Inauguration, Bengaluru 2014
"Hon’ble President, Your Royal Highness, Hon’ble Minister, Honorary President of the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, President and Fellows of the Royal Society, distinguished delegates and guests, Commonwealth friends…
This is indeed a momentous occasion. We are on the opening page of a promising new chapter in Commonwealth cooperation. Science for the common good resonates deeply with all that the Commonwealth seeks to advance. Within the rich variety of our 53 member states and their people in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Americas, Pacific and Europe, our collective approach is always to pursue inclusiveness and encourage innovation.
We are in a near-constant state of reform and renewal, and this is how the Commonwealth has the gift of remaining contemporary to its people and their aspirations, in advancing the culture of democracy, more equitable development and respect for diversity. The development of the scientific temper and staying with the global curve of rapid alteration are intrinsic to our realising the promise of the future, particularly for the burgeoning young Commonwealth citizens – 60 per cent of whom are below the age of 29.
Scientific progress and the public understanding of science have a direct bearing on many of our Commonwealth priority concerns - including in health, education, employment, and building resilience in our societies. The habit of science helps us to advance respect and understanding between people and communities, transform attitudes and serve the goals of both social and economic inclusion.
While there may have been a Commonwealth Science Conference as long as fifty years ago, contact between scientists and scientific institutions across our 53 member states has continued to grow. There are networks and interconnections, whether formal or informal, which thrive independently of official links. The strength and vitality of these ties make the Commonwealth distinctive among international groupings in the depth of kinship and affinity that exists between its people, and the ease with which they are able to build and work together. At intergovernmental level there are also many examples of fruitful scientific collaboration – indeed for forty years or so a Commonwealth Science Council was administered from within the Commonwealth Secretariat.
This Conference shows the will to revive to its true potential scientific cooperation and exchange in the Commonwealth. The citizens of the Commonwealth will warmly welcome that. It has come from the drive and the energy of those serving this vision. We are immensely grateful to the Royal Society and to the Department of Science and Technology in the Government of India for their leadership, and to the Indian Institute of Science and the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research for their hospitality and support.
Most crucial to the success of this Conference, and to carrying forward its ambitious outcomes, will be the sustained commitment of delegates representing the scientific communities of our member states, now and in the future. The extent of participation and enthusiasm that is already there augurs well for the future. It gives cause for confidence in the great global good that can be achieved through partnership and forging the closer common purpose, typical of the Commonwealth.
Regional cooperation between Commonwealth member states also has a valuable part to play. For example India is a leading voice urging South Asian cooperation on the launch of a satellite, with potentially enormous beneficial outcomes for itself as well as its neighbours.
The refreshing aspiration and intent of this Conference are worthy of acclamation and support. The goal is to be truly pan-Commonwealth in compass, pursuing wide cooperation across scientific disciplines and between our member states, wholly in keeping with the progressive and transformational approach which is at the heart of the Commonwealth.
A vital aspect of this vision is ensuring that there is equitable opportunity for all to fulfil their potential. I especially welcome the allocation of funding in association with this Conference for short-term travel fellowships that will enable talented young scientists from Commonwealth member states with limited technical resources to spend time on research using well-appointed facilities and laboratories in Commonwealth centres of excellence.
There are ways too in which greater public understanding of science can be achieved in partnership with the Commonwealth of Learning, our intergovernmental body based in Vancouver that promotes and develops online and distance learning – particularly for small states and remote communities. We can also explore how the scope of other Commonwealth partnerships such as ‘Commonwealth Class’, our initiative linking schools, can be extended to cultivate greater appreciation of science at an early age and serve the popularisation of science in younger minds.
In other words, there are creative and practical results already envisaged from this Conference, and other possibilities already emerging.
This Conference marks a point of inflection for the way in which the Commonwealth can collectively benefit from the rich talent and wisdom of its scientific community. I know many here share my own hope that the Commonwealth Science Conference will become a regular fixture in the cycle of Commonwealth and scientific gatherings. I trust that a Commonwealth country will put up its hand as the next host at this Conference itself. Online connection and practical collaboration between meetings will be critical to maintaining momentum and multiplying contacts, and I know thought is being given to how this should be facilitated.
‘Commonwealth Connects’, our cloud-based web platform, which currently hosts more than a hundred Commonwealth communities of practice, for those wishing to stay in touch, to store and share knowledge, and to collaborate practically to shared benefit, is already available. Furthermore, the impact and influence of science can be carried forward in considered ways to other regular meetings such as the annual Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting, the triennial Commonwealth Conference of Education Ministers, and the biennial Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and its associated forums.
There is renewed determination to draw on the Commonwealth goodwill that flows from our shared heritage and aspirations for the future. These lead us to work together in a spirit of mutual support and solidarity, collective purpose and shared striving. This is a great Commonwealth moment and brings much promise for the future. We look forward to it with anticipation and I wish you every success in making this Conference a turning-point for science in the Commonwealth."
Find out more about the Commonwealth Science Conference 2014
