An innovation centre dedicated to finding new ways to exploit space has been officially opened in the UK. The Harwell, Oxfordshire, site will foster people and ideas that can grow an already highly successful sector.

The theme of World Water Day 2011 is "Water for Cities: Responding to the Urban Challenge." Since I cover water issues for the U.S. Consulate in Shanghai, I sometimes talk to people here about my home state, Michigan, which borders the Great Lakes.

Science diplomacy fosters communications and international collaborations with scientists in nations with which official U.S. diplomatic relations might be limited or strained.

As visitors from Taiwan and the rest of the world are discovering, however, there are more than flowers on display. The beauty of Taiwanese culture is highlighted through thousands of scheduled cultural performances, and local achievements in horticulture, science and environmental protection can also be seen.

In his annual State of the Union address, delivered in Washington DC last month, US President Barack Obama spoke strongly about the need to promote science-based technologies to "protect our planet, and create countless new jobs for our people". His words have significance not only for the United States, but also for the Arab world.

To make an impact, small-scale renewable energy systems must fit social expectations and cultural norms, argues Benjamin K. Sovacool.

Some moon craft house instruments from a handful of countries — an example of international scientific collaboration. But how valuable is science in the diplomatic sphere? Biologist Nina Fedoroff, former science adviser to both Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton, talks about her time in Washington.

For most Egyptians protesting vociferously — and ultimately successfully — in Cairo's Tahrir Square and elsewhere over the past two weeks, the state of the nation's science will have been far from the top of their complaints.