Human rights may be game changers to science. Science is under pressure. The ability to do science, to gain scientific educations, and to make and implement public policies based on science are under attack globally. Harms from doing science continue despite greater attention. Individuals are harmed in the name of science and scientists are persecuted for doing their work. The human right to science may change these scenarios. The human right to science belongs to everyone. Discrimination along lines of nationality, gender, skin color, beliefs, and other markers is not permitted. The human right to science bolsters other rights, including health, and is fostered by other rights, such as education and conscience. This session will present scholarship on the human right to science, including: -while the human right to science is not universally available, using research policy makers and NGOs can identify places where this right is strong, and where this right is under attack; -research demonstrates that on-going discrimination in scientific education will continue to undermine advancements in scientific careers and dissemination of scientific progress, including people marginalized in spheres of education, research, and scholarship; and, -research shows that collaborations, a key aspect of the human right to science, are not supported in many parts of the world, limiting global impacts of this human right. This session will point to ways the human right to science may have real-world impacts on studying and doing science, as well as protections from harms of science. The session will highlight information useful to UN experts and NGO leaders who advocate for the human right to science. The session is timely given efforts of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on this human right, which is expected to publish a General Comment on the Human Right to Science in 2020
