4Y E A R 2 0 0 1

O C T - D E CVOL .13 NO.4

newsletterTWAST H E N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E T H I R D W O R L D A C A D E M Y O F S C I E N C E S

Published with the support of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences

CONTENTS 2 EDITORIAL 5 11 SEPTEMBER: ISLAM AND SCIENCE 8 SCIENCE

AND TECHNOLOGY IN PAKISTAN 16 DRIP...DROP...DRY 22 CLIMATE CHANGE

24 SUSTAINABILITY 27IN MEMORIAM: ZAFAR H. ZAIDI, XIE XIDE 30PEOPLE,

PLACES, EVENTS

TWAS NEWSLETTER

PUBLISHED QUARTERLY WITH

THE SUPPORT OF THE KUWAIT

FOUNDATION FOR THE

ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCES (KFAS)

BY THE THIRD WORLD

ACADEMY OF SCIENCES (TWAS)

C/O THE ABDUS SALAM

INTERNATIONAL CENTRE

FOR THEORETICAL PHYSICS

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EDITOR

DANIEL SCHAFFER

ASSISTANT EDITOR/SET UP

GISELA ISTEN

TWAS SUPPORT STAFF

HELEN GRANT, HELEN MARTIN,

LEENA MUNGAPEN,

SANDRA RAVALICO

DESIGN & ART DIRECTION

SANDRA ZORZETTI, RADO JAGODIC

(LINK, TRIESTE)

PRINTING

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UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED,

THE TEXT OF THIS NEWSLETTER

IS WRITTEN BY ITS EDITOR AND MAY

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CREDIT TO THE SOURCE

O n the morning of September 11th, I was watching CNN in a hotel room overlooking

the Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, when the drumbeat of ordinary news was

interrupted by a news bulletin announcing that an airplane had struck the north

tower of the World Trade Centre in Manhattan. Along with millions of viewers worldwide, I

was wondering what could have caused such a terrible accident. Even the newscaster speak-

ing from CNN headquarters in the United States was perplexed.

Twenty minutes later, a second plane flashed across the screen and smacked into the south

tower. What I and others had believed (perhaps hoped is a more accurate description) to be

a tragic accident was transformed unmistakably into a deliberate act of terrorism right before

our eyes.

I left Rio that evening to return to India, where I learned that my wife’s nephew, an Indian

national working in New York, had been killed in the attack.

As the scenes of fire and smoke and chaos and heroism have slowly faded from our televi-

sion screens and into our memories, an increasing number of articles in newspapers and mag-

azines have discussed at length what should

be done to prevent such horrific episodes

from recurring. These discussions have

focused primarily on issues related to politics, diplomacy and economics.

All of these issues, without doubt, deserve the attention that they have received. We are,

after all, facing an international crisis fuelled by a complex set of volatile conditions. The ter-

rorist attacks were indeed a surprise but the factors that led to such desperate and violent be-

haviour have been simmering for some time.

Despite the endless stream of newspaper and magazine articles, television reports and doc-

umentaries, speeches, lectures and street talk, it is somewhat surprising that so little attention

has been paid to the role that science – and, more generally, science education – could play in

defusing the forces that have led to this unsettling moment in our history. Even articles in

Nature and Science, published in the aftermath of the 11 September attacks, have focused on

such near-term issues as the disruptions that this tragic event caused in North-South and

South-South scientific exchanges. Questions related to more general concerns dealing with the

relationship between science and society as keys for trying to understand what happened and

What Can We Do?

EDITORIAL

[CONTINUED PAGE 3]

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why – and what can be done to prevent it from happening again –

have been largely ignored.

I would prefer not to interpret the terrorist attacks as a prob-

lem related solely to the Islamic world. I am convinced that when-

ever and wherever fundamentalism dominates, blind faith clouds

objective and rational thinking. When such forces take hold, they

create a mindset that allows people to do unusual – indeed some-

times unspeakable – things.

That’s where science – and more generally scientific education – come into play. My point

is that fundamentalism separates science from society and that the big loser in this dynamic

is always the society in which the separation takes place.

That is because science is an international enterprise. As a result, gifted individuals, who

are also the beneficiaries of a little luck and generosity, often can find their way to other soci-

eties where they have an excellent chance of succeeding. Moreover, as the late Abdus Salam,

Nobel Laureate and the driving force behind the founding of the Third World Academy of

Sciences (TWAS), often stated, “science is the heritage of all humankind.” While this overrid-

ing principle carries enormous benefits, it also means that if one country or culture foregoes its

involvement in the pursuit of science, others that embrace science enthusiastically are likely to

continue to partake of the benefits derived from such pursuits to advance their own well-being.

Some of the news stories have emphasized that the Islamic world led the world in science

at the turn of the first millennium. The names of al-Khowarizmi (780-850), whose name has

been commemorated by the mathematical term “algorithm;” Ibn-Sina (980-1037), the

renowned medical doctor and researcher who is known in the West as Avicenna; and Omar

Khayyam (1048-1122), an incomparable mathematician and poet, to name just a few, are

all testimony to this fact.

But the sad truth is that, in today’s world, too many Islamic countries have sometimes for-

saken their interest in science and, in fact, have allowed fundamentalists to hijack a good por-

tion of their educational system in general. In the process, governments have failed to provide

a nurturing environment for their young people, leaving it to others to shape the minds and

values of their most prized resource.

How can any society or culture function in our world in the absence

of scientific knowledge? More importantly, how can any society or cul-

ture confront the social, economic and, yes, ethical challenges that it

faces at the dawn of the third millennium if science is viewed as a for-

eign pursuit antithetical to its values?

The adverse impact of the absence of science on a society’s material

well-being is obvious. What is equally important to observe is the impact

that the absence of science has on a society’s and a culture’s thought pro-

cess. It is my firm belief that the absence of science – and scientific edu-

cation – leave a void in analytical thinking that is often filled with

[CONTINUED PAGE 4]

C.N.R. Rao

parochial and antihuman sentiments that can (when mixed with other factors) ultimately

drive fundamentalists to ram airplanes into buildings.

A scientific temperament – marked by analytical reasoning, a willingness to test one’s prin-

ciples and viewpoints, and an openness to change one’s opinions and beliefs if the facts and cir-

cumstances suggest that such changes are warranted – are crucial for the well-being of all soci-

eties and cultures. Every individual benefits from being exposed to and challenged by scientific

principles and training. And every society benefits from having a scientifically literate population.

As a result, it is essential that governments throughout the world invest in science education

– most importantly, in primary schools – not because it is necessary for large numbers of young

people to become scientists, but because all people must understand and appreciate science if a

society is to function well. It’s a mind set, not technical skills, that should be our goal.

Put another way that may be more appropriate for the tenor of the times, all nations must

develop and fund a broad, scientifically based curriculum if the world is to overcome narrow

ideologies and prejudices that tend to impair a society’s and culture’s analytical abilities and

understanding. Such efforts, on a global scale, would benefit not just the Islamic world, where

so much attention is now focused, but the non-Islamic world as well. After all, prejudice and

small-mindedness are as much a global phenomenon as scientific and rational thinking. No

country, no culture, is immune from either.

It is my fervent hope that some good may emerge from the evil that has taken place. We

must rid the world of terrorism. Of that there is no doubt. But we must also seek to use the

broad-based international effort that has been mounted against terrorism to foster better un-

derstanding and harmony among countries in both the North and South.

One of the primary roles of TWAS, indeed a central part of its mandate, has been to pro-

mote science and technology in the developing world. Much of the Academy’s effort has focused

on the need to help individual scientists and to build the capacity of scientific institutions.

TWAS is proud of its accomplishments in both of these areas. Yet recent events indicate

that we must do more: Scientists, particularly scientists from the South, now have an obliga-

tion to speak about science not only in terms of our membership and disciplines but in terms

of the larger society and culture in which we live and work. We must give greater attention to

the role of scientific education in nurturing the principles and beliefs of our citizens. At the

same time, we must talk about science not just as a tool for social and economic development

but as a bulwark against fundamentalist thought, which can, against all logic and reason,

fuel irrational and violent behaviour capable of undermining the stability and harmony that

all fair-minded, clear-thinking people seek. ■

> C.N.R. RaoPresident

Third World Academy of Sciences

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ISLAM AND TERRORISMIn the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of 11 September, we haveread much about the linkagebetween Islam and terrorism.

Some observers relate this link-age to a belief that conversion toIslam was enforced by the sword.Indeed, the sword was a tool whenIslam was first introduced in the7th century to tribes of Arabia whofashioned gods from clay and wor-shipped them. These tribes vehe-mently fought the idea of one, un-seen God. Mohamed and his earlyfollowers resorted to the sword tospread the word of God amongidolaters. It was then that the word“jihad” was used to mean “cam-paign for the sake of God.”

After Islam took hold in Arabia,the faithful began looking out-ward, first toward Persia. But in-stead of sending an army, a letterwas carried to the Persian king toexplain the message of God. Thiswas in keeping with a verse in theQuran that instructs: “If conversioncan be done peacefully, that is bet-ter.” Furthermore, the Quran de-clared that “people are equal, like

the teeth of a comb; there is no dif-ference between an Arab or aPersian except in piety.”

Upon Mohamed’s death in 632,Islamic conquests carried the reli-gion westward to the Atlantic. Inthese lands, most people were

Christians and Jews. The Qurandistinguishes them as “People ofthe Book,” those who believe in theone God and abide by a divinemessage. To Muslims, Abraham,

Moses, Jesus and Mohamed are allequal messengers of God. That iswhy Christianity and Judaism con-tinued to flourish in Egypt and theLevant, among other places.Forced conversion of the “People ofthe Book” is strictly forbidden. Averse in the Quran states, unequiv-ocally: “Let there be no compulsionin religion.”

