Partnership and cooperation for sustainable development
The Central Asian Scientific Forum “Partnership and Cooperation for Sustainable Development in Central Asia on Sustainable Development and Innovation”, which was to be held in London at the end of March of this year, was organized in online format by the Kazakhstan PhD Association in the UK with the support of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Great Britain and the Foundation of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan – Elbasy, the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan reports.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the forum was held online from April 10 to 20, 2020 and was organized by the Kazakhstan PhD Association in the United Kingdom with the support of the Foundation of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan – Elbasy, the Embassy of Kazakhstan in the United Kingdom, the UN Information Office in Kazakhstan, British-Kazakh Society, Center for International Programs, Eurasian University of Technology, AIFC Bureau of Continuing Professional Development and Loughborough University.
The main goal of the forum is to provide a platform for talented researchers from Central Asia to present and discuss breakthrough research projects on sustainable development of the region. The forum also helps in the search and involvement of potential partners from government bodies, business structures and public organizations in research projects aimed at the sustainable development of Central Asian countries.
For several days, the forum participants discussed the most relevant topics for modern science and industry. Doctoral students and scientists from leading European and Kazakhstani universities, such as Nazarbayev University, University College London, Loughborough, Cardiff, Manchester, Eurasian University of Technology, Wageningen University and others, presented innovative ideas and developments in the field of robotics, artificial intelligence, education, health, energy, etc.
During the discussions, representatives of the public and private sectors noted that there is great potential for cooperation with scientists in promising research projects.
The plenary session, which was held on the final day of the forum, was attended by the Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the United Kingdom Erlan Idrisov, Chairman of the British-Kazakh Society Rupert Goodman, Director of the Academy of Elbasy Foundation Farhad Kuanganov, Chief Director for Strategic Development of the Board under the Governor of Astana International Financial Center ”(AIFC) Professor Alexander Van de Putt, Executive Director of the international organization EXPO & WOMEN Lyazyat Askarova, Vice-Rector for Research, Loughborough University Mr. Steve Rotberg, Head of the UN Information Office in Kazakhstan, Vlastimil Samek, Chairman of the Civil Society Committee of the Ministry of Information and Public Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan Alia Galimova, Director of Programs for Education and Society Development of the British Council Richard Everitt, Head of BBC World News Commercial Representation Eurasia Sergey Stanovkin, professor of law, international law and global regulation of the University of Dundee Volker Royben and Deputy Director for Development of International organization «One Young World» Tessa Daling.
The purpose of the session was to discuss ways to bring together as many interested parties as possible in achieving the goals of sustainable development, both locally and globally: representatives of government agencies, industry, including venture capital, and, of course, scientists.
In his speech, Ambassador E. Idrisov noted that the current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic pointed to the true problems and challenges of the modern world, such as lack of trust, lack of coordination of actions, mass disinformation, etc. In this regard, the importance of the forum and similar platforms, According to him, is especially important in the context of finding answers to questions about life after a pandemic.