“We scientists are trained not to speculate, although politicians want us to speculate and society needs it sometimes. But if you speculate too much you stop being a scientist and become a charlatan. In science, 'believe' It is always the wrong word.” The Uruguayan researcher Rafael Radi thus explains why science has an increasingly relevant role, but also more complicated to define, in a society that faces challenges that are also increasingly complex. Radi speaks, specifically, of the human right to science, which supports the idea that every human being should have the possibility of benefiting from the advances of scientific and technological progress. During conferences recently held in Montevideo on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the UNESCO office in the region, Radi and other Latin American researchers explained that the time has come to talk about this right, and to defend it.