Evidence of this toleranceabounds in the history of Islamiccivilization from the 8th throughthe 15th century. Islamic rulers re-spected their subjects of many cul-tures, regardless of race or reli-gion. The general entrusted by theruling Fatimids to invade Egyptand build Cairo in 969 was aChristian from Sicily (Jawhar AlSiqilli). Also, one of the greatestJewish scholars and philosophersof all time, Maimonides (Mousabin Maimon), thrived underMuslim rule in Spain and later be-came a leading physician in thecourt of Saladin in Cairo.

Rulers of Islamic civilizationencouraged learning and investiga-tion of the universe. The first wordin the Quran is: “Read,” because,

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11 SEPTEMBER:ISLAM AND SCIENCE

COMMENTARY

[CONTINUED PAGE 6]

“in everything you learn there aresigns of the Creator.” During 800years of prosperity, the Islamicstate thrived on ideas – while oth-ers feared them. Islamic civiliza-tion was the first to “globalize”knowledge, innovation, securityand commerce. Muslim scholarskept knowledge alive and passed iton to others, making today’s globalcivilization possible.

Islam is a religion of tolerance,not terror. The word “Islam” meanssubmission to God. Every chapter(sura) in the Quran begins: “In thename of God the most compassion-ate and most merciful.” Islam can-not be blamed as the root of intol-erant acts by Muslims in a givenplace or time. Those who falselyclaim to act in Islam’s name, whilepreaching or practicing violence,are to blame.

Fanaticism, aggression, or ter-rorism in Islam, in the past or thepresent, are aberrations that occurin any religion or culture. Suchaberrations usually surface attimes of economic hardship.Today’s fundamentalists preachthat “living by the book” would dis-tribute a country’s wealth moreequitable and that all would bewell. This is a social not a religiousphenomenon.

IMPACT ON SCIENCEThe social roots of the fundamen-talist challenge are tied to chroniceconomic depression in mostIslamic countries. The slow pace ofeconomic development, in turn, isdue to inadequate education andtraining and insufficient emphasison science and technology. Theseconditions are partly the result oflimited North/South cooperationin scientific initiatives and techno-logical developments.

During the past few decadescountries of the North began to re-alize the importance of assisting

those in the South. Such efforts,however, were not part of collec-tive ventures with specific goalsand timetables. Apart from aid thatwas directed toward furthering thegoals of a donor country, these ef-

forts repre-sented the ini-tiatives of inter-ested scientistsusually assistedby concerned international organi-zations.

The attacks of 11 Septemberhave halted most of these enter-prises. They have clearly discour-aged the forging of research part-nerships between the North andSouth in general and in Islamiccountries in particular. Scientists ofthe North have preferred to pursueresearch initiatives designed to beconducted either locally or jointlywith colleagues in countries of theNorth.

If this trend continues, it wouldeliminate many of the venues ofNorth/South cooperation in sci-ence and technology in the Islamicworld. This would further aggra-vate the social ills that led to theterrorist attacks in the first place. Itis important to recognize this factif the situation is to be remedied ina timely manner.

What is needed at this time is athoughtful analysis of the recenthistory of North/South coopera-tion in science and technology –what has worked and what hasnot. The approach of the North to

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Farouk El-Baz

“help” the South, financially orotherwise, has proved to be mar-ginally beneficial. Transfer of tech-nology while withholding “knowhow” produces temporary benefitsthat usually end in disappoint-ment.

Cooperative projects of ever-lasting benefit are ones that ap-proach the activity as mutuallybeneficial. There are great scientif-ic minds in the South; somescientists, in fact, are more innova-tive than their counterparts in theNorth, having learnt to make dowith very little. As a result, inter-national scientific cooperation canbenefit scientists of the North asmuch as those in the South.

International professional orga-nizations, moreover, have a signifi-cant role to play. These organiza-tions can educate their member-ship to the value of cooperative re-search with colleagues in theSouth and they can raise morefunds to finance joint research pro-jects. The role of academies of sci-ence and technology is just as im-portant on both fronts.

The burden does not fall on theshoulders of countries of the Northalone. Islamic countries have anequal share of the responsibility.

First, it is imperative for Islamic

countries to counter the misunder-standing that Islam is in conflictwith science and technology ad-

vancements. As stated above, theIslamic state of the past empha-sized science and technology trans-fer and innovation.

Second, the South in general,and Islamic countries in particular,must counter the misconceptionthat “Western science” is alien totheir culture. Science knows noboundaries and scientific discover-ies help all humanity. There isnothing in scientific inquiry thatshould be feared. On the contrary,it should be nurtured and support-ed.

Third, Islamic countries shoulddo a better job of integrating mod-ern science and technology into ev-eryday life. For instance, develop-

ments in information technologyare rapidly changing the developedworld. Islamic countries should notbe left behind in this field. Effortsshould be made in these coun-tries to catch up with the rest of theworld.

It is clear that the road to suc-cessful North/South cooperation inscience and technology is long,hard and complicated. The eventsof 11 September have the potentialof making it impassable. However,this road has been partly paved bythoughtful endeavours of scientistsand organizations in the past. Withadditional sincere and concrete ef-fort it can provide great benefits toall those who have the foresightand courage to travel it. ■

> Farouk El-Baz (TWAS Fellow 1985)

DirectorCenter for Remote Sensing

Boston UniversityBoston, Massachusetts, USA

Adjunct ProfessorFaculty of Science

Ain Shams UniversityCairo, Egypt

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Much of the news coverage onPakistan since the terrorist attacks inNew York and Washington, D.C., inSeptember, has focused on politicaland military affairs. Yet, there isanother side to recent developments in Pakistan, agree-ably less dramatic than the war-related events, that haveunderstandably received scant media attention. Thesedevelopments, nevertheless, promise not only to chal-lenge long-standing aspects of Pakistani society but alsoto alter outside perceptions of a nation that for too longhas suffered from anemic economic growth which hasbred discontent and despair among its people.

This hidden revolution – based on economic growthfueled by scientific and technology know-how – has beenled by Atta-ur-Rahman (TWAS Fellow 1985), who wasappointed Pakistan’s Minister of Science and Technologyin 2000. Over the past two years, he has spearheaded adrive within his own government that has increasedfunding for the ministry by more than 5000 percent andspurred a dramatic transformation in priorities and

goals. What follows is an outline ofthe principles that have guided hisreforms and a discussion of the stepsthat his ministry has taken since hisappointment to place science front-

and-centre in Pakistan’s overall strategies for economicgrowth.

Atta-ur-Rahman’s efforts have taken on added signif-icance since the events of 11 September 2001, not onlyfor Pakistan but for the rest of the world. At the sametime, his ideas and policy proposals offer an importantcounterpoint to the prevailing image of Pakistan foundin newspapers and television programmes throughoutthe North.

Stunning advances in many fields of science and tech-nology have had a profound impact on almost everysphere of human activity, including health, agriculture,communication and transportation – never more sothan in the past few decades. These advances havebeen propelled by an ever-increasing succession of dis-

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FEATURE

S&T IN PAKISTAN:THE WAY FORWARD

PAKISTAN’S MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY HOPES THAT

HIS NATION’S GROWING INVESTMENTS IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

WILL SOON PAY ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DIVIDENDS.

coveries largely emanating from universities and labo-ratories in the North. Such discoveries have often beentransformed into new products or processes – in tech-nology centres and state-of-the-art manufacturingplants also largely in the North.

Such breakthroughs have flooded world marketswith an astounding array of new goods and servicesthat have showered vast economic rewards on thosenations with the courage and visionto make science and technology theanchors of their economic develop-ment programmes.

The days when a nation coulddepend on agricultural produce orlow-value textiles and leather prod-ucts for economic growth are longgone. It is only the world’s poorestand most backward countries that are barely sustainedby such low value-added produce.

Let’s illustrate this by taking the example of aEuropean country at an average state of economicwell-being, say Austria. Austria’s population of 8 mil-lion people is about equal to the population of the cityof Lahore in Pakistan. However, the gross domesticproduct (GDP) of Austria exceeds US$200 billion,more than three times that of the whole of Pakistan. Ifyou divide the GDP of Austria by its population, itcomes to about US$25,000. That’s the sum every child,man and woman in Austria contributes to its GDP. Asimilar situation exists in most European countries.

In developing countries, this figure is only a fewhundred dollars. For example, in Pakistan, with 140million people, the per-capita GDP stands at US$470.Austria is 14th on the World Bank’s international rank-

ing of national economies. Pakistanis 160th.

Something has gone deeplywrong somewhere. A child born andbred in Europe is no more intelligentthan a child born and bred in Africaor Asia. Why, then, is the GDP so lowin the Afro-Asian world?

S&T’S MAGICSeveral factors must come into play before the magicof science and technology begins to hold. Sri Lanka,for instance, has a high literacy rate but it is not adeveloped country. Thus literacy alone is not theanswer. The Soviet Union, conversely, during the mid20th century, developed a worldclass science and tech-nology infrastructure. Yet it collapsed largely for eco-nomic reasons. Thus scientific and technologicalknow-how alone is not the answer either. The SovietUnion could launch a man into space and build anuclear arsenal but it could not manufacture reliableautomobiles, televisions, household appliances, phar-

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The days when a nationcould depend on

agricultural produce ortextiles for economicgrowth are long gone.

[CONTINUED PAGE 10]

maceuticals or industrialmachinery comparable inquality to those made inthe West.

The lesson that theseexperiences teach us is

this: Not only is it impor-tant to produce products and

services of high quality but it isespecially important to have aggres-

sive innovation and marketing strategies that can cap-ture world markets and bring in foreign wealth.

This is the arena in which the United States hasexcelled. No other country transforms good ideas intomarketable goods and services so quickly and effi-ciently. The driving force behind this process has beena remarkable national system for innovation markedby wise long-term investments, fast-footed venturecapital schemes and a patenting system that protectsthe ideas of investors.

