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Environmental Health, Chemistry, and Middle East Peace
Lauren Chow
Science and Human Rights Intern
Each year, the AAAS Science and Human Rights Program holds a public lecture
and reception to honor a U.S.-based scientist for his or her work in furthering
human rights in the scientific community. Held in coordination with International
Human Rights Day, the event recognizes individuals whose contributions embody
the aim of the program itself. The 2005 recipient of this honor is Dr. Zafra
M. Lerman, a tireless human rights advocate and pioneer in her efforts to resolve
critical issues in the Middle East.
Dr. Lerman believes that scientists, not lawmakers, are best qualified to engage
in scientific policy debates to progress toward peace. She organized two conferences
of high-profile scientists from several countries in the Middle East, hoping
to initiate transboundary dialogues on pressing regional issues. These meetings
were unprecedented in their creation of permanent communication pathways between
scientists, regardless of political or cultural differences. In tribute to Dr.
Lerman's groundbreaking work, a panel of eminent U.S. chemists met December
2 at AAAS headquarters in Washington, D.C. to discuss scientific education and
collaboration in the Middle East.
A distinguished professor of science and public policy at Columbia College,
Chicago, Dr. Lerman both founded and heads the college's Institute for Science
Education and Science Communication. She also serves as chair of the American
Chemical Society's Subcommittee on Scientific Freedom and Human Rights, which
helped to organize the conferences. Dr. Lerman's unrelenting human rights activism
led to her description as a "one person urgent-action-alert" by Science
and Human Rights Program Director Audrey Chapman, continuing, "There are
very few persecuted scientists who have not benefited from [Dr. Lerman's] actions."
Opening the lecture, Dr. Lerman provided details of the goals and composition
of the two conferences, held on Malta. The first, held in December 2003, drew
fifty-eight participants, with scientists from Egypt, Iran, Israel, Jordan,
Kuwait, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United
Arab Emirates. Participants met in focus groups led by six Nobel laureates to
address environmental, economic, health and educational problems. The second
conference, held in November 2005 with eighty-five participants, welcomed new
representatives from Bahrain, Iraq and Qatar.
Dr. Lerman highlighted the need participants of both conferences expressed
for further workshops. Discussing her goals for the third conference, she intends
to increase the number of participating countries, possibly including northern
Africa.She also hopes for higher turnout from women, young scientists and members
of each country's respective National Academy of Sciences. Restating her strong
belief in scientific collaboration's ability to effect peace, Dr. Lerman quoted
Yuan T. Lee: "Borders are only lines on a map, nature doesn't know borders."
Lee, science advisor to the president of Taiwan, is one of the Nobel laureates
who attended the conferences. The ensuing panel discussion, reiterated the insignificance
of geographical borders.
Ahmed Mohamed, a Welch visiting professor of chemistry at Texas A&M University
and faculty member at Zagazig University, Egypt, discussed the changing role
and perception of science in the region, citing output levels of several countries
in various fields of research. Stressing the need for increased scientific discourse
in the Middle East, Dr. Mohamed discussed the threat of avian flu in the context
of the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. With an estimated two million, many
from Asian countries, making the pilgrimage in January 2006, the looming threat
of a pandemic demands urgent regional attention.
Charles Kolb, President and CEO of Aerodyne Research, Inc., discussed several
of the environmental and health problems in the Middle East. Explaining how
domestic pollution problems quickly become transboundary, Dr. Kolb stated the
need for reliable data on air and water quality. Dr. Kolb also called for the
formation of an international umbrella organization to enable communication
and regional collaboration. Without mechanisms to define, motivate and propose
collaborative work, Dr. Kolb concluded that general transboundary air quality
problems would continue to degrade.
Arthur B. Ellis, Director of the Division of Chemistry at the National Science
Foundation, spoke of the foundation's role in promoting disruptive breakthroughs
that change the scientific landscape. Dr. Ellis explained how advancements such
as the NSF TeraGrid project, NSF Middleware Initiative, data mining and remotely
run instruments revolutionize the ways scientists interact by further breaking
down physical borders.
E. Ann Nalley, President-Elect of the American Chemical Society, closed the
panel, discussing her experiences at both conferences. Dr. Nalley emphasized
the conferences' importance in fostering a sense of camaraderie and confidence
in participants. Recounting the profound difference newfound access to equipment
and academic exchange made for researchers previously working in isolation,
Dr. Nalley shares with many the belief that "what Zafra did will change
the atmosphere in the Middle East."
For more information about the Malta Conferences, see http://pubs.acs.org/cen/science/83/8351sci2.html
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