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The sources of technology are so diverse that the poor's access to them is increasing. These technologies can be put to either destructive or constructive uses. I shall provide examples of the current destructive uses first.
Destructive Uses
There are very few places on earth where the happenings of yesterday are not immediately broadcasted worldwide. The wealth and privilege of the rich are splashed across electronic screens, shouted over airways, or seen as lavish photos in newspapers. Excessive consumption, often reaching pathologic levels, are lamented by the spread of information and communication technologies, at the same time and by the same media, incidences of agonising deaths from famine and disease are displayed in heart-wrenching detail.
The poor in their corners of crippling need witness excesses and wanton greed of a few on a daily basis. On top of this, travel, tourism and the structures of corporate expansion, also bring trappings of the ostentatious rich right on the doors of the poor. Envy and disrespect are not too far away in these circumstances, again a potent mix.
Many among the poor have now grown impatient with their lot, and seek to get immediate redress. Thousands, especially among the young males, have gravitated to philosophies and technologies that facilitate illicit trade, graft, corruption, extortion, kidnapping, and murder.
The gun, other antipersonnel weapons of all types, bombs, rocket launchers and guided missiles, are more and more brought into daily action. The threat of germ and chemical weapons being developed by the poor as a substitute for weapons of mass destruction, unsettle the rich states as they themselves continue to expand their arsenals. Additionally, the same techniques used to rescue victims of disasters are used to locate the innocent for criminal intent.
This is not an exhaustive list but it makes the point that as poverty spreads, so do the ingenious uses of technologies for survival and criminal activities.
My argument here is not that all poor people are bandits or criminals, but the hopelessness and pain of poverty make it easier to succumb to the lure of crime for economic survival, and science and technology (S&T) allow more potency when they do. The simple cellphone and the Internet have become important tools for the so-called terrorists and those who wish to prey on the rich, while satellite technologies are called into play to evade the forces of law and order, especially in cases of the movement of illicit drugs.
Needless to say, one of the greatest fears today is that of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of those locked out of global privilege and power. Dirty bombs are now seen as a prelude to the acquisition of more damaging weapons.
Illegitimate uses for technology
Not to oversell the point, here in Jamaica, thieves have been able to set up illegitimate telephone centres, mimic credit cards and raid automatic teller machines, by a better knowledge of modern methods and the science which underlies them.
Where criminal and terrorist minds have found illegitimate uses for technology, such concepts as intellectual property and building of productive scientific and technological competencies, brook no worth. In several instances the underworld has forced law enforcement to catch up with their innovations.
In actuality, the technological gap is being closed in unanticipated ways.
Moreover, the poor will do almost anything to survive and plundering their environment is not off limits. Over fishing made possible by explosives and toxic chemicals and the chain saw to clear forests for agriculture and obtain material for energy, are two examples of how technology has been used by the poor to eke out a living, with total disregard for the hastening of the destruction of the foundations of their livelihood.
Before leaving this argument the case of energy has always been a bone of contention, but it is now intensifying as oil ceases to be abundant and cheap.
Many poor countries are turning to nuclear energy, which the dominant states are seeking to curtail, without providing alternate technologies for domestic use in underdeveloped countries. The fear of some of the nuclear powers is that nuclear technologies can easily lead to the production of nuclear weapons by so-called rougue states or religious zealots. While on the other side, the nuclear-aspiring countries, regarded this technology as essential for reducing poverty and accelerating development and security. This dilemma is yet to reveal all its frightening features.
One can say without equivocation that S&T are becoming the pivots of global confrontation, as countries vie for equality and justice.
The message is simple and it is this: S&T left alone are not benign, and its effects will be felt in all countries. It is, therefore, constructive to purposely build these elements for socially edifying and productive uses, than to leave foreign technologies to be selectively used by a few for destructive purposes. One way or another S&T will have profound effects on poverty and its accompanying postscripts.
Constructive Uses
Science has provided a vision of the universe and introduced new concepts of ourselves and our position in the scheme of things. There is no doubt that science has given greater understanding to old technologies as it has prompted the creation of new ones. Science creates products ahead of markets, and it has recently produced artificial life and harnesses it for beneficial uses. The upshot of this is that science has created large industrial complexes as it triggers the rise of small enterprises and advance domestic services, along with bringing the poor closer to the operations of their societies.