The world today is sharply divided by a “technolo-gy boundary” that separates technologically advancedcountries from technologically backward countries.The former have relied on scientists and engineers forrapid economic growth while so-called “developingcountries” (many of which in reality are not “develop-ing” at all) have been relegated to the role of con-sumers of technological products, almost totallydependant on advanced countries for most of their

needs, including pharmaceuticals, chemicals, trans-portation and even national defence.

WHAT IT TAKESDevelopment is a multifaceted process and several fac-tors must dovetail before sustained economic growthcan take place.

In my view five key components must come togeth-er. First, the development process must rest on a highdegree of literacy and quality education at all levels.Afro-Asian countries have vast populations. The chal-lenge is to transform this irreplaceable resource intoreal wealth. To unleash the creativity of our people, wemust expose our youth to a challenging educationalenvironment that teaches them to think and find novelsolutions to difficult problems.

At present our students are trained to memorizeand reproduce facts in examinations often withoutcoming to grips with fundamental principles and theirapplications to real-life challenges. The ability to trainand then retain good teachers is the key to forging thistransformation in learning. If we can lure our brightestgraduates into the teaching profession by enticingthem with attractive salaries and good working condi-tions, we will have taken a giant step forward.

The second important component for developmentis high level expertise in the sciences. We need toupgrade our universities and research centres to inter-national levels of excellence through the development

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and retention of world-class researchers and provi-sions for state-of-the-art research facilities that serve asfocal points for the creation of new knowledge.

Basic and applied research go hand-in-hand.Developing countries must not ignore one at theexpense of the other. For technology development totake hold, we must have a minimum number oftrained engineers and scientists within our borders. Yetsuch skilled personnel is largely missing from Afro-Asian countries. This requisite manpower must bedeveloped with a sense of urgency if we are to succeedbecause only when developing countries have high-quality basic and applied research taking place at thefrontiers of knowledge will we be able to embrace cut-ting-edge technologies and adapt them for our ownuse.

The third important component of success focuseson the need to put applied research directly to work ondevelopment issues. Nations that are committed to sci-ence-based development must identify and launch pro-jects that are designed to (1) enhance exports, (2)improve the quality and productivityof existing manufactured products,and (3) nurture new and betterproducts by supporting the creativetalents of technologists and engi-neers. This is a complex process thatrequires continual interactionamong policy makers, scientists,technologists and economists. Suchinteraction is a critical prerequisitefor developing and optimizing pro-duction processes on a reasonably large and economi-cally viable scale.

The fourth component of science-based develop-ment involves government policies and mechanismsthat encourage sustained investments in the activitiesof entrepreneurs who are engaged in promoting thedevelopment of indigenous products and processes.Such mechanisms include enactment of tax incentives,ready access to risk capital by venture capitalists, pro-tection of intellectual property rights, rationalizationof import duty structures, banning of smuggling toprotect local industries, and bolstering of investor con-fidence through stable long-term monetary and fiscalpolicies.

The fifth and most importantcomponent of success calls forstrategies that encourage a country’smost creative scientific and techno-logical citizens to become involvedin economic development issues ofprime national importance. Successon this front entails the adoption ofmeasures to attract the brightest stu-dents to pursue careers in science

and technology. That means creating attractive jobopportunities, on the one hand, and developingresearch and development centres of internationalexcellence, on the other. Research grants must also bemade available to meritorious scientists to enablethem to make meaningful contributions both to theirnations and the global scientific community. In otherwords, governments must build tough but transparentsystems of accountability and rewards for theirscientists, technologists and entrepreneurs.

INFORMATION PLEASEThe past five years have witnessed unprecedentedadvances in the field of information technology. In

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Only developingcountries with

high-quality basic andapplied research will beable to embrace cutting-

edge technologies.

[CONTINUED PAGE 12]

1994, a few hundred thousand pages could be foundon the internet; today, there are about 2.5 billion webpages and more than 7 million new pages are addedeach day. An endless stream of innovations in comput-ing hardware and software, microelectronics andoptoelectronics have led to the rapid processing anddistribution of vast amounts of information.

Breakthroughs in microprocessor technologies haveallowed computing powers to double every 18 monthsand Gilders law now predicts the doubling of commu-nication power every six months due to discoveries andapplications in fiber optic technologies. At the sametime, we are witnessing huge reductions in bandwidthcosts accompanied by tremendous increases in carryingcapacities and speed. Emailing a 40-page documentfrom Pakistan to the United States costs less than PKR5(Pakistan rupees) while faxing orsending it by courier costs betweenPKR500 and PKR1000. At currentexchange rates, there are aboutPKR60 to US$1.

Geographic distances are in-creasingly losing their significance.Many companies headquartered inthe United States and/or Europenow find it profitable to outsourcesegments of their information tech-nology operations to developing countries that possesseducated and skilled workers. Some 400 million peo-ple currently log on to the internet. That figure isexpected to increase five-fold over the next 3 years.Economists project that information and communica-

tion technologies will grow from aUS$2.2 trillion industry in 1999 to

more than a US$3 trillion industryby 2003. Such growth is likely toprovide large numbers of jobopportunities for service pro-viders in developing countrieswith educated and well-trained

workers.Internet access now takes place

largely through computers, but accessvia wireless technologies, including mobile

phones, is fast becoming the technology of choice.Indeed, by 2005, access via wireless devices is expect-

ed to outstrip access via personal computers. Such adevelopment will allow both people and businesses indeveloping countries to browse internet-based infor-mation at a low cost. Business-to-consumer e-com-merce on a global scale totalled US$25 billion in 1999;by 2004, it is expected to grow to US$230 billion.Meanwhile, by 2003, business-to-business e-commercewill become a US$5 to US$10 trillion enterprise.

Information technology is often defined solely assoftware development. Yet, in reality, it represents atechnology that is transforming the entire industrialsector, because in this day and age it has become anall-pervasive force. A recent report by the U.S. Depart-ment of Trade and Commerce concludes that about 50percent of the acceleration in growth of the U.S. econ-omy during the economic boom of the 1990s was due

to the integration of informationtechnology in industry, which dra-matically improved efficiency andproductivity.

IN PAKISTANFor the past two years, the govern-ment of Pakistan has been seeking toplace the nation on a fast track forthe development of home-grown in-formation technology capabilities. A

multi-facet strategy has been adopted to overcomePakistan’s long-standing deficiencies in high-techhuman resources and infrastructure. The government,for example, has initiated short- and long-term train-ing programmes for both scientists and technicians,established several information technology universitiesand institutes, and strengthened existing computer sci-ence departments at public sector institutions.

Since 2000, training programmes, attended bymore than 15,000 government employees haveadvanced, for example, the computer skills of medicaland legal transcriptionists and data-entry operators.The initiative has not been confined to such majorcities as Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. Computerscience departments have been strengthened at suchfar-flung and less developed areas as Khuzdar,Nawabshah, Khanpur, Jamshoro, and Bahawalpur. Theavailability of trained medical transcriptionists, inturn, has sparked the development of a large number

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The government hasbeen seeking to place

Pakistan on a fast trackfor the development of

home-grown informationtechnologies.

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of medical transcription com-panies in diverse regions ofthe country, illustratingthat if requisite humanskills are available, invest-ment and economic activitywill follow.

By offering short trainingcourses in computer programminglanguages like JAVA, XML, and C++, thegovernment hopes to successfully retrain unemployedgraduates in science, medicine and engineering infields related to information technology. This effortrepresents the first step in a process that is expected tolead to other training courses. The goal is to providelarge numbers of educated but unemployed Pakistaniswith the skills that they need to pursue potentiallyfruitful job opportunities in alternative fields.

While the government has created several newinformation technology campuses, its strategy hasfocused on developing such institutes within existinguniversities and centres to save both time and money.

For example, an information technology institutewas launched within Abbottabad University thisautumn. Plans call for it to be upgraded to a full-fledged university at a later date. Similarly, informa-tion technology institutes are being developed at exist-ing universities in Lahore and Karachi, again with theintent of establishing independent universities lateron. The most exciting education programme, however,may be the launching of a “Virtual IT University,” a dis-tance learning university that is designed to train tensof thousands of professionals across the country viathe production and broadcast of high quality televisionprogrammes.

Under the Universal Internet Access programme,internet access has been expanded from 29 cities inAugust 2000, to 540 towns, cities and villages today.Plans are now underway to extend internet access tomore than 600 localities by June 2002, which willmean that 90 percent of the population will have easyaccess to the internet. Pakistan, moreover, now has anationwide fiber optic infrastructure in place, and weare in the process of putting this infrastructure towork. One example: Fiber optic accessibility has beenextended from 100 to 200 cities over the past year. TW

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Fiber optic rings, moreover, are being laid aroundPakistan’s major cities and towns to provide high speedinternet access on demand to key businesses and edu-cational institutions. The “last mile” high speed inter-net challenge is being addressed through use of DSLand ADSL technologies that will generate a 200-foldincrease in the speed of transmission on existing cop-per lines.

A major programme has beenlaunched to promote e-commerce inPakistan. The State Bank of Pakistannow allows merchants to establishinternet accounts. Meanwhile, boththe National Bank of Pakistan andHabib Bank of Pakistan have estab-lished one-year deadlines for makinge-commerce the normal method ofeconomic transactions. E-commercedraft statutes, which have been prepared by theMinistry of Science and Technology and placed on theweb for comments, will soon be submitted to the cab-inet for approval. A project for electronic governance,which includes a programme for the training of gov-ernment officials and computerization of governmentdatabases, has also been initiated.

