Highlights and images for 14 May 2019

Highlights for Tuesday, 14 May 2019

Opening the Fourth Multi-stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology, and Innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (STI Forum), Inga Rhonda King, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), called attention to how science, technology and innovation (STI) is helping the world address global challenges. She also highlighted that these technological changes are still not deep or fast enough to fully respond to these challenges.Liu Zhenmin, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, relayed a number of accomplishments of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM), such as the release of the “Guidebook for the Preparation of STI for SDGs Roadmaps,” and the development of a prototype of the online platform to help connect providers of technology solutions to those who seek them.Keynote presentations by Romain Murenzi, Executive Director, The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), and Claudette McGowan, Chief Information Officer, Bank of Montreal, Canada, covered the “haves” and the “have-nots,” stressing that technology can be a force for good but has also resulted in severe disparities around the globe. Both speakers highlighted the importance of education, calling for initiatives that bridge gaps in technology and science.A ministerial segment featured country statements focused on strengthening capacity and policy for the development of STI roadmaps.Throughout the day, panels addressed the following topics, each with a discussion incorporating input and questions from various stakeholders, including intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and country representatives:

The launch of an exhibition featuring innovative technology solutions for the SDGs took place during lunch, featuring the winning submissions from the call for innovations that support implementation of the SDGs. Solutions on display related to, inter alia, cookstoves, new pedagogical tools, redirection and prevention of waste, and protection of indigenous resources. The first day of the Forum included the launch of another exhibition on gender and STI, featuring prominent woman scientists from around the world and their contributions.

IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, provided daily web updates from the STI Forum 2019. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has publish a briefing note, which is available in HTML and PDF.

Welcome Address and Opening: Appreciating the Cross-cutting Nature of STI

Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs

Inga Rhonda King, UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) President

Claudette McGowan, Chief Information Officer, Bank of Montreal, Canada

Romain Murenzi, Executive Director, The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS)

L-R: Liu Zhenmin, UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs; Elizabeth Thompson, STI Forum Co-Chair; Marie Chatardová, STI Forum Co-Chair; Inga Rhonda King, ECOSOC President; Secretary; Claudette McGowan, Chief Information Officer, Bank of Montreal, Canada; and Romain Murenzi, Executive Director, TWAS

Session 1: Emerging Technology Clusters and the Impact of Rapid Technological Change on the SDGs

Abby Shapiro, Senior Vice President, US Council for International Business (USCIB)

Amir Dossal, President, Global Partnerships Forum

Session 2: Ministerial Segment – Strengthening Capacity and Policy for the Development of STI Roadmaps

Elizabeth Thompson, STI Forum Co-Chair

Amb. Feda Abdelhady-Nasser, Deputy Permanent Observer, Palestine, for the G-77/China

Motoko Kotani, Executive Member, Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (CSTI), Prime Minister Cabinet Office, Japan

Adrián Bonilla, Secretary of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ecuador

Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Hungary

Session 3: STI for Education and Decent Work for the Future (SDG 4 and SDG 8)

Antonin Fejfar, Czech Academy of Science

Kate Radford, The Netherlands, pitches her innovation submission ‘Can’t Wait to Learn’

Moderator Anne-Christine Ritschkoff, Senior Advisor, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd. (and 10-Member Group), and Chaesub Lee, Director, Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

L-R: Myung Ja Kim, President of the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies; Stefan Schnorr, Directorate-General, Digital and Innovation Policy, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Germany; and Marie Chatardová, STI Forum Co-Chair

Session 4: Gender and STI for SDGs

James Heintz, Andrew Glyn Professor of Economics, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, US

Moderator Špela Stres, Head of Innovation and Technology Transfer Center, Jožef Stefan Institute, Slovenia (and 10-Member Group)

Alice Abreu, Professor Emerita, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Member of Gender Advisory Board, Brazil

Aliza Inbal, Director, Pears Program for Global Innovation, Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research, Israel

Special Event 1: Launch of Exhibition of Innovative Technology Solutions for the SDGs

Inga Rhonda King, ECOSOC President, opening the Exhibition

Participants during the exhibition

Launch of the Exhibition on Gender and STI

Elizabeth Thompson, STI Forum Co-Chair, opens the Exhibition

Around the Venue

Women, who attended the Forum in record numbers, gather for a photo