Is a New Global Order Emerging? The Potential Role of India
By confluence | July 16th, 2009 | Category: Cover Story |
- Abdul Kalam
I have proposed this doctrine (of a World Knowledge Platform) to Government institutions, academy and industry in many countries that I have visited and also to the Indian and European Parliaments. The Republic of Korea in particular has taken it up for further action. This world knowledge platform will enable joint design, development, cost effective production and marketing of the knowledge products in various domains. In the Industrial environment, it can be used to design complex systems – even ones that are as complex as an aircraft in a collaborative way using virtual prototyping. I realize the impact of ICT and the power of networks in every domain of our life. For the development of any system or products the power of connectivity and collaborative innovative effort is the key, which is the basic foundation for the World Knowledge Platform.
Missions of World Knowledge Platform: The convergence of Bio, Nano and ICT is expected to touch every area of concern to the humanity. The “World Knowledge Platform” will take up missions, in some of the areas which are of utmost urgency to all of us to make our world a safe, sustainable, peaceful and prosperous place to live in.
The “World Knowledge Platform” can also be utilized by organizations for integrating their capabilities spread in different work centres, synergizing the unique competence available in other likeminded companies both within the country and abroad for vertical domains for collaborative research, development, production and marketing of products and systems using Global Sourcing approach.
With the capabilities developed in various parts of the world in the last several decades, we need to create innovative partnerships in world knowledge platforms to face the current challenges of economic turbulence and prepare for the new requirements of the 21st century.
As we are embarking on an innovative international partnership, I would like to share with you an inspiring message from Maharishi Patanjali in Yoga Sutra:
“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds, your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, you will find yourself in a new great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”
Excerpted from Dr.Abdul Kalam’s talk delivered at the Nehru Centre, London on Tuesday 9th June
The speech in full can be accessed through the links set out below
Quite.
Forget the governments, they have enough on their plates.
Road signs were invented not by the government or by councils but by the Automobile Association. The tea bag was invented by a Scotsman who now lives in Leith.
Go for it, set it up, give the WKP an address, a logo multiple addresses: New Delhi, Beijing, Teheran, Baghdad, New York, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Santiago, Brasilia, Caracas, Alexandria, Abuja, Pretoria, Khartoum, Kabul, Tokyo, Bishkek, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Riyadh, London, Brussels, Moscow, Budapest - the list goes on.
Find a collaborator in cities around the world, anyone, a scientist, a technician, a librarian, anyone who is organised and able to communicate.
Create a database, a big one, create a content management system that enables participants to file and retrieve information, documents, contacts and new ideas quickly and easily.
Find benefactors, someone who has become successful through innovation - James Dyson, Trevor Baylis, Alastair Reynolds, Sir Clive Sinclair (a very approachable man) - again, the list is long.
Set up a single website, or several - one could be a kind of ‘Wikipedia Of Science, Technology and Innovation,’ find a beautiful Indian term that means “World Knowledge Platform,” make it the hub of all contacts, flow all communication through a single portal, draft the outline design and hire someone to collate and reply to the initial enquiries.
As it grows, all contributions and enquiries would be sifted ad compared, ensuring maximum synergy and “cross-polliation” of ideas, research and kowledge.