Temat konkursu zorganizowanego przez GOI Peace Foundation oraz UNESCO brzmiał w tym roku następująco: Rola nauki w budowaniu lepszego świata. Temat przewodni miał związek z ogłoszoną przez Organizację Narodów Zjednoczonych Międzynarodową Dekadą Kultury Pokoju i Niestosowania Przemocy dla Dobra Dzieci na Całym Świecie (2001-2010).

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Name Marcin Senderski
Title Providing scientific expertise for the Global South – a challenge
and an opportunity
E-mail marcin@senderski.pl
Nationality Polish
Age (as of June 30, 2009) 21
Sex Male
School name SGH Warsaw School of Economics
al. Niepodleglosci 162
02-554 Warszawa
POLAND
Word count 799

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Providing scientific expertise for the Global South – a challenge and an opportunity
The important thing in science is not so much to obtain new
facts as to discover new ways of thinking about them.
Sir William Lawrence Bragg (1890-1971)
How to select goals and utilize effects of scientific achievements in order to establish
sustainable, welfare societies? What ties and feedbacks should be identified between
knowledge and civilizational progress? And finally, how to spread the scientific enthusiasm
within the developing world? The development unavoidably faces a claim for social
responsibility.
Scientific progress is inseparably bound to the history of humanity. Egyptians loved
mathematics, but were unable to systematize their knowledge. Greeks admired existential dimension
of human race and laid foundations of European identity, but did not have an organizational bent.
Ancient Romans were top-notch managers, but even their success story eventually reached dead
end. Anyway, a couple of centuries later it turned out that European attainments were
embarrassingly minor in comparison to Chinese ones.
Virtually no means of communication determined lack of any kind of exchange. Aviation and
the Internet enormously facilitated communication, thus made the world smaller. Unfortunately, this
positive impact cannot be regarded as widespread.
Non-synchronized development
Least developed countries are hardly prone to expend their modest resources on R&D, since
its positive outcomes are, as a rule, long-term. As a consequence, their problems remain unsolved.
Such ailments as Chagas disease, dengue fever or elephantitis are incurable, because pharmaceutical
industry does not have sufficient incentives to develop efficient drugs. It takes about 300 dollars to
heal a leprous patient. It is not an advanced calculation which leads to the conclusion that about 4
bln dollars would suffice to make leprosy completely disappear from the surface of the Earth. It is
three times less than estimated monthly expenses of American administration for the missions in
Afghanistan and Iraq. Food for thought.
Therefore, the disparities in pace of development reveal a ‘multi-speed world’. Thus the task
is to make underdeveloped countries able, both in intellectual and financial terms, to sort out their
own troubles.
‘Hard’ and ‘soft’ development
Science plays crucial role in pursuing better world, though not more significant than general
improvement of humanity. ‘Hard’ fundamentals for development are purely scientific, while ‘soft’
sources of growth originate in people’s minds and are reflected in such attitudes as tolerance and
honesty. Science which is disrespectful towards tradition or ethics would entail damages in social
sphere.
A set of postulates, as comprehensive as possible in an essay of this size, for contemporary
science should read as follows:

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Freedom of scientific research
It should be limited by ethical borders and usefulness, since squandering public money on
whims and trifles would not meet with approval. Nowadays, what wins attention of authorities is
ecology. Environmentalism has already left its stamp on our mentality, however the scale of grants
provided is exaggerated. Unfortunately, political correctness and ‘over-influential’ lobby of
environmentalists prevent political leaders from declaring it loudly.
Social responsibility
Promoting positive behaviors and restricting negative ones, e.g. instrumental treatment of
indigent states (brain drain, exploiting them as landfill sites). Researches aimed at solving vital
civilizational problems, involving those not necessarily designed for financial benefits, should be
supported. ‘Dumb’ money pumped in low-income, corrupt African regimes is an alibi of the wealthy
‘North’. It is convenient for decision-makers to salve their conscience by donating a fish, instead of
providing a fishing-rod.
Social acceptance for R&D expenditures
The returns are not immediate and governments may not be eager to splash immense sums,
while risking public unrest. It is particularly true during the crisis.
Transnational and intersectoral co-operation
Units involved or seeking involvement in R&D: governments, enterprises, academic
institutions, non-profit organizations, should establish networks due to co-ordinate the application of
funds.
Development economics in need of particular attention
Science, in a broader sense, embraces social and economic field and a combination of these:
development economics. The phenomenon of economic transition emerged relatively recently, so
transition theory is one of those, which have not yet been developed to a satisfactory degree. As a
student of economics, I think considerable efforts should be undertaken in this subject.
A cure for yellow fever contributes to the sense of dignity of Africans, but healthy economic
fundamentals create much more. Countries stuck in vicious circle of poverty have to be recovered
and taught how to make the most of their strengths in order to adjust themselves to the competitive
environment. General knowledge about market economy, entrepreneurship and democracy needs to
be inculcated.
The ‘North’ should generate and fuel catch-up effects, bearing in mind that today’s costs lead
to future savings. Establishing as many independent and self-sufficient economies as possible should
be the apple in the eye of developed societies. May the torch of knowledge and scientific expertise
be accessible for the developing world.