trieste, italy

Scientists from Northern countries should actively help their colleagues in the South to work together in developing the networks and research infrastructure needed to increase their scientific capabilities, according to José I. Vargas, Brazil's minister of science and technology between 1992 and 1998.

Vargas, who is president of the Third World Academy of Sciences and the Third World Network of Scientific Organizations, says that such ‘Southernization’ of the North's scientific agenda is likely to be the most effective way to tackle problems such as climate change and food production, and to ensure that advanced science is brought to bear on the problems of poorer nations.

“Scientists in the North do not have to look far beyond their laboratories to realize that global scientific knowledge is far more evenly distributed than the enormous wealth that scientists and technologists have created through their efforts,” says Vargas. “Many of the North's graduate schools in basic sciences would find it difficult to maintain current levels of scholarship and research without a steady flow of graduate students from abroad.”

He points out that ‘South-South’ cooperation has become one of the guiding principles of science and technology policy throughout the developing world. “Such efforts could be significantly strengthened through programmes that facilitate North-South cooperation — provided that Northern scientists are responsive to the issues raised by colleagues in the South, and that scientists in the South share knowledge they have gained with their counterparts throughout the developing world.”

He cites the way that Brazil was able to use scientific assistance from the United States to set up its space programme — and now not only uses satellite technology to tackle issues ranging from atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to soil and water quality, but also shares the information gathered from satellites with scientists in other developing countries.

Full text: http://helix.nature.com/wcs/c19.html

See also: http://helix.nature.com/wcs/c18.html