Research and Development Leaders Head To New Zealand
Those who drive research and development in the Asia Pacific region and a strong panel of R&D experts from around the globe will converge on Christchurch in early March.
Chief Executives and managers from private and public research institutions in the 21 APEC economies will be attending the 5th APEC R&D Leaders' Forum from 10 - 11 March, exploring and debating the theme of 'capturing value from science'. The Forum runs concurrently with the 4th APEC Ministers' meeting on Regional Science and Technology Cooperation, also being held in Christchurch.
At the end of their two day meeting, R&D leaders will be offered the unprecedented opportunity to sit down with the APEC Science Ministers, and have direct input into their thinking.
Forum Convenor Anthony Scott, the Executive Director of the Association of Crown Research Institutes, says the R&D Leaders programme reflects the demand for science to generate economic wealth. He says the Forum has attracted an impressive line-up of high calibre, internationally respected speakers.
This includes:
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Dr Lee Ki-Won, Executive Vice President of Samsung Electronics, Korea
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Professor Tom Furness, Director Human Interface Technology Lab, University of Washington, USA and University of Canterbury, New Zealand
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Professor Lan Xue, Professor and Executive Vice-President, Development Research Academy for the 21st Century; Professor and Associate Dean, School of Public Affairs Tsinghua University (Beijing, PR China)
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Dr Cristian Samper, Director, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, (Washington, DC)
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Dr Rita Colwell, Director of the US National Science Foundation
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Yoshio Matsumi, Executive Counsellor and General Manager of the Innovative Technology Business Development Office for the Itochu Corporation
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Professor Mason Durie, Head of School, Te Pütahi-ä-Toi (School of Maori Studies), Massey University
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Professor Alan MacDiarmid, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2000 and Professor of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania
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Professor Peter Hunter, Director, Bioengineering Institute, University of Auckland
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Professor Paul Callaghan, Director, MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology, Professor of Physical Sciences, Victoria University
The R&D Leaders Forum is part of a week of events which will attract influential politicians, business people and media from around the APEC region as well as research and development leaders.
There is particularly strong interest in the event from Asian members of APEC. For example Japan is sending a 26-person delegation, with 17 representatives from Chinese Taipei, 15 from Korea, 7 from China and 6 from Thailand. Other economies that have already indicated they will attend include the United States, Australia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Chile and Brunei Darussalam.
New Zealand will be represented by two Ministers at the APEC meetings - the Minister of Science, Research and Technology, Pete Hodgson, will Chair the meeting of Ministers while the Minister of Social Services and Employment, Steve Maharey, will lead the New Zealand delegation.
Pete Hodgson says New Zealand's offer to host the APEC Science meetings reflects the importance to New Zealand of international connections and co-operation in science.
"We have particular strengths such as our expertise in the life sciences and our ability to be creative problem solvers. The Government wants to increase international awareness of these strengths and encourage partnerships with other economies. The APEC meetings will be a significant means of achieving these goals."
The meeting of APEC Ministers will focus on four key themes - human capability building to ensure a supply of skilled workers with science and technology skills, building international science and technology networks, connecting research and innovation and strengthening technological cooperation.
The last meeting of APEC Science Ministers was held in Mexico in 1998. The overall theme of the 2004 meeting is Enhancing the capacity of science, technology and innovation to deliver sustainable growth across the APEC region.
Full details and registration forms for the event are available at: www.apecscience2004.org.nz