Annual Report 2025 - Report - Page 39
The closing panel with participants such as Yuko Harayama and
Fuhur Dixit discussed questions beyond science
Ona Ambrozaite (middle) works with Peter Agre in the field of
Science Diplomacy, Martin Chalfie (left) has also become
an important voice advocating for international cooperation
Both Frances Arnold and Peter Agre look beyond science to engage
with politics and society
Moungi G. Bawendi left the Meeting with greater confidence
back at us, and said, ‘I don’t want to go’,” Arnold recalled.
“Science was positive – we had solutions to offer for
problems, whereas everything else almost seemed without a solution,” she added, arguing that although science
is not always top of the political agenda, it is critical to
try to ensure science is always included in political discussions.
Beyond stepping into politics directly, panelists also
discussed what all scientists could be doing to affect
change. Martin Chalfie, 2008 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, was keen to emphasize that scientists need to keep
global lines of communication open, even under the most
trying circumstances. “Science is a global enterprise –
what happens in one country affecting science is affecting all countries,” he said. “And for that reason, we have to
be communicating with each other.”
Yuko Harayama, former Executive Director at RIKEN,
the Japanese national scientific research institute, and
current Secretary General of the Japanese National Institute of Information and Communications Technology,
added to this point, emphasizing the need for scientists
to capitalize on modern communication tools to not only
communicate with each other, but with the whole of
society as well. “Compared to a few years ago, technology
changes so quickly, and the spread of impact is huge,” she
said. “It’s important to have a broader view of what you’re
doing, not only in your research, but in society. You have
to think outside your comfort zone and you need to be
able to exchange information and try to have some common understanding in terms of overall impact.”
Fuhur Dixit, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, noted that his CV – spanning
several countries and collaborations with international
colleagues – made him realize he’s part of the scientific
community’s diplomatic relations: “We are living that
experience of science diplomacy.”
After the panel discussion on Mainau Island, in one
of the final speeches before the Meeting ended, Moungi
Bawendi, recent 2023 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry,
spread some optimism having gotten to know the Young
Scientists during the week: “In the last few months, I’ve
been pessimistic about the future of science. But today,
I feel much more optimistic. This new generation is the
future – you are the future. I trust you and I know you will
go forth and change the world.”
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