Based on international market trends and Paki-stan’s labour skills, we plan to focus additional atten-tion and resource on such areas as the establishment ofcall centres for credit card companies, the creation ofmedical and legal transcription services, and the devel-opment of software engineering firms. The estimatedvalue of the global information technology market cur-rently stands at US$560 billion: US$400 billion in ser-

vices and US$160 billion in software development anddistribution. By offering services that match the cur-rent skills of our workforce, we believe we can secureand retain an increasing level of this lucrative market.At the same time, our own in-house studies suggestthat software development in Pakistan is likely torequire 4 or 5 years to take off. Only then will therecently launched computer science institutes in the

nation’s universities and researchcentres have graduated a sufficientnumber of students with relevantskills.

As a result of these initiatives, inthe next 12 months alone Pakistanexpects investments in the informa-tion and telecommunication sectorswithin the nation to exceed US$1billion. A revolution is in the offing.

However, such progress is only a beginning. We allknow that we still have a long, long way to go.

I have unwavering confidence in the creativity ofour youth, however. If the Ministry of Science andTechnology, with the help of other government agen-cies and the nation’s emerging private sector indus-tries, can facilitate and nurture an enabling environ-ment, I am sure that Pakistan will emerge as a powerto be reckoned with in the field of information tech-nology within the next few years.

BEYOND INFORMATIONIn 2001, the government of Pakistan budgeted morethan PKR5 billion (US$83 million) for the Ministry ofScience and Technology. That represented a 5000-per-

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In 2001, Pakistan’sgovernment budgetedUS$83 million for the

Ministry of Science andTechnology – a 5000-

percent increase.

cent increase, setting the stage for a large number ofimportant new initiatives. One of these initiativesrelates to the upgrading of Ph.D.-level research in uni-versities. Pakistan produces only 50 to 60 Ph.D.s in sci-ences each year. In contrast, India produces more than5000 Ph.D.s. in sciences each year.

One new programme calls for an additional 300students each year to be given an opportunity to earna Ph.D. in science. Under this programme grants willbe given to each research supervisor (based on thenumber of doctorate students under his or her super-vision). The grant money may be used to fund schol-arships as well as to purchase supplies and equipment.The ministry expects to spend PKR600 million (US$10million) over the next 4 years on this programme.

Under another initiative, teachers/researchers willbe sent abroad for Ph.D.-level training in criticallyimportant scientific fields for which there are not ade-quate facilities in Pakistan. To ensure that they aregainfully employed once their training is complete,their institutions will guarantee jobs for them upontheir return. In addition, “starter grants” will be madeavailable to ensure that these young Ph.D.s have ade-quate funds for equipment.

Schemes have also been launched for post-doctoraltraining in key scientific fields and for the training oftechnicians. Other projects include the provision ofspare parts for scientific instruments, strengthening ofpolytechnic institutes in Pakistan, and programmesaimed at encouraging expatriate Pakistanis to return toPakistan for varying periods to contribute to the devel-opment of our – and their – country.

One initiative that could have a far reaching impacton economic development in Pakistan is

the Science and Technology forEconomic Development (STED)

programme, which seeks to fos-ter joint projects betweenresearch institutions and pri-vate industries focusing onthe application of existing

technologies for agricultur-al and/or industrial devel-opment. Each project,funded at a level of PKR30million (US$500,000), will

concentrate on settingup pilot plant commer-cial production unitsdesigned to test the eco-nomic feasibility of theproject for entrepreneurs.Several projects are expectedto be launched over the nextyear in such fields as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals,information technology and energy. The ultimate goalis to foster the development of high value-added goodsfor export.

About 850 project proposals have been receivedfollowing a nationwide announcement of the STEDprogramme made last year. Each project must have anindustrial partner and is therefore demand driven.After a process of peer review, a number of projectswill be selected for funding and then launched.

HIGH-TECH FUTUREPakistan’s GDP stands at just US$60 billion. Productionin low value-added goods in such sectors as agricul-ture, textiles and leather will not substantially improvethe nation’s overall economic well-being. To increasethe GDP, Pakistan (like all developing countries) mustdevelop its own high value-added technology-basedsectors in such cutting-edge fields as information tech-nology, pharmaceuticals and biochemicals.

The programmes and initiatives discussed through-out this article represent a turning point in the devel-opment of science and technology in Pakistan. At thevery least, they should provide a much needed injec-tion of funds and scientific expertise in our universitiesand research centres. Our fondest hope, however, isthat the programmes will create an enduring founda-tion for a sustained science-based development effortthat will ultimately break the cycle of poverty andhopelessness that has afflicted Pakistan for the past 50years.

As recent events seem to indicate, the entire worldhas a stake in our efforts to achieve lasting success. ■

> Atta-ur-Rahman

(TWAS Fellow 1985)

Federal Minister for Science and Technology

Islamabad, Pakistan

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Atta-ur-Rahman

Clean drinking water is a birthright– as much a birthright as clean air.But many of the world’s people – infact, 1 billion of the 6 billion peo-ple on Earth – do not have accessto clean drinking water. Another1.5 billion people do not have access to adequate san-itation.

At the same time, water-borne diseases, usually theresult of limited access to clean drinking water and theprevalence of poor sanitary conditions, are responsiblefor the death of more than 6 million children each year– that’s about 16,000 children each day.

Water covers 70 percent of the globe’s surface, butmore than 95 percent of all water is saltwater.Freshwater, in fact, covers just 3 percent of the Earthand much of this water lies frozen in the Antarctica orGreenland’s polar regions.

That leaves about 1 percent of the Earth’s totalwater supply – located in rivers, lakes and undergroundaquifers – available for human consumption. Todaynearly 30 countries, including China, India, Kenya,Ethiopia, Nigeria and Peru, which together are home to

more than 2.5 billion people or 40percent of the world’s population,face chronic water problems. Manyother nations, meanwhile, are likelyto come up dry as global populationcontinues to rise over the next quar-

ter century reaching an estimated 8 billion people by2025. In light of these trends, the world has no choicebut to find new ways of saving, using and recyclingwater.

While the future may seem grim, several things canbe done to stem the problem. The world has enoughfreshwater to meet its needs. In fact, there’s plenty offreshwater in Latin America, the Caribbean, sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and Central Asia. Moreover, it’simportant to note that some rich countries do not havemuch water at all, while some poor countries areblessed with a great deal of water, suggesting that theproblem is indeed manageable. The Congo Republic, forexample, has 290,000 cubic meters of water per capitaand Papua New Guinea 170,000 cubic meters per capi-ta. The United States, meanwhile, has 9,000 and Kuwaitjust 75 cubic meters of freshwater per capita.

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FEATURE

DRIP...DROP...DRY:A GLOBAL CONCERN

WATER RESOURCES WORLDWIDE ARE UNDER INCREASING STRESS.

BUT CURRENT WATER-SAVING SOLUTIONS SUGGEST THAT THE FUTURE

MAY NOT BE AS DRY AS WE THINK.

Access to freshwater not only varies among nationsbut also within nations. In the water-rich CongoRepublic, for instance, city and town villagers, whoconstitute 77 percent of the popula-tion, enjoy adequate access to safedrinking water, but only 17 percent ofrural villagers do. The situation in theCongo stands in sharp contrast to thesituation in the Lao People’s De-mocratic Republic, where nearly allrural residents have access to safedrinking water while less than two-thirds of those inthe capital city Vientiane do.

Another part of the complex policy matrix involv-ing freshwater is that consumption patterns vary fromcountry to country. Among low-income countries,almost 90 percent of freshwater is devoted to agricul-ture, 8 percent to industry and 5 percent to house-holds. In high-income countries, industry uses nearly60 percent of the freshwater, agriculture 30 percentand households 11 percent.

Total freshwater withdrawals worldwide have dou-bled in the past 40 years largely due to rising globalpopulation and changing patterns of use. As a result,in parts of China, India, and the United States, waterfrom groundwater aquifers is now being withdrawnfaster than it is being replenished. Wasteful irrigation

practices, moreover, degrade soil quality and curb farmproductivity, threatening to undermine advances inagricultural productivity that have been the hallmark

of the ’green revolution.’ Meanwhile,growing population pressures in var-ious parts of the world, particularlyin developing countries, have exertedadditional stress on existing watersupplies. If, as expected, world popu-lation increases by 1.5 billion by2025, the amount of freshwater

available per person will drop from a global average ofmore than 8,000 cubic meters per year per person toabout 5,000. That represents a 40-percent fall-off.

MEETING DEMANDWhat can be done to meet growing freshwaterdemand? Experts propose a five-fold path to recovery:• Seek new sources.• Save and redistribute supplies.• Reduce demand.• Recycle.• Make water supplies safe and potable.

Seek New Sources. Extraction of freshwater from salt-water is a time-honoured technique that can be made

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Clean drinking water is a birthright –as much a birthright

as clean air.

more efficient through greater use of new energy-effi-cient methods of desalinization. Earlier methods,based on evaporation and condensation of seawater,have proved too costly for wide-spread use. Reverseosmosis, an alternate technique, is cheaper and moreenergy efficient. In the latter technology, a thin, semi-permeable membrane is placed between a container ofsaltwater and a container of freshwater. Pressureapplied to the saltwater containerpushes water molecules into thefreshwater container. The membraneallows water to pass while trappingsalts and impurities. Development ofsturdy, chemical-resistant mem-branes (thin, composite polyamidefilms), which have 10-year shelflives, has made reverse osmosis anincreasingly attractive and cost-effective technology for large-scaleextraction of freshwater from theseas. Today less than 1 percent of the world’s drinkingwater comes from the sea, but advances in reverseosmosis suggest that this percentage is likely to grow.

