A non-governmental organisation representing the international science community. The membership includes both national science academics and international scientific unions. The combined expertise from these two groups of scientific organisations provides a wide spectrum of scienti fic expertise enabling ICSU to address international, interdisciplinary issues, beyond the scope of the individual organisations.
ICSU builds upon this scientific expertise in a number of ways. It initiates, designs and coordinates major international, interdisciplinary research programmes, particularly in the areas of global environmental change. It also establishes policy and advisory committees to address matters of common concern to scientists, such as education and capacity building in science, access to data, or science in developing countries. ICSU acts as a focus for the exchange of ideas, communication of scientific information and development of scientific standards and networks.