IAI Science Technology & Policy (STeP) Fellowship Pilot Program 2020-2024 Professional Development Work Plan

The IAI Science Technology & Policy (STeP) Fellowship Pilot Program (2020-2024) is a professional development initiative designed to bridge the gap between the scientific and policymaking communities in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The program provides a two-year training curriculum focused on three pillars—Science Diplomacy, Communication, and Leadership—to equip scientists with the soft skills and policy knowledge necessary to inform sustainable development and global change policies.

• The STeP Fellowship is the first program of its kind implemented at the national level in Latin America and the Caribbean, modeled after the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science & Technology Policy Fellowship.
• The program's professional development is structured around three core pillars: Science Diplomacy, Communication, and Leadership. The goal is to provide a two-year program tailored for scientists and policymakers in the LAC region.
• The program identifies a critical gap where policy decision-makers are not accustomed to seeking scientific advice, and academic programs fail to provide scientists with the soft skills needed to navigate policymaking.
• The pilot program initially worked with cohorts in Argentina and Mexico, with plans to expand to Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Trinidad and Tobago in 2021.
• To ensure sustainability and regional capacity, the IAI is implementing a Training of Trainers (ToT) model, allowing Fellows and supervisors to work with master trainers to build a pool of competent trainers within LAC.
• The program emphasizes a transdisciplinary (TD) approach to leadership, which integrates knowledge from multiple disciplines and societal actors to provide actionable information for end users such as indigenous peoples and local communities.
• The networking strategy aims to create an Inter-American platform to encourage multinational collaborations, support fellow career development, and establish an Impact Database of alumni, mentors, and experts.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (n.d.). IAI Science Technology & Policy (STeP) Fellowship Pilot Program 2020-2024 Professional Development Work Plan. https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/STeP%20PD%20%20Networking%20Plan_V3(1).pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. IAI Science Technology & Policy (STeP) Fellowship Pilot Program 2020-2024 Professional Development Work Plan. n.d. https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/STeP%20PD%20%20Networking%20Plan_V3(1).pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=IAI Science Technology & Policy (STeP) Fellowship Pilot Program 2020-2024 Professional Development Work Plan |url=https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/STeP%20PD%20%20Networking%20Plan_V3(1).pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearchndiai, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{IAI Science Technology \& Policy (STeP) Fellowship Pilot Program 2020-2024 Professional Development Work Plan}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, url = {https://archive.iai.int/administrador/assets/images/ckfinder/files/STeP%20PD%20%20Networking%20Plan_V3(1).pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }