Previous Fora / 2007
HAS President Concludes WSF
2007.11.12.
Excellencies!
Ladies and Gentlemen!
With three days of exhilarating discussions behind us, I think we should all be happy and satisfied. The presence of international institutions, such as the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the Third World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), the International Council for Science (ICSU), the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the National Science Foundation from US (NSF), and the Japanese Science Foundation just to name a few of them has made this forum very productive.
Today, more than ever before, the world is shaped by science.
The economies of the world will increasingly become 'knowledge-based', with added value coming more from knowledge than materials. In a world moving rapidly toward a knowledge-based economy in the 21st century, science & technology is necessary everywhere.
Thus, the prestige of knowledge has increased enormously. Mankind has benefited enormously from advances in science & technology over the course of the last century: people can now live longer, healthier and more productive lives than ever before. Yet the global reality is that many of these advances fail to reach those who need them most as the need is greatest in the developing nations. There are currently several countries where people live on less than a dollar a day, and almost half of humanity survives on less than two dollars a day. The richest fifth of the world's population earns more than 100 times the income of the poorest fifth.
To prevent this economic disparity among nations from continuing to increase, we have to do something. Many of us think that progress in science and technology can help with this matter, but this is not necessarily true. In fact, we are probably wrong. The current disparity is likely to grow even wider as the industrialized nations continue to master the tools of science and invention and vastly outspend the developing nations in research and development (R&D). Many countries in the world are prepared; neither intellectually, nor economically to use up-to-date technology because they simply cannot afford the necessary tools.
This means that technology transfer is not working as well as many of us would have hoped. The main problem is that the gap between rich and poor nations is becoming wider and wider. What can we do? What is the answer to this problem? Enhancing S&T capacity in the developing nations is truly a necessity and not a luxury. It is a must.
Dennis Gabor, a Hungarian Nobel laureate for creating holography, wrote 43 years ago, "Futures cannot be predicted, they can be invented."
No doubt he is right - investing in knowledge is investing in the future. Investment in knowledge pays the highest interest. Even for Americans, science is a priority. This year George W. Bush, in his State of the Union address, said, "To keep America competitive, one commitment is necessary above all: We must continue to lead the world in human talent and creativity ... Tonight I announce an American Competitiveness Initiative, to encourage innovation throughout our economy, and to give our nations' children a firm grounding in math and science. First, I propose to double the federal commitment to the most critical basic research programs in the physical sciences over the next 10 years.
This funding will support the work of America's most creative minds...".
The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel wrote in her Editorial in Science (14 July, 2006) "The German government recognizes that our future lies in a knowledge-based society founded on freedom and responsibility.
This is what will enable Germany to rise to the challenges of today's world, be they national or global, or economic, social, or ecological in nature. That is why the promotion of science, research, and innovation is one of my top priorities."
It is thus clear that future economic and social well-being will derive from the mastery and creative application of ideas and discoveries coming from the basic sciences. What Hungary, and Europe at large, is relatively poor at is transforming original ideas and discoveries into marketable products, i.e. at making the operation of our 300 billion nerve cells per human brain fully available to others - even on a social level.
The roles of scientific communication and simultaneous public control have also gained importance.
Worldwide, civil movements can influence professional politics and professional politicians today. In response to this new development, we had a special, high-level event at our Forum, i.e. the Heads of State Panel initiated by the President of Hungary László Sólyom. Participants in this panel (Austrian, Greek and Croatian president) have come to Budapest because they have made a commitment to sustainable development and the peaceful coexistence and harmony of Man and Nature. We sincerely hope that this Panel will attract the attention of the general public as well as that of all decision-makers to promote sustainability, and our commitment to the future. In addition, UNEP has launched the International Panel for Sustainable Resource Management here in Budapest, at the occasion of the WSF.
Another high-profile issue at our Forum was the Panel on how to support science and science education. World Science Forum has provided the basis for the following:
To promote interest in science and technology among young people
To enhance the dialogue between citizens and scientific communities
To increase society's understanding of the importance of research
To disseminate knowledge for the public
To protect our natural wonders in our planet Earth, keeping them for our children, our children's children, and all who come after us.
Science and Innovation is a Global Enterprise.
Digital libraries of science and technology can bring knowledge to virtually everyone, everywhere.
The Internet, for example, has revolutionized the very meaning of time and space. With the click of a mouse, vast quantities of data and manifold services can move across the globe within millisecond.
Today, there are billions of pages on the World Wide Web and by 2010 the number will likely be twenty billion. Thus, the integration of the world economy through trade, capital flows, and enhanced communications is rapidly proceeding.
Governments involved in the development, production, and use of new technologies, such as those deriving from biotechnology, should have the means to assess and manage their benefits and risks.
Governments should therefore ensure that indigenous S&T capacities are in place not only for effective adoption of new technologies, but also for help in implementing public health, human safety, and environmental guidelines and regulations that address potential side-effects of these new technologies.
Governments should provide regulatory frameworks to protect the public interest and safety, and fund research and development efforts aimed toward the public good.
This Forum is about the whole of science, the ties between science and society, science and politics, the shared, mutual responsibility of scientists and politicians. The answers to most of the questions raised during these three days by different people representing government, academia, the private sector, the media, and civil society – in particular should be addressed.
Scientists, politicians, decision-makers, representatives of international science organisations have come here to call the world's attention, yet again, to the importance of knowledge and investment in knowledge.
Ladies and Gentlemen!
We must plant the today so that they might yield fruit in the future. We must also care for and feed the trees planted before us, and we must also encourage our children and grandchildren to plant new trees, so that those, too, can yield enough fruit for all people, now, and in the future.
Talking about the future, let me invite you all to the next WSF due to be held in two year's time, here, in Budapest. Auf Wiedersehen, Sayonara, See you again, Au revoir, Doswidanie, Arrividerci, Viszontlátásra.
Thank you!