STRAIGHT FROM THE BIG CITY

Roster of scientists /Convergence power
IKE SEÑERES

MANILA -- At the 1st roundtable discussion about climate change, the energy crisis and food security held at Asian Institute of Management (AIM) in Makati City, the participants agreed to establish a “Roster of Scientists, Inventors and Engineers” (ROSIE) for the purpose of having a centralized clearing house for the exchange of information and resources between and among scientists, inventors and engineers on one hand, and government agencies, private corporations and nonprofit organizations on the other hand.

The event was co-sponsored by the Department of Science & Technology (DOST) and the AIM Policy Center. Prof. Federico M. Macaranas, Executive Director of the center and facilitator of the event endorsed the formation of ROSIE as the “roster of rosters”, while at the same time acknowledging what the DOST and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have earlier done along this objective.

As a Foreign Service Officer (FSO) I was a Special Assistant to Prof. Macaranas when he was Under Secretary for International Economic Cooperation at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Under his direction, I managed the day to day operations of the Transfer of Knowledge through Expatriate Nationals (TOKTEN) Program, the Science & Technology Advisory Council (STAC), the Technological Information Promotion System (TIPS) and the Return of Knowledge (ROK) Program, among other programs and projects.

TOKTEN and TIPS are joint programs of the DFA and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), whereas ROK is a joint program of the DFA and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). STAC on the other hand is a home grown program of the DFA, as conceptualized by Macaranas. At one point, STAC had more than forty chapters worldwide, composed of mostly of Filipino scientists and engineers. It is the mother organization of the Brain Gain Network (BGN).

With the support of DOST, ADB and AIM, the United National Integrated Development Alliance (UNIDA) will foster the creation of ROSIE, drawing from the experience and the remaining resources of TOKTEN, STAC, TIPS, ROK and BGN.

Some of the well known members of STAC include Dado Banatao of SonicBlue, Dennis Mendiola of Chikka, Paco Sandejas of BGN Ventures and Amador Muriel of the Center for Fluid Dynamics.
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The term convergence is now popularly used in the field of information and communications technology (ICT) but it is also applicable to the coming together of forces and resources that are directed towards a common goal, such as the development of products and the development of national economies.

We are happy to note that there are several government agencies, private companies and nonprofit organizations that are providing production, financing, marketing and management assistance to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) but we are nonetheless saddened by the fact that the provision of these four services seldom converge.

The creation of the Roster of Scientists, Inventors and Engineers (ROSIE) could bring good news to the SMEs, because there is now a clearing house for the delivery of these services in a convergent manner, as the government agencies, private companies and nonprofit organizations would also be encouraged to make use of ROSIE.

Hopefully, ROSIE could also be a tool for the government agencies, private companies and nonprofit organizations to converge their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) or Civic Duty Exercise (CDE) programs and projects that are oriented towards various development concerns, including poverty reduction and hunger mitigation.

Just like ROSIE, the Inter-Charity Network (ICN) is also intended to be a clearing house for the convergence of charity providers on one hand, and charity beneficiaries on the other hand. The providers in this case are no other than the government agencies, private companies and nonprofit organizations, while the beneficiaries are all types of organizations that are hosting or sponsoring charitable programs and projects.

As a general rule, ICN will be a clearing house for all forms of charitable activities, but as an operational strategy, it is the lead organization of the United National Integrated Development Alliance (UNIDA) for the delivery of shelter and livelihood programs beneficiary communities.

As resources would allow, ICN would get involved in activities that would fall under the ambit of poverty alleviation. As a long term goal however, it is more oriented towards the more lasting poverty reduction interventions. It would be good if more people could have their own homes, but as an alternative, rented dwellings would be good enough for them.