Save and Redistribute Supplies. The second path tosaving and efficiently redistributing freshwaterresources involves reaching those most in need ofwater in a waste-free and inexpensive manner. Suchsimple measures as plugging leaks in tankers, pipelines

and taps could save a surprisingly large volume ofwater. Water expert Peter Gleick, president of thePacific Institute, Oakland, California, USA, estimatesthat sealing the leaks in Mexico City’s water system,which serves 17 million people, could save enoughadditional water to meet the needs of 3 million people.In many nations, more than 30 percent of the domes-tic water supply is lost because of leaky pipes, faulty

equipment and badly maintaineddistribution systems. Repairing andupgrading these systems as well asmaking minor modifications indomestic water facilities (for exam-ple, installing low-volume flush toi-lets) could save substantial amountsof water. Meanwhile, harvestingrainwater in cisterns and catchbasins, once a common practiceamong communities in developingcountries, has declined because of

overcrowding in tenement slums and apartmentblocks. With the coming crunch in water supply, offi-cials should seek to revive such simple time-testedmethods of water collection.

Reduce Demand. In developing countries, agricultureon average accounts for 75 percent of total water use,while in developed countries, industry on averageaccounts for 60 percent of all water use. At the same

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Freshwater withdrawalsworldwide have

doubled in the past 40 years, largely due

to rising globalpopulation and changing

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time, in countries throughout the North and South,domestic use accounts for less than 15 percent of totalwater use. These statistics indicate that individual andhousehold water conservation measures alone will notease water shortages. Real savings will be derived fromconservation measures adopted by agriculture andindustry. Newer, more efficient farm practices andmanufacturing processes have been developed and putin place over the past 50 years. As a result, more steelcan now be produced with less water and more ricecan be grown with less irrigation. Additional improve-ments (for example, use of humidity-sensitive drip-water irrigation systems and the substitution of lesswater-intensive manufacturing processes) promise toallow water to be used even more efficiently in agri-culture and manufacturing in the years ahead.

Recycle. Terrace farming, commonly practiced in hillyrural communities, is one of the oldest, simplest, yetmost efficient, methods of water recycling everdevised. The concept is indeed straightforward: Waterflowing from the terrace’s upper levels runs downhillto irrigate plants grown on the terrace’s lower levels.A diverse group of countries, including Israel, Na-mibia, India and Singapore, have developed extensiverecycling programmes that extend far beyond terracefarming to even include the recycling and reprocess-ing of wastewater or sewerage. Such measures canhelp recharge aquifers, slow salinization and provide

much-needed water resources both for farmland irri-gation and the maintenance of wetlands and wildlifesanctuaries.

Make Water Safe and Potable. Each year contaminatedwater kills more people than cancer, AIDS, wars andaccidents combined. As a result, every nation has amoral obligation to make access to clean water a pri-ority for all its citizens. Yet, because more than 80 per-cent of the world’s people come from developing coun-tries, methods used to achieve this worthy goal mustbe both financially affordable and culturally accept-able – that is, strategies must meet the pocketbookneeds and conform to the behavioural patterns of thepeople they are seeking to serve. Water managementprogrammes fall into two broad categories: Thoseoverseen by municipal authorities at central distribu-tion points and those practiced by individual homesand families in dispersed decentralized settings.Chlorination is the most common and effective methodfor the purification of water.Even among places trou-bled by poor sanitationand unhealthy hygienicconditions, chlori-nated water dra-matically reducesthe incidence ofwater-borne dis-

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eases. The experience of the island-nation Maldives,whose territory is peppered across the Arabian Sea andIndian Ocean, offers a vivid exampleof the impact that chlorination canhave on the safety of drinking water.Use of a solar water disinfectiontechnique (SODIS), which relies onsunlight and plastic containers to killwater-contaminating pathogens, hashelped make clean water available tonearly all of the nation’s residents.And because there are more than adozen methods available, familiesand communities can choose thetechnique most suitable to their circumstances.

THE GOOD NEWSFinding new sources of water is typically a large-scaleexercise involving large sums of money. Such efforts,as a result, must be shouldered by national or eventransnational institutions. Nevertheless, effectivemethods for bringing a healthy supply of clean watercan also be advanced at the family and communitylevel. Here are some “good news” examples of what ishappening, both on a large- and small-scale, aroundthe world.

Nepal has always had a water problem. People residein far-flung isolated communities where rainfall is often

restricted to just 3 months each year.The terrain and climate, moreover,make it unfeasible to supply watervia pipelines. Consequently, the Nepa-lese have devised innovative micro-level methods to capture and harvestrainwater from rooftops, soak pitsand ponds. Such community-basedrainwater harvesting schemes, whichlocal residents call Baresiko PaniThapne, have not only eased water-shortage problems in an economical-

ly efficient manner, but have also empowered localresidents through their direct participation in theseprojects.

Kenya has established a nationwide ‘rainwater associa-tion.’ In many communities, association-sponsoredprojects have enabled residents to harvest rainwater inlarge 200-litre drums for human and livestock con-sumption as well as small-scale vegetable and fruit cul-tivation. Water runoff associated with terraced agricul-ture, meanwhile, has helped increase the efficiency ofwater used in agriculture. These advances, which havebeen implemented during the past decade, have

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Future efforts to provide safe

drinking water to the world’s growing

population may provemore successful than

recent reports forecast.

improved both agricultural productivity and livingstandards.

Singapore has developed what may be the world’s mostcomprehensive strategy for capturing and channellingrainwater for human use. The multi-faceted initiativerepresents a simple, cost-effective and virtually perma-nent solution to a vital problem facing many cities.Each high-rise apartment building must have a rooftopwater collection and recycling system. Educationalinstitutions, meanwhile, are required to collect rooftoprain water and channel it to chambers for sedimenta-tion and chlorination. Another huge catchment area isChangi Airport, where the runoff from runways androoftops serves as an important source of water.

India, in the arid province of Rajasthan in the northeastcorner of the country, has devised a successful plan forharvesting and distributing water to meet domestic andcommunity farming needs. Nongovernmental agencieshave recruited both school-age children and adults insome 150 rural schools and 50 community centresas a “water brigade” to help construct 200 under-ground tanks. The tanks, built by local masonsand labourers with local materials, have pro-vided jobs and training for 6000 people.Nearly 12 million litres of rainwater havebeen collected in the tanks over the pastdecade. Other initiatives in Rajasthaninclude the construction of check-dams and water-harvest structures,again using local money, expertiseand labour. These efforts havehelped raise the water levels inwells and turn seasonal rivulets andtributaries into perennial sources ofwater.

ACTION PLANFuture efforts to provide safe drinking water to theworld’s growing population may prove more successfulthan recent reports forecast. No single policy is likelyto solve the world’s water crisis. Indeed each nationwill need to pursue a suite of remedies requiring theactive participation of federal, state and local govern-

ments, nongovernmentalorganizations, internatio-nal aid agencies, privateindustry, and individualhouseholds.

Recent experience showsthat the effort will not beeasy but progress is possi-ble by pursuing strategiesbased on a common set of straightforward principlesthat emphasize political commitment, coordinationand cooperation; the strengthening of legal and regu-latory frameworks; the encouragement of community-based solutions and local participation; improvedaccess to appropriate technologies; and the promotionof public education programmes that highlight thebenefits derived from conservation.

Such proverbs as “waste not, want not” and “littledrops of water make the mighty ocean” reflect simpleyet enduring truths. Water is in plentiful supply. We

need to ensure that we do not waste water, buttreat, purify and make it available in a fair and

safe manner.The task is doable thanks to nature’s hydro-

logical cycle. The Earth does not let a drop ofwater escape but wraps each drop tightly

within and around itself. We who live onEarth and benefit from its enormous

bounty should do the same. ■

> Dorairajan Balasubramanian

(TWAS Fellow 1997)

Director of Research

Hyderabad Eye Research Foundation

L.V. Prasad Eye Institute

Hyderabad, India

The above article is based on

a report, Safe Drinking Water

(Trieste: TWAS, October 2001).

For the complete text of the report,

please contact > Sandra Ravalico,

TWAS Secretariat, phone: +39 040 2240 327,

email: info@twas.org

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D. Balasubramanian

W ith funding from the Global EnvironmentFacility (GEF), the Global Change System forAnalysis Research and Training programme

(more commonly referred to as START), TWAS and theUnited Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) havelaunched a 4-year, US$7.5 million project that is de-signed to address a pair of critical issues related toglobal climate change.

First, project officials hope that the initiative willexpand both the base and range of information on cli-mate-change related subjects in the developing world.Second, they hope that the project will boost scientificcapacity for addressing issues related to climatechange – again in developing countries.

Like START itself, the project carries a long andcomplicated title: Assessments of Impacts andAdaptation to Climate Change in Multiple Regions andSectors (AIACC). Yet, its goals are fairly simple andstraightforward: to enable scientific communities indeveloping countries to develop the skills and toolsthat they need to confront one of the most critical en-vironmental problems of the 21st century: the wide-ranging environmental and social impacts associatedwith climate change.

“Over the past decade,” says Hassan Virji, START’sdeputy director, “reports issued by the Intergovern-mental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have made itclear that developing countries, especially island coun-tries and countries in low-lying coastal regions, are ex-tremely vulnerable to the environmental risks posed byclimate change.”

“What has been made less clear in the assessments,”Virji continues, “is the level of vulnerability that is like-ly to be experienced at both regional and local levels. Inother words, when it comes to climate change impacts,we know that many developing countries face substan-tial risks, but we have yet to devise detailed assess-ments of those risks at the scales for which effectivepolicies can be formulated. That is one of the crucial in-formation gaps that this project hopes to fill.”

Mohamed Hassan, TWAS’s executive director, adds,“Many developing countries have yet to build the in-ternal scientific and technical capacities either to as-sess or address the environmental and economic risksrelated to climate change. As a result, they have beenforced to rely on Northern data and expertise. That isanother gap we hope to fill through the successful im-plementation of this project.”

