The Academy / Organization

Clear responsibilities. Independent judgment.

A framework for governing an interdisciplinary academy, sustaining its scholarly work and making responsibility visible.

Institutional framework

This page sets out the proposed allocation of functions. It is not an appointment register or a statement that every committee and office is already constituted. Implementation, legal powers and appointments remain subject to the Academy’s statutes and formal resolutions. No individual office-holder is represented here.

Institutional oversightGeneral Assembly

Direction & accountabilityGoverning Council · President

Academic Council

Eight divisions · peer review · research standards

Secretary General

Records · programmes · administration

Standing Committees

Integrity · finance · publishing · international affairs

Leadership & governance

Member body

General Assembly

The proposed Assembly brings eligible members together to consider the Academy’s direction, receive annual scientific and financial reports, and exercise the electoral and constitutional responsibilities assigned by approved statutes. It provides a forum for questioning leadership and debating long-term priorities. Meeting notices, voting eligibility, quorum, conflicts of interest and the recording of decisions should be defined before the body begins operating.

Accountability

Receives Council and independent oversight reports; exercises only the powers granted by approved statutes.

Governing body

Governing Council

The Council would hold collective responsibility for strategy, resources and institutional oversight between Assembly meetings. Its remit includes approving an annual work programme, reviewing delivery and risk, establishing time-limited committees, and safeguarding the Academy’s independence. It should distinguish oversight from editorial and research judgment, publish non-confidential decisions, and assess whether the eight divisions and participating countries have an effective voice in institutional priorities.

Accountability

Accountable to the General Assembly; receives academic, executive and independent committee reports.

Leadership office

President

The President would chair collective deliberations, articulate the Academy’s mission and represent positions that have passed the appropriate approval process. The office connects the scholarly community with public institutions and civil society while protecting space for legitimate disagreement. Its authority should be bounded by approved delegations: the President convenes and coordinates, but does not substitute personal opinion for an Academy statement or independently determine membership and research conclusions.

Accountability

Chairs the Governing Council and reports within its collective mandate; represents only authorized Academy positions.

Leadership office

Vice-President for Scientific Affairs

This portfolio would coordinate the academic programme across the eight divisions, identify opportunities for joint inquiry and help turn proposals into feasible projects. It supports rigorous methods, appropriate expertise and realistic milestones without directing findings. Working with divisional chairs, the office should balance established strengths with emerging fields, review programme outcomes, and ensure that natural sciences, social sciences, humanities and the arts can contribute on equal intellectual terms.

Accountability

Reports to the Governing Council and coordinates the Academic Council, including the eight divisional chairs.

Leadership office

Treasurer

The Treasurer would oversee budgeting, cash-flow planning and clear reporting on how resources support the Academy’s mission. The office prepares financial information for Council and independent review, monitors restricted funds, and helps assess the sustainability of new commitments. Payments and approvals should use documented controls and separation of duties. Fundraising decisions should also identify conditions that could compromise independence, create undisclosed influence or exceed the Academy’s capacity to deliver.

Accountability

Reports to the Governing Council; supplies records for independent review by the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.

Standing committee

Membership and Elections Committee

The committee would administer a transparent pathway for nominations, eligibility checks, expert assessment and elections under approved rules. It should document criteria, manage conflicts of interest and consider disciplinary and regional breadth without weakening standards of achievement. The committee recommends and facilitates; final decisions remain with the body authorized by the statutes. Applicants and nominators should receive clear guidance, realistic timelines and an explanation of what membership does and does not signify.

Accountability

Reports process recommendations to the Governing Council; final elections follow the authority established in approved statutes.

Independent review committee

Research Integrity and Ethics Committee

This committee would advise on responsible research, conflicts of interest, authorship, respectful conduct and the careful use of data and artificial intelligence. It should maintain a fair route for raising concerns, protect confidentiality and distinguish advice from a formal investigation. Any review needs appropriate expertise, recusal and an opportunity to respond. The body is not a substitute for the ethics approvals, legal duties or institutional review processes required for individual research projects.

Accountability

Reports independently to the Governing Council, with conflict-free escalation to the Assembly when appropriate.

Independent oversight committee

Finance, Audit and Risk Committee

The committee would independently examine financial reporting, internal controls and significant institutional risks. It challenges assumptions in budgets and major commitments, monitors corrective actions, and advises on the need for external assurance. To preserve useful scrutiny, it should not simply duplicate the Treasurer’s operational responsibilities. Its annual report should identify material issues, responses and unresolved concerns for Council and, where appropriate, the Assembly, while respecting legitimate confidentiality.

Accountability

Provides independent scrutiny to the Governing Council and Assembly; does not operate the Treasurer’s payment functions.

Academic structure

Academic coordinating body

Academic Council

The Academic Council would connect the eight divisional chairs with the Vice-President for Scientific Affairs to coordinate intellectual priorities across the Academy. It reviews programme proposals for disciplinary balance, methodological quality and opportunities for collaboration, then advises the Governing Council on the academic agenda. It should preserve each division’s scholarly autonomy, document differing views and distinguish coordination from peer review, editorial decisions or approval of individual research projects.

Accountability

Advises the Governing Council through the Vice-President for Scientific Affairs; includes all eight divisional chairs.

