Name:
Bo Peng
Tweet Pitch:
We propose a World EXPO version of Lindau Meeting to be held in less developed countries by inviting local students and scientists to interact with Nobel laureates and young scientists worldwide to create a supportive and global community. #NobelEXPO
More Information:
1. Introduction: Academic resources are unequally distributed in a global perspective. For instance, Nobel Laureates of the scientific disciplines are concentrated in developed countries. When comparing scientific Nobel Laureates per capita, countries such as US, UK and Germany have more than 10 Laureates/10 million in their population, whereas countries such as China, India and Mexico have less than 0.08 Laureates/10 million, far below the world average 0.913, not to mention that nearly 150 countries have 0 laureate [1]. As a result, students and young scientists in less developed countries are unable to take advantage of the global scientific and technological innovation led by top scientists. Many students and early career scientists, especially in less developed world, find themselves isolated and lacking guidance [2]. There is an enormous need to connect early career scientists with experienced professionals outside their own work environment. Connecting minds are vital for creating new knowledge. The purpose of connecting minds is to enhance the quality and the creativity of the science products. However, there is no easy approach to build successful network and find guidance. How do we, as part of academics, take our responsibility to create a supportive community for scientific and technological innovation in the less developed world? Here we propose a World EXPO version of Nobel Meetings for students and early stage scientists. By inviting Nobel laureates to host country to meet students and young scientists from all over the world, the meetings can foster the exchange among scientists of different generations, cultures and disciplines. The host country should preferably be a less developed economy so that local students and researchers would be able to discuss, engage and collaborate with their peers and leaders in the field. We call our solution a “Nobel EXPO”. 2. Project Analysis Our project aims at fostering the exchange and engagement among scientists of different generations, cultures, and disciplines. The Nobel EXPO will connect, inspire and cultivate the local talents by their exchange with each other and with top scientists worldwide. Young students and early stage researchers in the less developed world will be greatly benefited from the projects. With open access to the materials of the events, researchers all over the world could be better informed. The general public will also engage more in this academic feast thanks to the VR tools, raising the public awareness of technological advancement and application. The Nobel EXPO primarily reduces the gap of scientific and technological resources between developed countries and less developed countries. It will stimulate discussions, learning and sharing of scientific discoveries. The EXPO will attract wider media, government, industry and academic support and aspire application of innovations to solve local development problems. Strength: Compared to Lindau Meetings, the Nobel EXPO provides more network opportunities for young students and scientists from the less developed world. The full scientific potential of emerging economies has yet to be realized. Compared to other scientific exhibitions, the less developed world lacks the wealth and resources needed to maintain a long-term exhibition with top scientists lecturing for the public, whereas the Nobel EXPO provides a platform for the scientific education with extra endowment contributors, benefactors, and academic partners. Different from the World EXPO, the Nobel EXPO focuses on knowledge transfer between scientists of different generations, cultures, and disciplines. Weakness: The implementation of the Nobel EXPO in less developed world is more complicated than in developed countries like Germany. These nations commonly lack the networking to invite a number of top scientists all over the world. Another weakness is the implementation capability of the council or committee as hosting a scientific EXPO requires a large amount of personnel, resources and time. Nevertheless, with the support of various stakeholders and experience from similar models, these problems are not insurmountable. Opportunities: Discussion with first-class researchers will inspire young students from less developed world, while mentoring experiences is invaluable for those want to get into the academic world in the less developed world. The education materials could be transformed into categorized learning materials used by the education institutions. This Nobel EXPO can collaborate with the industry for more efficient adoption or commercialization of scientific and technological innovations, and provide positive feedbacks for both academics and industrials. 3. How Nobel EXPO relates to the Lindau Guidelines 2020 Goals This project focuses on research students and young scientists from the less developed world. The idea, while intended for supporting global, sustainable and cooperative open science in the long-term, addresses the following Guideline goals: Goal 1. Adopt an Ethical Code: The Nobel EXPO also provides effective integrity education to teach research students and young scientists to conduct research in a way which allows others to have trust and confidence in the methods and findings. Nobel laureates from different countries will provide their own countries’ lessons in cultivating integrity, as comparative studies can provide insights for curbing academic misconduct [3]. Goal 2. Cooperate Globally on Global Problems: Selected young scientists will be given the opportunities to present their research on global problems in front of all the participants. Therefore, scientists, funders and politicians can cooperate globally. Goal 3. Share Knowledge: All the documents, videos and files of the Nobel EXPO will be accessible to the public especially to young people in the developing world. A permanent database will