The centerpiece of the initiative,” notes Neil Leary,the project’s science director, “will be a series of re-gional studies that will be researched and prepared byscientists from the developing world – specifically,Africa, Asia, Latin America and small island nations.”

Last fall, project staff, with the assistance of a 16-member advisory committee and a panel of more than80 expert peer-reviewers, agreed to fund 20 proposalsfrom a pool of 140 submissions. Among those chosenwere proposals to assess the potential impact of ex-treme weather events on water resources in CentralAmerica (University of Costa Rica); a plan to devisesustainable livelihood strategies for human adaptationto climate change in Sudan (Sudan Higher Council for

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TWAS

TWAS HAS JOINED A HOST OF OTHER INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS TO BOOST

THE INVOLVEMENT OF DEVELOPING WORLD SCIENTISTS IN ISSUES RELATED TO

CLIMATE CHANGE. A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PLAYERS AND PURPOSE FOLLOWS.

CLIMATE CHANGE SPARKSNEW TWAS PARTNERSHIP

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1Environment and Natural Resources in collaborationwith the Stockholm Environment Institute); and an ef-fort to develop models for coastal vulnerability andadaptation in Pacific island countries (Pacific Centrefor Environment and Sustainable Development,University of the South Pacific, Fiji). Each of the pro-jects, which are expected to last three years, will re-ceive about US$200,000 in funding.

To ensure that the studies are based on the mostup-to-date information available, project participantswill attend intensive workshops designed, for example,to enhance skills in investigating the impacts of cli-mate change on physical and biological resources, un-derstanding a community’s and region’s vulnerabilitiesto the climate-change phenomenon, and evaluatingthe potential effectiveness of proposed adaptive re-sponse measures. The workshops, by bringing partici-pants together in one setting, will have the added ben-efit of providing a forum for the exchange of ideas andexperiences.

“The UNEP secretariat in Nairobi, Kenya, will serveas the site of the all-participants ‘kickoff’ meeting inFebruary,” says Leary. “This will be followed by twoworkshops: the first examining ‘climate scenarios’scheduled to take place at the Tyndall Centre forClimate Change Research in Norwich, UK, in April, andthe second assessing ‘climate change vulnerability andadaptation’ scheduled to take place at the TWAS sec-retariat in Trieste, Italy, in June.” In addition, regionalworkshops, intended to provide an opportunity for

project participants to present their preliminary find-ings while their research is still in progress, areplanned for 2003 and 2004.

“Climate change is one of the global communities’most compelling issues,” observes Virji. “Yet virtuallyall of the research to enhance our understanding ofthis phenomenon, as well as the majority of the pro-posed strategies to mitigate its possible impacts, havetaken place in the developed world. A major goal ofthis project is to redress some of the imbalances in re-search capacity and public policy that currently existbetween the North and South.”

“The degree of our success,” Virji adds, “carries ob-vious importance for scientists and decision makers inthe developing world. But I think it’s also fair to saythat the entire world has a stake in our efforts. That’sbecause if the issues related to climate change are tobe adequately addressed, we must mount a worldwideeffort that is based on the most current scientific dataand information and that relies on the most talentedand well-trained scientists in both the South andNorth.” ■

For additional information about the project, contact > Neil Leary or > Sara Beresford

The International START Secretariat 2000 Florida Avenue, NW, Suite 200, Washington,

DC 20009, USA; phone: + 1 202 462 2213; fax: + 1 202 457 5859; email: aiacc@agu.org

or visit the START website at http://www.start.org

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H ow can science and technology be put to betteruse in promoting research and developmentthat improves human health and well-being

while protecting the earth’s life-support systems?That’s the challenge to be addressed by an interna-

tional initiative on science and technology for sustain-ability. While the secretariat is located at the KennedySchool of Government at Harvard University, the ini-tiative, which recently received a US$1.4 million grantfrom the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, is di-rected by a steering committee of independent schol-ars, researchers and administrators from around theworld (see box, “Steering a Course for Sustainability”for the complete list of committee members). TWAShas been asked to be a major partner in the initiative.

“The complex array of issues that we hope to ex-plore,” says director William C. Clark, Harvey BrooksProfessor of International Science, Policy and HumanDevelopment at Harvard’s Kennedy School of

Government, “are nothing less than the core issuesthat the global community is expected to confront inthe 21st century – peace, freedom, development andenvironment. This web of concerns has become evenmore compelling and intricate since the tragic eventsof 11 September.”

A major step in this effort will take place in Triestefrom 6 to 9 February when TWAS hosts an interna-tional workshop on Science, Technology and Sustain-ability: Harnessing Institutional Synergies.

“The ultimate goal of the project,” explainsCalestous Juma, Director of the Science, Technologyand Innovation Program at Harvard’s Kennedy Schoolof Government and a critical player in the develop-ment of the initiative, “is to advance ongoing efforts todevise and implement knowledge-based strategies forenhancing the quality of life without placing the long-term health and vitality of the environment at risk.”The roots of the initiative lie in the publication of a re-

TWAS

TWAS HAS JOINED AN INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVE DESIGNED TO EXPLORE THE

INTRICATE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY.

SUSTAINABILITY DRIVESTWAS WORKSHOP

port by the U.S. National Academy of Science’s (NAS)Board on Sustainable Development, Our CommonJourney: A Transition Toward Sustainability, issued in1999.

Following the publication of this report, similar ideasand concerns focusing broadly on the intricate relation-ship between science, technology, the environment anddevelopment have been articulated and refined at a se-ries of high-profile events that included the Conferenceof the World Scientific Academies Transition toSustainability in the 20th century, held in Japan in May2000, and the Friibergh Workshop on SustainabilityScience, held in Sweden in October 2000.

“At the heart of these events,” says Clark, “has beena growing conviction among a broad range of re-searchers that the World Summit on SustainableDevelopment, scheduled for Johannesburg, SouthAfrica, in August/September 2002, represents aunique opportunity to shape the relationship betweenenvironment and human development in the decadeahead and that the concepts and ideas that our groupand other researchers have been recently exploringcould have a significant impact on the conference’sagenda and outcome.”

The project will seekto transform the loftyvision of sustainabilityscience into an effectiveprogramme for action. Proponents hope to advancethe project’s goals through thefollowing strategic principles:• Expand and deepen the research and developmentagenda for sustainability science and technology.• Strengthen the infrastructure and capacity for con-ducting and applying science and technology to sus-tainability issues with a special focus on bridging theNorth-South divide.• Connect science to policy more effectively than inthe past by fostering closer cooperation betweenscientists and policy makers and improving the timeli-ness and application of international scientific assess-ments.

“TWAS is particularly pleased about the commit-ment to addressing the North-South divide,” saysMohamed Hassan, the Academy’s executive director.“The project will seek to advance this goal throughbroad-based geographical representation that sets the

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STEERING A COURSEFOR SUSTAINABILITY

The steering committee for theInitiative on Science and Technologyfor Sustainability includes a promi-nent list of scholars, researchers andadministrators well versed in issuesrelated to science, technology, envi-ronment and development. RobertKates, former Director of the WorldHunger Program at Brown Uni-versity, USA and Akin Mabogunje,Director of the Development PolicyCenter, Nigeria, serve as Co-

Conveners. The Steering Group con-sists of William Clark, Professor atHarvard University’s KennedySchool of Government; RobertCorell, Senior Research Fellow at theAmerican Meteorological Societyand Harvard University; NancyDickson, Senior Research Associateat Harvard University’s KennedySchool of Government; RobertFrosch, Senior Research Fellow atHarvard University; GilbertoGallopín, Regional Advisor on Envi-ronmental Policies at the Economic

Commission for Latin America andthe Caribbean; Mohamed H.A.Hassan, Executive Director at theThird World Academy of Sciences;Jill Jäger, Executive Director of theInternational Human DimensionsProgramme on Global Envi-ronmental Change; Narpat Jodha,Policy Analyst at the InternationalCentre for Integrated MountainDevelopment; Calestous Juma,Director of the Science, Technologyand Innovations Program, HarvardUniversity; Louis Lebel, Science

[CONTINUED PAGE 26]

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stage for the active participation of scientists and sci-ence administrators throughout the developing world.”The upcoming Trieste workshop is designed to:• Review current trends in the use of scientific andtechnological knowledge in promoting a transition tosustainability.• Identify networks of actors and organizations play-ing critical roles in bridging gaps between science,technology and sustainable development.• Showcase case studies in such fields as globalchange, energy, agriculture, forestry, fisheries and wa-ter management that may serve as models for facilitat-ing the use of scientific and technological knowledge.• Analyze the obstacles and opportunities facing ef-forts to improve the contributions of global researchand development institutions toward a transition tosustainability.

As Clark notes, “The Trieste workshop will explorewhat can be done to encourage the building of institu-

tional arrangements that seek to promote an exchangeof information and ideas across disciplines, sectors, ge-ography and timeframes.” About 50 experts fromaround the world, many of whom rank among themost prominent practitioners in their fields, haveagreed to participate. A follow-up workshop atHarvard University in April will explore how to ad-dress the challenges discussed in Trieste and outlinepriorities for institutional reform.

