Despite the greatly increased numbers of migrants and refugees worldwide in recent years, insufficient attention has been paid to addressing their health needs. While a variety of international instruments assert the right to health, in practice, migrants and refugees—especially those awaiting clarification of their status, such as asylum seekers and those without documentation—often fall in cracks between service providers and humanitarian relief programmes at national and regional levels. This report provides a summary of the current state of knowledge regarding the health issues of migrants and refugees and of the extent to which they are being met. It highlights, through a series of case studies, the diverse approaches to policies, entitlements and services provided in different jurisdictions, ranging from regional (Europe) and country (Germany, Iran, Italy, Turkey, South Africa) levels to provinces and cities (Quebec/Montreal, Berlin). These provide evidence of successes and challenges and highlight areas requiring further effort, including in the domains of policy, service design and delivery, education and training, research and communication. They also underscore the challenges of highly neglected aspects such as mental health and the critical importance of developing cultural/transnational competence in the health professional individuals and institutions working with migrants and refugees. Results from discussions taking place in an M8 Alliance Expert Group Meeting (Rome, 23–24 June 2017) and from the literature are synthesised to develop an ‘agenda of solutions’. This agenda aims to provide a comprehensive framework, which bridges humanitarian, ethical and rights-based imperatives to provide a framework for action to tackle this crucial area.

The flow of materials and energy through society is an integral but poorly visible element of global sustainability agendas such as the Planetary Boundaries Framework and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG). Given that the primary activities of chemistry are to analyze, synthesize, and transform matter, the practice of chemistry has a great deal to contribute to sustainability science, which in turn should play an increasingly important role in reshaping the practice of chemistry. Success in integrating sustainability considerations into the practice of chemistry implies a substantial role for chemistry education to better equip students to address the sustainability of earth and societal systems. Building on the framework of the IUPAC Systems Thinking in Chemistry Education (STICE) project, we develop approaches to using systems thinking to educate students about the molecular basis of sustainability, to assist chemistry to contribute meaningfully and visibly toward the attainment of global sustainability agendas. A detailed exemplar shows how ubiquitous coverage in general chemistry courses of the Haber–Bosch process for the synthesis of ammonia could be extended using systems thinking to consider the complex interplay of this industrial process with scientific, societal, and environmental systems. Systems thinking tools such as systems thinking concept map extension (SOCME) visualizations assist in highlighting inputs, outputs, and societal consequences of this large-scale industrial process, including both intended and unintended alterations to the planetary cycle of nitrogenous compounds. Strategies for using systems thinking in chemistry education and addressing the challenges its use may bring to educators and students are discussed, and suggestions are offered for general chemistry instructors using systems thinking to educate about the molecular basis of sustainability.

Computers, the Internet and social media enable every individual to be a publisher, communicating true or false information instantly and globally. In the ‘post-truth’ era, deception is commonplace at all levels of contemporary life. Fakery affects science and social information and the two have become highly interactive globally, undermining trust in science and the capacity of individuals and society to make evidence-informed choices, including on life-or-death issues. Ironically, drivers of fake science are embedded in the current science publishing system intended to disseminate evidenced knowledge, in which the intersection of science advancement and reputational and financial rewards for scientists and publishers incentivize gaming and, in the extreme, creation and promotion of falsified results. In the battle for truth, individual scientists, professional associations, academic institutions and funding bodies must act to put their own house in order by promoting ethics and integrity and de-incentivizing the production and publishing of false data and results. They must speak out against false information and fake science in circulation and forcefully contradict public figures who promote it. They must contribute to research that helps understand and counter false information, to education that builds knowledge and skills in assessing information and to strengthening science literacy in society.