be established to categorize and maintain the educative materials produced and used at the Nobel EXPO for them to have a longer lasting effect. Goal 5. Publish Data to Repositories: A permanent database will be set up and update regularly to establish communications worldwide. In addition, the educative materials produced and used at the Nobel EXPO will be categorized and maintained to have a longer lasting effect. Goal 8. Support Talent Worldwide: Selected young talents are given the opportunity to discuss with Nobel Laureates and young scientists in order to receive feedback and advice. The subsequent discussions, involving the audience, are marked by a high level of professionalism and specialization. After that, at the Nobel EXPO, each selected participant can chair an open exchange session. Goal 9. Communicate to Society: The Nobel EXPO can collaborate with the industry for more efficient adoption or commercialization of scientific and technological innovations, and provide positive feedbacks for both academics and industrials. The technique of industrial production is an application of scientific knowledge to human needs. So the feedbacks and inputs collected at the Nobel EXPO could be analyzed by scientists, funding agencies and products managers for new research direction and better usage. The project can also work with local governments for further promotion to attract tourists and foreign investments. Goal 10. Engage in Education: For the host countries of Nobel EXPO, students in primary schools, middle schools and high schools are also allowed to participate in the cross-generational and interdisciplinary exchange sessions. Local public participation is also encouraged in sessions designed to activate the exchange between the academics and the public. In addition, local scientists through all stages of their career are also invited to foster communication and connect local minds with international top scientists. 4. Why should the group work on our idea Our project is to raise awareness about the impact of research in the less developed world and their need for collaborative efforts to sustain public support for science. However, we need young scientists from different backgrounds to work on our idea because: (i) The implementation needs ideas from young scientists of different generations, cultures and disciplines. The implementation of the Nobel EXPO in less developed world is more complicated than in developed countries like Germany. These nations commonly lack the networking to invite a number of top scientists all over the world. Therefore, a group of young scientists of different generations, cultures and disciplines is needed to work on the adoption strategy and deployment. (2) The proposal requires a large amount of personnel, resources and time. With the support of other young scientists, we could further optimize our project and these problems are not insurmountable. (3) Researchers with different nationalities, cultural backgrounds, genders, skin colors, and languages, should be treated equally and work together. For instance, gender equality is considered as a crucial path to promote scientific and technological development. Nowadays, science is often considered a male-dominated field. In most of the less developed countries, female scientists have been obviously in an inferior position in competition with men for employment. Therefore, a fair environment for career development should be created to promote gender equity in the scientific community. Efforts should also be made to increase the visibility and participation of female scientist. 5. Expected results after 48 hours The final results of the discussion will be presented in the form of videos and a research report with achievable implementation strategies. The report will include: (i) Adoption plans such as establishing committees, councils or foundations, getting support from local governments, and maintaining close relations with scientific partners worldwide. (ii) Financial means including potential funders such as business donations and supports from academic institutions. (iii) Academic programmes such as life lecture, panel discussion, talents session, Science Walk according to local culture and environment. (iv) Programmes for wellbeing of academics including vocational training, professional consultant, psychological service, and research integrity education. During the 48 hours, we will have insightful and fruitful discussions on social media (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram) using the hashtag #NobelEXPO. The Online Sciathon topic of #NobelEXPO is expected to generate widespread interest and positive feedbacks from Nobel laureates, young scientists, and the general public. The long-term goal of this project is to benefit the research students and young scientists from less developed countries, so they can broaden their horizons with the latest scientific progresses, and have the chance to establish cooperations with top scientists worldwide to foster global scientific communities. 6. Connecting Minds and Inspiring Innovations The Nobel EXPO ensembles young professions and many other players cross cultures, professions and countries to participate either offline or online. By connecting local minds with the top scientists worldwide, the Nobel EXPO will provide a unique international forum for scientific exchange and inspiration for young scientists. It will create a globally supportive community of local science and research, and catalyze a deeper understanding of the vital position of science as a living force for progress in less developed world. The event will also bring professions to the less developed countries, facilitate dialogues among different players, deepen culture understanding, increase foreign investment to the local academia and industry, and most importantly, inspire new ideas in scientific and technological innovation. The Nobel EXPO community will be an academic league without border that cultivates and inspires young talents in an open and inclusive way. With such a supportive community, the academics will be more united in response to an increasingly divided world.