Can science diplomacy keep up with a world in crisis?

A new report from the Royal Society and AAAS updates their 2010 vision of the relationship between science and diplomacy, trading optimism for realism. Matthew Adamson, Sam Robinson, Gordon Barrett and Lif Jacobsen argue that the new framework flattens the messy realities of power, politics and expertise. Rather than forging harmony, they write, science diplomacy must be seen as a way to navigate complexity.