Theme: Scientific Research and Society
Venue: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) – Zurich, Switzerland
Today I was fortunate enough to attend an overbooked lecture by Mr. Kofi Annan, the former UN-SG and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate. For this year’s Richard R. Ernst Lecture at the ETH Zurich, Mr. Annan delivered a captivating lecture on the role of scientific research in solving the needs of society .
He urged young researchers to delve into research that crosses boundaries of their fields through interdisciplinary work and international collaborations with less technological advanced nations. Addressing a multitude of young researchers and students, Mr. Annan pointed out that scientists should provide the necessary leadership in research policy when political support is lacking. This could be through creating innovative solutions to societal needs that gain public support of the target communties. He pressed on the need of academics to refuse to remain in the ivory-tower, but rather become actors through research that makes a lasting impact to society.
During the lecture, he quoted the Indian statesman and foremost actor in its R&D revolution, Jawaharlal Nehru, who once said “we are too poor to not invest in science and technology”, to highlight the importance of science and technology for solving incessant problems of the south – food shortage, climate change and diseases of poverty.
The full lecture
(c) ETH Zurich, ITS-MMS
Below are amateur video clips of the panel discussion with Kofi Annan chaired by the 1991 Chemistry Nobel Laureate Prof. Richard R. Ernst.
Kofi is cool. I agree that sometimes academia can be an ivory tower, but I disagree that scholars actively and conciously know this. They are conditioned within an ivory tower, built from a concept of education that belongs to only one side of the world.
At the end of the day, any kind of education – be it scientific or non-scientific – is a kind of learning. And this process of finding knowledge is not limited to people or posts, but to curiousity and to methods. Hence, Kofi is right – we need to find ways for students to engage in practical work instead of just theory. Let’s hope we have a generation of youth who are prepared to do this.