Eight disciplinary divisions

Academic Divisions and Divisional Chairs

The eight divisions would provide the disciplinary homes of the Academy. Each division develops a scholarly agenda, convenes exchanges, identifies reviewers and proposes activities within its expertise. Divisional chairs coordinate participation and report progress to the scientific portfolio; they do not determine conclusions on behalf of all members. Joint working groups connect fields when a question exceeds one division, with a defined purpose, transparent membership and a clear end point.

Accountability

Divisional chairs participate in the Academic Council and coordinate with the Vice-President for Scientific Affairs.

Independent editorial board

Publications and Editorial Board

The Board would establish clear editorial categories and quality controls for research briefings, Academy white papers and any documented original research. It commissions or receives material, arranges suitable review, verifies attribution and permissions, and maintains corrections and version histories. Editorial decisions should be insulated from sponsorship and institutional convenience. Every publication must make its authorship, evidence base, review status and relationship to LAANSSS visible so readers can judge its authority accurately.

Accountability

Reports on editorial standards to the Governing Council; controls scholarly review independently of the communications office.

Programme committee

Science Policy and Foresight Committee

The committee would identify questions where independent, interdisciplinary evidence can inform public discussion. It develops scoped proposals for assessments and white papers, brings relevant expertise and affected perspectives into the process, and distinguishes findings from value judgments and policy options. Its work should state uncertainty and evidence gaps explicitly. Only outputs that complete the approved review and authorization process may be presented as positions of the Academy.

Accountability

Develops proposals with the Academic Council; Academy statements require independent review and Governing Council authorization.

Programme committee

Education, Public Engagement and Early-Career Committee

This committee would make the Academy’s intellectual life accessible through lectures, dialogues, educational resources and opportunities for early-career participation. It should design activities with audiences rather than assume a one-way transfer of knowledge, and consider language, disability, geography and unequal access to research infrastructure. Proposals for mentoring or awards require clear criteria and resources. Evaluation should examine participation and learning, not only the number of events or public impressions.

Accountability

Coordinates academic priorities with the Academic Council and operational delivery with the Secretary General.

Mathematical, Physical & Chemical Sciences Earth, Environmental & Planetary Sciences Biological & Life Sciences Medical & Health Sciences Engineering, Technology & Computer Sciences Agricultural, Food & Veterinary Sciences Social, Economic & Behavioral Sciences Humanities, Arts & Cultural Studies

Stewardship & delivery

Executive coordination

Secretary General and Secretariat

The Secretary General would turn approved decisions into coordinated administrative action. The Secretariat manages meeting preparation, minutes, official correspondence, member records, programme calendars and the institutional archive. It supports divisions and committees with consistent procedures, accessible documentation and follow-through on decisions. Clear retention and access rules should protect confidential material while making public information easy to find; administrative support must remain separate from independent scientific and ethical judgments.

Accountability

Reports to the Governing Council; supervises programme coordination, international cooperation, communications and records support departments.

Secretariat support department

Programme Coordination Office

Under the Secretary General, this office would provide the practical support needed to deliver approved programmes: schedules, event logistics, project records, accessibility arrangements and progress tracking. It works with divisional chairs and programme committees to identify resource needs and implementation risks early. It may coordinate the administration of applications or calls, but cannot change scientific selection criteria, determine academic outcomes or announce commitments that have not been authorized.

Accountability

Reports to the Secretary General; supports the Academic Council, divisional chairs and programme committees.

Secretariat support department

International Cooperation Office

Under the Secretary General, this office would coordinate equitable relationships with academies, universities and research networks across Latin America and beyond. It prepares cooperation proposals, supports multilingual exchanges and maintains records of obligations and approved agreements. Scientific priorities remain with the academic bodies, and institutional commitments require the appropriate authorization. A verified partnership register must distinguish exploratory conversations from signed agreements, preventing unsupported claims of affiliation, sponsorship or endorsement.

Accountability

Reports to the Secretary General; submits institutional agreements for Governing Council approval.

Secretariat support department

Publications and Communications Office

Under the Secretary General, this office would manage the production and distribution of approved publications, website content and public information. Its work includes copyediting, translation coordination, accessible presentation, permissions records and timely corrections. It supports the independent Publications and Editorial Board without controlling scholarly acceptance or conclusions. Public messages must distinguish external research, individual perspectives and authorized Academy statements, and should never inflate partnerships, membership numbers or publication achievements.

Accountability

Reports administratively to the Secretary General; scholarly decisions remain with the Publications and Editorial Board.

Secretariat support department

Records and Member Services Office

Under the Secretary General, this office would maintain accurate membership records, institutional correspondence, meeting archives and approved governance documents. It supports member enquiries and the administration of nominations while applying clear access, retention and correction procedures. Information published about membership or officeholders must be supported by authorized records. The office safeguards confidential material and assists legitimate information requests, but does not decide eligibility, election outcomes or the substance of complaints.

Accountability

Reports to the Secretary General; supports authorized membership, election and governance processes.

A comparative foundation

The framework draws on published academy governance models; it does not imply affiliation, endorsement or identical legal powers. The Academy’s own statutes and decisions govern its operation.

National Academy of Sciences — Leadership Royal Society — Council Royal Society — Committees and working groups Academia Brasileira de Ciências — Estrutura Academia Brasileira de Ciências — Estatuto Academia Nacional de Ciencias del Perú — Consejo Directivo and institutional aims