“With the Johannesburg conference some sixmonths away,” Clark notes, “we hope that the Triesteworkshop will prove instrumental in helping to createa strategic roadmap for advancing the principles ofsustainability that we all share.” ■

For additional information, contact > William C. Clark

John F. Kennedy School of GovernmentHarvard University, 79 JFK Street

Cambridge, MA 02138, USA phone: + 1 617 495 3981, fax: + 1 617 495 8963

email: william_clark@harvard.edu or visit the initiative’s website at

http://sustsci.harvard.edu

Coordinator for the Global ChangeSystem for Analysis, Research andTraining’s (START’s) SoutheastAsian Regional Committee and afaculty at Chiang Mai University;Jane Lubchenco, Professor of Zoo-logy at Oregon State University and

President of International Councilfor Science (ICSU); Pamela Matson,Professor of Geological and Envi-ronmental Sciences at StanfordUniversity; James McCarthy, Pro-fessor at Harvard University; JoséSarukhán, Special Advisor for Social

Development to Mexico’s presidentVicente Fox; and Hans-JoachinSchellnhuber, Director of the PotsdamInstitute for Climate Impact Re-search. ■

B orn on 4 March 1939 in Bulandshahr, UttarPradesh, India, Zafar Zaidi accompanied hisparents to newly created Pakistan in 1947,

where he completed his primary and secondary educa-tion. He received a bachelor of science degree fromGovernment College Hyderabad and a mas-ter’s in science degree from the University ofSindh in 1963. He subsequently moved tothe United Kingdom, where he obtainedanother master’s degree – this time inchemistry – in 1965 and then a doctor-ate degree in protein chemistry in 1968,both from the University of Leeds.

With his doctorate in hand, he joinedthe Pakistan Council of Scientific andIndustrial Research as a research officerin 1969. He assumed a faculty position at the newlycreated University of Karachi’s Post Graduate Instituteof Chemistry the following year, working with TWASFounding Fellow Salimuzzaman Siddiqui. The institutelater became the H.E.J. Research Institute ofChemistry.

Zaidi’s research focused on the protein chemistry ofsuch unusual yet valuable biochemical products assnake venom, avian hemoglobin and camel’s milk. Atthe same time, he gathered around him a group of ded-icated and distinguished researchers who helped putbiochemistry on the scientific map in his home countryand then guide the discipline into the international sci-entific arena. For example, he led the drive to constructthe first protein chemistry laboratory in Pakistan.

By the late 1980s, Zaidi’s protein research groupwas not only considered one of the finest in the Asiansubcontinent but provided a training ground for many

of Pakistan’s brightest young chemists and bio-chemists. In fact, more than 25 scientists completedtheir Ph.D’s under Zaidi’s supervision. In addition tohis research and teaching responsibilities, Zaidi wasone of the institute’s most active faculty members, or-

ganizing national and international confer-ences and serving as founding co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of the Chemical Societyof Pakistan since its inaugural issue in1979.

Zaidi was elected to TWAS in 1990.His decade of service to the Academyreflected the enthusiasm and dedicationhe displayed for every institution and ac-

tivity in which he was involved. For ex-ample, he urged individual members of the

Academy to contribute to the TWAS endowment cam-paign and then set the example by making the firstpersonal contribution to the fund (a generous dona-tion of US$500, which equalled one month of his an-nual salary). He also launched the TWAS spare partsprogramme that has proven so helpful to scientists inthe poorest developing countries. And perhaps mostimportantly, he remained an active participant inTWAS’s general meetings and conferences believingthat a primary goal of the Academy was to nurture anenvironment where scientists from the developingcountries could share their research findings and, yes,their camaraderie and friendship. He was always seek-ing ways to strengthen TWAS to ensure that the voiceof its members was heard both within and outside theAcademy’s corridors.

Zaidi received many national and internationalawards and honours, including the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz

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TWAS

In Memoriam

ZAFAR H. ZAIDI

[CONTINUED PAGE 28]

Zafar H. Zaidi

PAKISTAN’S ZAFAR H. ZAIDI (TWAS FELLOW 1990) POSSESSED A RARE

COMBINATION OF SCIENTIFIC INTELLECT AND SOCIAL PURPOSE.

and Sitara-e-Imtiaz prizes from the government ofPakistan in 1989 and again in 1998, and the Al-Kharizmi Award from the government of the IslamicRepublic of Iran in 1992. He was elected vice chancel-lor of the largest academic institution of Pakistan, theUniversity of Karachi, in 1997, where he renderedvaluable administrative service and helped to establishnew institutes in fields ranging from biotechnology tomass communications to computer science.

Beyond science, Zaidi was involved in a host of socially minded projects, including the creation of or-phanages and the improvement of primary schools. Heloved Urdu poetry and literature and other forms of artand music. He himself wrote many poems.

Zaidi was a humble, hard-working and honest indi-vidual. His life’s work represents a portrait of a scien-

tist with a sturdy and enduring moral character. Heembraced the highest moral values both in his person-al life and professional work and he sought to use sci-ence and the resources at his disposal for the benefit ofthe people of Pakistan and the developing world. Hewas both a proud Pakistani and an engaged global cit-izen committed to the common good of humankind.His death is a profound loss to the scientific communi-ty of Pakistan and the South. ■

> M. Iqbal ChoudharyProfessor

HEJ Research Institute of ChemistryInternational Center for Chemical Sciences

University of KarachiKarachi, Pakistan

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X ie graduated from Xiamen University in 1946and began her teaching career in physics atHujiang University the same year. In 1947, she

was admitted to a masters’ degree programme inphysics in Smith College, USA, and in 1949 to a doc-torate programme at Massachusetts Institute of Te-chnology (MIT), earning her degree in 1951. At the in-vitation of J.C. Slater, professor of physics at MIT, shebecame a postdoctoral fellow there concentrating onsolid state and molecular physics research. Xie re-turned to Shanghai in 1952 to assume a teaching posi-tion in physics at Fudan University. Higher educationwas then in its early stages of development inShanghai and the work environment was often

plagued by poor facilities and a lack of books and jour-nals. As a result, Xie wrote or edited her teaching ma-terial.

In addition to teaching, Xie assumed responsibilityfor two major projects: In 1955 she helped establish asolid state physics teaching and research group withinFudan University and in 1956 she helped launch a net-work of physics teachers and students in five Chineseuniversities specializing in semiconductor theoreticaland experimental research. Xie also co-authored amonograph on semiconductor physics that served as aprimer for many of China’s young semiconductor re-searchers and technicians during the 1950s and 1960s.In 1962, Xie led another group of scientists that suc-

In Memoriam

XIE XIDEXIE XIDE (TWAS FELLOW 1988) WAS BORN IN 1921 IN FUJIAN PROVINCE, CHINA – THE

ONLY DAUGHTER OF XIE YUMING, A PIONEERING CHINESE PHYSICIST IN HIS OWN RIGHT.

cessfully pushed for the creation of a solid state re-search and training programme at Fudan Universityfocusing on the study of paramagnetic resonance,semiconductor infrared spectrum, and optical as wellas semiconducting properties under strong magneticfields and low temperatures. Meanwhile, shewrote course texts and taught courses aboutsemiconductors and group theory.

During the same period, Xie was ap-pointed deputy director of the newlycreated Shanghai Institute of TechnicalPhysics, where she would remain until1966 playing a key role in the institute’searly development. She selected appliedsemiconductor technology as the core researchactivity and urged faculty to participate in thedevelopment of trial materials and devices to helpboost Shanghai’s fledgling semiconductor industry. Herguidance and strong will enabled the institute toemerge as one of China’s leading research centres.Many students involved in the program back in the1960s have since become the backbone not only of theinstitute but of Shanghai’s semiconductor industry.

During the years of turmoil associated with China’sCultural Revolution, Xie, like her peers, found it diffi-cult – indeed sometimes impossible – to continue herwork. To make matters worse, she was stricken withcancer. Despite such professional and personal set-backs, she continued to purse her teaching and re-search goals with a single-mindedness and determina-tion that was the hallmark of her entire career. In 1977she submitted a proposal for developing a surfacephysics programme at Fudan University, which re-ceived favourable reviews from both the StateCommission of Sciences and the Ministry of Education.

The result was the creation of a research institutespecializing in surface physics, which Xie headed from1978 to 1983. The institute has made significant con-tributions to our understanding of the electronic struc-tures of both compound semiconductors and strainedsuperlattices. It has also provided valuable theoreticalinsights into the behaviour of semiconductor surfaces,silicon/silicide and metal-semiconductor interfaces.

Xie, who served as vice-president of the ChinesePhysical Society from 1978 to 1990 and as a member ofthe division of mathematics and physics of the ChineseAcademy of Sciences from 1981 to 1996, received adozen honorary doctorate degrees from universities in

the United States, United Kingdom, Canada,Japan and Hong Kong. She was a fellow ofthe American Physics Society and servedon the advisory or editorial boards of sixinternational journals.

In addition to her research and pro-fessional accomplishments, Xie was anable administrator, serving as FudanUniversity’s vice president from 1978 to

1983 and president from 1983 to 1988. Underher leadership, the university enjoyed un-

precedented growth culminating in its listing as the na-tion’s top-priority institution for development from1985 to 1990. She helped to modernize FudanUniversity by advocating programmes in arts and sci-ences, management and economics. She also promotedcontinuing education, a concept alien to most institu-tions of higher education in China at the time. Finally,she placed great importance on the quality of both un-dergraduate and graduate teaching and called for morescholarly exchanges within China and abroad.

In fact, Xie directed Fudan University’s Center forAmerican Studies, working painstakingly for Sino-American greater cultural and scientific interactionsand for mutual understanding and friendship betweenthe two peoples. She received many foreign digni-taries, including French President D’Estaing and U.S.presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton.

Her extraordinary life will be honoured and cele-brated for decades to come. ■

> Ling YeDepartment of Physics and National Key Laboratory

Applied Surface ScienceFudan UniversityShanghai, China

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1ZEWAIL IN NATURE• TWAS Fellow (1989) and NobelLaureate (Chemistry 1999) AhmedHassan Zewail has published a“concepts” article, “The Fog thatWas Not,” in Nature (July 2001). Inthe article, Zewail contends that

the notion of coherence applies tothe fast-moving microscopic worldsof molecules and subatomic parti-cles. He says that such coherence,most visibly displayed on a local-ized scale, is accommodated by“two powerful and yet indigestibleconcepts: the uncertainty principleand the particle-wave duality ofmatter.” He notes that: “As we crossthe femtosecond barrier into the at-tosecond regime for studies of elec-tronic dynamics, we must recall thevital role of coherence; otherwisethe specter of quantum uncertaintymight veil the path to new discov-eries.” Zewail, who received theNobel Prize for the development ofa laser technique capable of detect-ing the behaviour of atoms during achemical reaction, is a professor atCalifornia Institute of Technology(USA). He was born in Egypt andeducated at Alexandria University(Egypt) and the University ofPennsylvania (USA). Zewail wasthe first Arab and second Muslimscientist (Abdus Salam was thefirst) to win the Nobel Prize.

