By Heidi Kingstone
My first response when I hear people talking about saving the world, eradicating poverty and finding peace is to throw up my hands in despair at the very futility.
Then I think, well, maybe things do change after all. While I don't believe the outpouring of grief and money in the wake of the terrible tsunami disaster will unite the world, although the difference between north and south almost doesn't exist anymore, somewhere a glimmer of hope may shine.
In this vein, if you believe things can get better, listening to Harvard's Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development at the Kennedy School of Government, and co-ordinator of the UN Millennium Project Task Force on Science, Technology and Innovation, science and technology may be the key.
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He is the lead author of the report Innovation: Applying Knowledge in Development, which will be submitted to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on January 17.
Juma makes the point that "efforts to alleviate poverty and improve the lives of people in developing countries will fail if national governments and international organisations continue to ignore the importance of science and technology."
At London's Royal Society, the United Kingdom's national academy of science,this week, he said that universities and businesses needed to play a bigger role in promoting science and technology to this end.
The report will highlight a lack of scientific advice to governments and international organisations as a major obstacle to achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
Perhaps one of the most interesting things that Juma also pointed out was South Africa's role. It offers the global community a template for figuring out how to use science and technology as a way of bridging inequalities in society because it uses all major efforts to build up science and technology.
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