Ernesto Fernandez Polcuch is a Science Diplomat, specialist in Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Policy, with a M.Sc. in Science, Technology and Society from the National University of Quilmes, Argentina.

As Chief of Section for Science Policy and Partnerships in the Natural Sciences Sector of UNESCO, he manages global UNESCO programmes in STI Policy, Science Communication, Gender and STEM, Science Diplomacy, and Science-Policy-Society linkages, including the UNESCO Global Observatory of STI Policy Instruments GO-SPIN, the UNESCO Science Report, the L’Oréal UNESCO For Women in Science Programme, and the STEM and Gender Advancement (SAGA) Project.

He was previously Senior STI Policy and Capacity Building Specialist at the UNESCO Regional Office for Science in Latin America and the Caribbean, in Montevideo, Programme Specialist for Natural Sciences at UNESCO Windhoek, and led the Science and Technology Statistics team at the UNESCO Institute for Statistics.

Before joining UNESCO, he worked with RICYT, the Ibero-American Network on Science and Technology Indicators, setting up the S&T indicators system in Latin America. He has also worked as a researcher, professor, government adviser and consultant in Argentina and the region.