CHINA PRAISES TWAS• An edition of China’s PeoplesDaily included a feature article onTWAS highlighting the close rela-tionship between the Academy andscientific institutions throughoutChina. Drawing on a statement thathe prepared for the TWAS endow-ment campaign brochure, PresidentJiang Zemin notes that TWAS hasmade important contributions tothe development of science andtechnology in the developingworld. He also expresses confi-dence that TWAS will continue toplay a key role in advancing scien-tific research, the training of youngscientists, and cooperation amonguniversities and research centresthroughout the South. Seventy-twoChinese scientists have been elect-ed members of TWAS and 16Chinese scientists have won TWASbasic science awards. Lu Yong-xiang, president of the ChineseAcademy of Sciences, currentlyserves as a vice president of TWAS.China will host the 8th GeneralMeeting of TWAS, scheduled totake place 15–21 October 2003.The meeting will also mark TWAS’s20th anniversary. For a full text ofthe article, “Jiang Zemin WritesPaean for Third World Academy ofSciences,” Peoples Daily, seehttp://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200105/23/eng20010523_70771.html.

CHINESE ACADEMY TWAS WEBSITE• The Chinese Academy of Scie-nces has announced the launchingof a website featuring informationabout the TWAS Chinese Chapter.The site, which includes text copiesof the TWAS Beijing Office newslet-ters, as well as general information

about the activities of TWAS mem-bers and staff at the ChineseAcademy of Sciences, can be foundat www.twas.org.cn.

ACCESS IN AFRICA• The International Network forthe Availability of Scientific Publi-cations (INASP) has announced thecompletion of the first phase of theProgramme for the Enhancement ofResearch Information (PERI),which seeks to provide wider accessto scientific and scholarly in-formation to researchers in devel-oping and transitional countries.Researchers in Ghana, Tanzaniaand Uganda are now invited to ac-cess current awareness databases,full-text online journals and docu-ment delivery free of charge.Developed with support such devel-opment programmes as the DanishInternational Development Assis-tance Agency (Dainda) and theDepartment for Research Coopera-tion of the Swedish InternationalDevelopment Cooperation Agency(Sida-SAREC), the programme pro-

vides access to more than 5000 full-text journals in science, technology,medicine, social sciences and thehumanities. For additional informa-tion, contact Carol Priestly, (INASP),

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1 inasp@ gn.apc.org or visit the web-site at http://www.inasp.info/peri/.

HASSAN ELECTED• Mohamed H.A. Hassan, TWASexecutive director, has recentlybeen elected a corresponding mem-ber of the Academié Royale desSciences d’Outre-Mer, Belgium, anda foreign member of the PakistanAcademy of Sciences. Hassan, whoreceived a bachelor of science de-gree in mathematics from New-castle University, UK, a master’s de-gree in advanced mathematics anda doctorate in plasma physics fromOxford University, has been withTWAS since its inception in 1983.

During TWAS’s formative years,Hassan worked closely with theAcademy’s founding president, thelate Nobel Laureate Abdus Salam.Since 1988, Hassan also has servedas secretary general of the ThirdNetwork of Scientific Organizations(TWNSO) and since 1999 as thepresident of the African Academy ofSciences. He is a fellow of theIslamic Academy of Sciences and anhonorary member of the ColumbiaAcademy of Sciences. His majorfields of interest are theoreticalplasma physics and the physics ofwind erosion and sand transport.

OPEC FUND• The OPEC Fund for InternationalDevelopment has approved aUS$100,000 grant in support ofTWAS’s Associate MembershipScheme at Centres of Excellence inthe South. The scheme, which waslaunched in 1994 to promoteSouth-South cooperation, has sincegrown from 16 to 88 participatingcentres, making it one of the mostsuccessful initiatives of its kind.Scientists selected to participate inthe programme are entitled to visita participating centre twice over atwo-year period for two to threemonths each time. During theirstays, they may pursue their ownresearch interests and/or collabo-rate with the centre’s researchteams. The appointment is renew-able for an additional three-yearperiod. This marks the third timethat the OPEC Fund for Interna-tional Development has awarded agrant to TWAS. In 1988, the OPECFund supported a wind and sandtransport laboratory in Sudan andin 1992 it helped finance an ex-change programme for scientistsand researchers. For additional in-formation about the AssociateMembership Scheme at Centres ofExcellence in the South, please vis-it http://www.twas.org.

EYE IN THE SKY• The India Institute of Astro-physics in Bangalore has an-nounced that the Hanle Observa-tory on Mount Saraswati, located inthe Changthang region of Jammuand Kashmir State near the borderwith China, is now operational. Thefacility, resting on a vast mountainplain some 4500 metres above sea

level, is the world’s highest astron-omy observatory. Its US$8 milliontelescope, with a mirror more than2 metres in diameter, is the most so-phisticated sky-gazing tool in Asia.The telescope has been nicknamed“Chandra” in honour of Indian-bornastrophysicist and Nobel Laureate,the late Subrahmanyan Chandra-shekhar (TWAS Associate Founding

Fellow). For additional informationabout the Hanle Observatory andChandra, see http://www.iiap.enet.in/iao/iao.html.

ENDOWMENTS IN INDIAThe Indian Institute of ChemicalEngineers has created several newendowments, including 14 ChemconDistinguished Speaker Awards, fourof which will carry the names ofTWAS Fellows: C.N.R. Rao (FoundingFellow and President), M.M. Sharma(1990), L.K. Doraiswamy (1997),and R.A. Mashelkar (1993). The en-dowments, derived from privatesources, will fund some 40 nationalawards, prizes and lectures for thepromotion of chemical engineeringin India. For more information, con-tact G.D. Yagdav, President, IndiaInstitute of Chemical Engineers,yadgav@mailhost.egr.msu.edu.

PEOPLE, PLACES, EVENTS

Moh

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W H A T ’ S T W A S ?

THE THIRD WORLD ACADEMY OF SCIENCES (TWAS) IS AN AUTONOMOUS INTER-

NATIONAL ORGANIZATION THAT PROMOTES SCIENTIFIC CAPACITY AND EXCELLENCE

IN THE SOUTH. FOUNDED IN 1983 BY A GROUP OF EMINENT SCIENTISTS UNDER

THE LEADERSHIP OF THE LATE NOBEL LAUREATE ABDUS SALAM OF PAKISTAN,

TWAS WAS OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED IN TRIESTE, ITALY, IN 1985 BY THE

SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS.

At present, TWAS has 583 members from 76 countries, 62 of which are devel-

oping countries. A Council of 14 members is responsible for supervising all

Academy affairs. It is assisted in the administration and coordination of pro-

grammes by a small secretariat of 9 persons, headed by the Executive Director.

The secretariat is located on the premises of the Abdus Salam International

Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy. UNESCO is responsible for

the administration of TWAS funds and staff. A major portion of TWAS funding is

provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy.

The main objectives of TWAS are to:

• Recognize, support and promote excellence in scientific research in the South.

• Provide promising scientists in the South with research facilities necessary for

the advancement of their work.

• Facilitate contacts between individual scientists and institutions in the South.

• Encourage South-North cooperation between individuals and centres of schol-

arship.

TWAS was instrumental in the establishment in 1988 of the Third World Network

of Scientific Organizations (TWNSO), a non-governmental alliance of 154 scien-

tific organizations from Third World countries, whose goal is to assist in build-

ing political and scientific leadership for science-based economic development

in the South and to promote sustainable development through broad-based

partnerships in science and technology.

TWAS also played a key role in the establishment of the Third World Organiza-

tion for Women in Science (TWOWS), which was officially launched in Cairo in

1993. TWOWS has a membership of more than 2000 women scientists from 87

Third World countries. Its main objectives are to promote the research efforts

and training opportunities of women scientists in the Third World and to

strengthen their role in the decision-making and development processes. The

secretariat of TWOWS is currently hosted and assisted by TWAS.

Since May 2000, TWAS has been providing the secretariat for the InterAcademy

Panel on International Issues (IAP), a global network of 82 science academies

worldwide established in 1993, whose primary goal is to help member academies

work together to inform citizens and advise decision-makers on the scientific

aspects of critical global issues.

TWAS offers scientists in the Third World

a variety of grants and fellowships. To find out

more about these opportunities, check out

the TWAS web-pages! Our main page is at:

www.twas.org

Want to spend some time at a research

institution in another developing country?

Investigate the TWAS Fellowships:

.../Fellowships.html

Need funding for your research project?

Take a look at the TWAS Research Grants:

.../RG_form.html

TWNSO runs a similar scheme, for projects

carried out in collaboration with institutions

in other countries in the South:

www.twnso.org

But that’s not all TWAS has to offer.

For instance, do you need a minor spare

part for some of your laboratory equipment,

no big deal, really, but you just can’t get it

anywhere locally? Well, TWAS can help:

.../SP_form.html

Would you like to invite an eminent scholar

to your institution, but need funding for

his/her travel? Examine these pages, then:

.../Lect_form.html

.../Prof.html

You’re organizing a scientific conference

and would like to involve young scientists

from the region? You may find what you

are looking for here:

.../SM_form.html

CONFERENCES

TRAVEL

EQUIPMENT

GRANTS

FELLOWSHIPS

WANT TO KNOW MORE?