All this is well known, but the social impacts of science have not been given the same attention as its influence in the economic arena. Today, I shall explore two of these spheres of beneficial social inducements, that of democracy and the eradication of poverty.
Deepening Democracy
I posit that science is an imperative for the strengthening and deepening of democracy. Many of the problems in established democracies spring from the lack of full participation of the majority of citizens. As a consequence, they feel helpless in ordering the affairs of their communities and have become cynical about the political decision-making process.
Logically, in the modern world, informed democratic participation is impossible without confident scientific thinking and balanced technological assessment throughout society. The profusion of choices rendered by scientific technologies and the questions posed by science, demand the fundamental capability of scientific reasoning, if individuals are not to rely mainly on the opinion of others and on their own narrow emotions.
The flood of data and information, consequent on the spread of information and communication technologies (ICTS), has made this eventuality progressively more pertinent today, especially in countries struggling with both linguistics and scientific literacy. Essentially, a wider spectrum of citizens must become more cognitive and analytical, if democracy is to mature and realise its full potential.
So far, democracy has been inconsequential in relieving the growing numbers locked in poverty and desperation. This coupled with the unforgiving and often covert market mechanism and the acceleration of an insensitive one-sided globalization, have aggravated instead of reduced poverty. Science and technology perhaps are the only forces, which can provide the innovations and empirical data to begin the resolution of these issues of crushing poverty.
In a sense, science and its results must be seen as the conscience of society, as well as the moral authority of democracy. So, science must not only demonstrate that poverty is unacceptable and in many ways too costly, if not too dangerous, but must also provide tangible ways to wipe this bane from the family of man.
Science depends on the principles of freedom of exploration and expression which are the bedrock of democracy. Nevertheless, egalitarian and normative effects of democracy run counter to the elitism on which scientific excellence thrives. Scientists must therefore find ways to educate civil society in the tenets of science and the cautiousness of its results, without being so tentative as not to inspire confidence. A science for the poor with a demonstration of its usefulness are badly needed. Once this is achieved the power of science will be revealed with telling consequences on development.
The question now is how to use S&T for the poor rather than just for the rich - a science for more human ends, for example ICTS can be deployed for better government and governance and building consensus for democracy, more technological choices for increased productivity in the informal and small scale sectors, and the development of new material technologies for affordable housing, and the use of alternative technologies for safer and more environmentally friendly energy and safer water supplies.
Attainment of the Millennium Development Goal (MDGS)
The leaders of the world have finally accepted that poverty costs much more than they realise. The true cost is not yet calculated, and hopefully Jamaica will begin this measurement shortly, but there is no doubt it is a substantial drain on the rich, as well as on the poor. Just consider the cost of prevention with cure in instances where poverty makes current matters worst, such as terrorism, deaths from disaster, faulty construction and the spread of diseases, and this fact will become evident. So the world's leaders have agreed on a set of eight goals and some 18 targets to be achieved by 2015.
It is abundantly clear from just examining these goals that none of them, such as exemplified by the reduction of hunger, child mortality and tropical diseases, can be achieved without substantial S&T input. And it should also be clear that not all of the goals and the targets, such as primary education and environmental sustainability, can be met with existing levels of knowledge and S&T competence in the beneficiary countries. There is much work to be done by the local S&T communities to help to pose the right questions and seek the correct answers, by providing relevant technological solutions.
Moreover, the time frame of 2015 for the attainment of the MDGS suggests assertive technological partnerships and technology transfers. But no problem enmeshed in the complexity of poverty can be solved totally with outside expertise and knowledge alone. To extract the best from such collaborations, the poor, who are to benefit, must be made an active part of the definition and the meeting of targets, if poverty is first to be reduced, later to be eradicated and finally to be kept permanently at bay.
The rich countries must place more emphasis on poverty reduction as a moral principle and correct skewed expenditures, such as those being spent on bio-terrorism that are far greater than those donated to the control of the diseases of the poor.
So, more knowledge, better technology and closer partnerships between the rich and the poor are vital to achieve a more balanced global existence. