The Session  was complied of an introduction was followed by the three presentations:

• Small is Working by Tony Marjoram, responsible for engineering sciences in UNESCO's Basic and Engineering Sciences Division : t.marjoram@unesco.org
• Renewable Energies for Sustainable Development by Osman Benchikh, responsible for energy and renewable energy in UNESCO's  Basic and Engineering Sciences Division: o.benchikh@unesco.org
•  The Sahel project - an example of using science and technology for development by Ms Chifa Tekaya, responsible for coordinating the Cross-Cutting Theme programme on poverty reduction in UNESCO's Social and Human Sciences Sector: c.tekaya@unesco.org

Introduction:  

Tony Marjoram introduced (and chaired) the session by noting the

emphasis on knowledge societies in recent years and that knowledge, especially knowledge for development, relates particularly to science, engineering and technology (SET). The importance of knowledge

generation, application, innovation and capacity building was recognized

in several recent reports; including the report of the UN Millennium

Project Task Force on Science, Technology and Innovation, “Innovation: Applying Knowledge in Development”, the report of the InterAcademy Council 2004: “Inventing a Better Future: A Strategy for Building

Worldwide Capacities in Science and Technology”, and the report of the Commission for Africa: “Our Common Interest”.

The increasing interest of the European Union and the DaimlerChrysler-UNESCO Mondialogo Engineering Award and exhibition, was also indicated as emphasizing the role of technology and development at UNESCO. The vital role of technology in history starting with the stone age, bronze age, iron age, industrial revolution and subsequent “waves” of technology change, including the 3^rd wave of IC engines and heavy engineering, 4^th wave of oil, automobiles and mass-production, and the 5^th wave of computers and ICTs. The 6^th wave of change, with “post-industrial” information societies and economies and new modes of knowledge generation, dissemination and application, is characterized by new areas of knowledge (ICTs, biotechnology, nanotechnology, materials technology), cross-fertilization and fusion (rise of new disciplines, decline of old, importance of innovation;  in turn underlining the vital role of science, engineering and technology in development.

Click below for a complete summary of 60 minutes to convince, Science and Technology for Development, Week 20, Tuesday 24 January 2006 including the three presentations mentioned above.