Who We Are
The Office of International Science and Technology Collaboration ensures international science and technology policy decisions and programs are consistent with the administration and the Department’s stated goals of ensuring America’s security and prosperity. It coordinates across the complex and the interagency to consider and develop international science and technology strategies and programs.
While international scientific collaboration can allow us to accelerate the pace of innovation to our great benefit, it must be structured to protect U.S. economic prosperity and security. The office works to accelerate the identification and execution of opportunities for results-oriented science and technology collaboration and knowledge sharing with partners from around the world. The office coordinates across the Department to protect the U.S. innovation base by implementing new policies with respect to international science and technology collaboration.
In support of this mission, the office leads the Net Zero World program and U.S. government efforts in Mission Innovation. It also manages the review process of all international laboratory collaborations that are executed through Strategic Partnership Projects (SPPs), Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs), and Agreements for Commercializing Technologies (ACTs).
Initiatives
Net Zero World
To respond to the global climate crisis and to harness the power of the Department’s National Labs, the United States launched the Net Zero World Initiative, a flagship, whole-of-government partnership with priority countries to accelerate global energy systems decarbonization. This program works with partner countries – which include Argentina, Chile, Egypt, Indonesia, Nigeria, Singapore, Thailand, and Ukraine—to implement climate and clean energy targets, and to accelerate transitions to net-zero, resilient, and inclusive energy systems in every region of the world.
Mission Innovation
Launched in 2015 by the Department, Mission Innovation's first phase originally centered around doubling clean energy research budgets of over 20 countries in five years. During this period, it also launched eight Innovation Challenges (now referred to as Innovation Communities), aimed at catalyzing global collaboration on clean energy research, development, and demonstration.
Mission Innovation began its second phase on June 2, 2021, evolving into a minister-led forum of major economies that cooperate on transformative technical innovations through “research Missions,” while raising ambition for public research, development, and demonstration investments and encouraging commercialization through the private sector and stakeholders. The office support the work of the United States, which currently co-leads three of these Missions, including the Zero Emissions Shipping Mission, the Clean Hydrogen Mission, and the Carbon Dioxide Removal Mission. In addition, the office’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Julie Cerqueira, serves as the Chair of Mission Innovation’s Steering Committee.
Recent Highlights
- At COP27, Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm launched the Net Zero World Climate Smart Women’s Leadership Program to provide women energy leaders from partner countries with two weeks of intensive training at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and the National Renewable Energy Lab in May 2023. The program offers selected women leaders technical training, peer learning, and information sharing on clean energy analysis tools and data, advanced technology performance testing and validation mechanisms and resources, policy and deployment best practices, and finance mobilization. It also provides leadership training and networking opportunities, as well as ongoing coaching and mentoring.
- On Dec. 6, 2022, clean energy industry leaders, country partners, federal government leaders, and representatives from the Department’s national labs gathered for the inaugural Net Zero World Industry Forum, hosted by the Department of Commerce. For the first time, businesses were able to explore opportunities to engage with the initiative. The event included remarks from Secretary Granholm, Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, Deputy Special Envoy for Climate Change Rick Duke, Ukraine’s Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova, and Department of Energy Assistant Secretary Andrew Light. Country coordinators from Net Zero World’s Action Center also shared presented the work being done in each country, in addition to a panel with federal government agencies on finance and investment resources and breakout dialogues on country-specific technical cooperation, which brought together industry professionals and Net Zero World representatives to identify areas for cooperation.