia as a Practice to Engage the Guatemalan Scientific Diaspora From 2005-2020.

In 2005, the Guatemala National Secretariat of Science and Technology (Senacyt) introduced Converciencia, a program designed to connect Guatemalan scientists residing abroad with their country of origin. Converciencia has been a flagship practice for over 15 years. This program involves three main groups of participants: (i) science and technology (S&T) policy agents, (ii) the scientific community (including parts of the Guatemala scientific diaspora, GSD), and (iii) host institutions (local co-organizers, mainly universities, and research institutes). This article presents a comprehensive and balanced overview of the Converciencia program applying an in-depth analysis of its creation, evolution, leading trends, and legacies. Using a qualitative methodology and conducting a four-level analysis (descriptive, explanatory, normative, and prescriptive) allowed for the identification of nuances of this S&T practice in the context of a scientifically lagging country such as Guatemala. The detailed data collected through documentary and desk review, gray literature, focus group discussions, and semi-structured interviews resulted in a framework to highlight the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOTs) in the planning, organization, implementation, monitoring, and perception of the results achieved by Converciencia. Findings portray the contrasting views and perceptions from a single S&T practice, depending on the participating parties' roles and responsibilities. Direct participants examined how Converciencia has achieved its objectives while questioning the effectiveness and impact that the resources allocated to the initiative have yielded over time. Evidence indicates that despite the design, coordination, and evaluation limits of Converciencia, the GSD, the scientific community in Guatemala, and the host institutions are interested in the continuity of the practice. Indeed, the main recommendation involves restructuring and turning Converciencia into a robust S&T policy. Converciencia as a policy engaging the GSD could produce greater results and impacts by involving all the key actors in co-designing activities, clearly determining roles and responsibilities, and establishing performance and impact indicators for evaluation.

Engaging the Guatemala Scientific Diaspora: The Power of Networking and Shared Learning.

The underdevelopment of the higher education system in Guatemala and the fragility of its science and technology (S&T) contexts have compelled a significant number of talented Guatemalan scientists to be trained, educated, and employed abroad. The relocation of such skilled human power to different countries and regions has resulted in a growing Guatemalan Scientific Diaspora (GSD). Until recently, the emigration of scientists from the Global South to scientifically advanced countries in the North was studied as it negatively impacted the countries of origin. However, technological upgrades and globalization have progressively shifted the paradigm in which such scientific diasporas interact and connect, thus enabling them to influence their home countries positively. Due to the lack of knowledge-based evidence and functioning connecting platforms, the value and potential of the GSD in their involvement in proposing solutions to complex socio-economic, environmental, and other challenges faced by Guatemalan society remain unknown. Moreover, the lack of interaction of relevant stakeholders (S&T policy agents, international partners, higher education institutions and research centers, industry, and relevant not governmental organizations) represents a pervasive obstacle to the untapped impact of the GSD in the country. This study outlines the Guatemalan scientific diasporas' networking as a mechanism for building research excellence and intellectual capital. This force could respond to the need to strengthen the national science capacities and meet the demands for knowledge production and access to broader sectors of society. This research applied qualitative methodology that, through the conduction of focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews with members of the Guatemalan scientific community and relevant key stakeholders, delved into the existence and articulation of the GSD and potential stages for their engagement with their country of origin. Findings highlight the importance of digital and technological pathways that might leverage the GSD's knowledge and experience, channeling skills, and international connections for better interaction with the Guatemalan society. Furthermore, the discussion addresses how technology might turn brain drain into brain circulation, enabling the articulation of the GSD as a viable opportunity to generate collaboration between scientists abroad and local actors, ultimately impacting the building and development of Guatemalan science and national research capacities.

Participation in Communities of Women Scientists in Central America: Implications From the Science Diplomacy Perspective.

The experience of building and participating in women scientists' communities in Central America is a multi-layered topic worthy of study. Understanding the dynamics of these women's groups, associations, and other forms of collective participation, could assist in shedding light on why women are typically under-represented in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) research in countries within this region. The objectives of this study are (i) to explore the experiences of participation in communities of women scientists in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Panama, and (ii) to systematize the challenges and opportunities derived from such activities. Additionally, this work elaborates on some best practices from the Science Diplomacy (SD) perspective, which could provide a helpful framework to encourage these types of collective participatory communities. The qualitative research methodology was based on the collection of primary data from semi-structured interviews and responses to an online survey sent out to Central American women scientists. The findings of this study revealed few cases of community building experiences among women scientists within the studied countries. Evidence also showed the emergence of shared patterns in terms of barriers and disincentives to participating in such communities. Meanwhile, data collected from the few existing community groups is used to identify successful incentives and motivations. The analysis of the collected data offered relevant implications for Science Diplomacy. Most respondents referred to the Organization of Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) as one of the main organizations that can impact and further Science Diplomacy. This organization promotes international engagement and networking among women scientists from developing countries across regions and this article shows how this has been used to foster women science community building in Central America. Exploring similar practices in-depth may offer opportunities to overcome traditional barriers and build further gender equality in science in Central America.

Science Diplomacy in Ecuador: Political Discourse and Practices Between 2007 and 2017.

The decade 2007-2017 was a period in which the Republic of Ecuador experienced a series of economic, social, cultural, and political transformations. This research focused on science, technology, and innovation (STI) changes with implications for Ecuador's foreign policy. One of the core components incorporated was Ecuador's engagement with foreign governments and various regional and global actors to further scientific and technological advances. These far-reaching collaborations aimed to reduce gaps the country experienced in science and research. Moreover, to incorporate Ecuador into worldwide initiatives to tackle cross-border issues, such as climate change and environmental sustainability. These measures included academic and scientific mobility through an extensive scholarship program, the Prometeo Fellowship Program, the Yasuni ITT Initiative, the creation of emblematic research universities, and certain guidelines released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility of Ecuador related to these policies. This article reports on qualitative research in which President Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado's political discourse was analyzed, along with key STI policies promoted in his administrations. The objective of this study was to establish different implications from the Science Diplomacy perspective (SD); particularly, reflecting on the consistency between the political rhetoric and the policy implementation. Evidence suggests that the political discourse materialized into concrete STI policies that could partially explain positive transformations in various aspects of the STI context in Ecuador. Institutional strengthening, international mobility (inward and outward), increased scientific output, and foreign policy practices involving SD which can be traced in the studied period. SD strategies could have been more effective and lasting if they were not discontinued upon Correa's departure from the Presidency.