Executive Summary of the STS forum 2021
- 18^th Annual Meeting

In their remarks, the speakers discussed the lights and shadows of science and technology, ultimately emphasizing the power of science and technology to overcome global crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and to illuminate the path forward for the future. Furthermore, they stressed the importance of innovation, and several speakers shared examples of initiatives to promote innovation in their respective countries and regions. There was also discussion of analysis and synthesis, and breaking silos, two new themes of this year’s STS forum, and their importance for combining the vast and wide-ranging knowledge of humankind. Another theme echoed by several speakers was the power of international collaboration, which enabled the development of COVID-19 vaccines at an unprecedented speed. In addition, the speakers talked about the need to harness all talent for science and technology, and to overcome barriers to that by addressing disparities in education and access to resources. Finally, the need to tackle misinformation and disinformation, an issue that has been highlighted by public mistrust and misunderstanding of the COVID-19 vaccine, was also raised.

This was followed by Session 101 – Green Recovery for Sustainable Society, chaired by Dr. Henry A. McKinnell, former Chairman & CEO of Pfizer and former Chairman of Moody's. The speakers called for a greater sense of urgency and a focus on actions to tackle the crises facing the planet and humankind, including climate change, water issues, biodiversity collapse, economic recession, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Several speakers expressed dismay at the slow pace of progress in tackling the climate crisis in particular. The speakers shared potential ways forward and initiatives from their respective countries, regions and organizations. The measures proposed by the speakers included public pressure on politicians and governments for policy changes, stronger regulation and taxation, better carbon and ecosystem accounting, greener and more sustainable personal choices, sustainable technologies and investment to implement and scale them, and an all-disciplines-approach to policymaking. The point was also made that long-term perspectives and planning are essential for achieving an environmentally, socially and economically sustainable recovery.

On the following day was Session 200A – Breaking Silos in Education: Lifelong Active Learning in Inclusive Society, and Mr. Wenchi Chen, Chairman and President of VIA Technologies, Inc., in Taiwan chaired the session. The speakers discussed the transformations taking place in educational institutions and the importance of ensuring fair and inclusive learning. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this topic has come to the forefront with the shift to remote education. Drawing on their deep backgrounds in research and education, several of the speakers suggested cooperation across disciplines, communities, local and national governments, as well as between researchers and educators, in order to find the best education solutions for a given society. They spoke to the urgency of addressing inequalities in education, as, even in developed countries, the disparities have widened since the start of the pandemic. Several points were made regarding the great progress made possible by technological innovations in education, but the inherent dangers posed by misinformation and the difficulties of leveling the playing field of technological literacy were also noted. As the shift back to in-person education continues, we must consider the lessons learned through remote learning, and find the ideal balance for a reimagined education system.

Another session on the second day was Session 201 – Global Pandemic – Lessons Learned and Forecast (Preparedness), chaired by Dr. Ruth Narmann, Deputy Head of the Department of International Relations in the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, on behalf of Prof. Dr. Gerald H. Haug, President of Leopoldina. The speakers reflected on the lessons of the pandemic, noting collective failures across prevention, preparedness and response, despite longstanding warnings from scientists that such a pandemic could occur. At the same time, they saw reasons for hope, such as the many technological advancements and innovations the pandemic has spurred, including the unprecedentedly rapid development of COVID-19 vaccines, made possible by extensive collaboration and years of investment in science and technology, including basic research. Looking ahead to potential future pandemics, the speakers noted the importance of placing science at the heart of policymaking, responding to pandemics flexibly and with an open mind, continually investing in biomedical research and public health infrastructure, better national and global planning and coordination, and ensuring equitable access to countermeasures in real-time. There was also a strong call for more active public engagement and communication to foster trust and to combat incorrect information. Several speakers noted the power of social media in particular, both for communicating correct scientific information but also disseminating misinformation and disinformation.

In Session 301 – Enhancing Collaboration in Global Health, chaired by Prof. K. VijayRaghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, speakers noted that while the speed of vaccine development in response to the COVID-19 pandemic had been miraculous, this achievement had been somewhat overshadowed by concerns regarding equitable access to the vaccines, with export bans and lack of transparency from manufacturers hampering efforts to get vaccines distributed globally, leading to a risk of further deadly variants occurring. There were also concerns raised about the lack of self-sufficiency in regulatory, scientific, and production capabilities, as well as viral surveillance and diagnostic capabilities globally. The need for greater international public-private research efforts was also highlighted by the speakers, as well as the need for ongoing drug development to create a wide portfolio of drugs to mitigate serious global concerns regarding antimicrobial resistance.

Session 302A – Lights and Shadows of Digital Economy was chaired by Ms. Eva Kaili, Chair of Science and Technology Options Assessment (STOA) of European Parliament, and it broached wide-ranging topics covering a multitude of emerging technologies, such as the internet of things, blockchain, big data and notably, AI, and their impact of society. Calls to heed the impacts from the digital divide, inequity and other growing disparities were shared by the speakers. The opportunities for business and industry from these technologies were discussed as well as the need to regulate in the face of cross-border data flows and international value chains, and disruptive technologies to the global financial system, such as stable coins. Data security from cyberattacks and data protection for citizens’ privacy was also considered by the speakers as transparency in research as well as transparency in data use by controlling powers was explored. Humanities biases were discussed in relation to such biases being incorporated by machine learning systems and also as a point of weakness in protection from influence from AI and cyberattacks. Furthermore, education to upskill human resources and to ensure social acceptance of transformation in the digital economy was brought to light, and the spread of misinformation and undermining of scientific truth as digitalization advanced during the pandemic were also discussed.

Session 401 – Collaboration among Academia, Industries and Government, chaired by Prof. Harriet Wallberg, Professor and former President of the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, was held on the fourth and final day. The speakers agreed that collaboration in previous pandemics, such as in facing HIV and Ebola, had created a network that allowed for rapid support and response to the COVID-19 crisis, and that collaboration with the goal of addressing the needs of the planet and humankind would be essential in future crises, but collaboration when there is not a crisis is also needed. The panelists also agreed that research and education, especially relating to basic sciences, would be essential in order to boost future collaboration and response to pandemics and climate change. Several questions were raised, including the issue of tackling fake news. The panelists agreed that the results of collaboration would lead to greater trust in scientists, as seen in the cooperation on the pandemic. Even if naysayers confront the science, action must be based on scientific advice, and the results will influence the population. The panelists also agreed that social sciences and humanities would be essential in behavioral changes and impacts on collaboration.

The closing session was chaired by Dr. Ismail Serageldin, founding director of the Library of Alexandria. The speakers were Mr. Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubon, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mexico, Mr. Terry Brady, President and CEO of Underwriters Laboratories Inc., Professor Cherry A. Murray, Deputy Director for Research at the University of Arizona, Dr. Ashwani Kumar, Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India, Mr. Takeshi Uchiyamada, Chairman of the Board of Toyota Motor Corporation, Dr. Maria Papadopoulou, Policy Officer of Directorate-General for Research and Innovation at the European Commission, and Prof. Pedro Henrique Brancalion, Professor of Forest Sciences at the University of Sao Paulo.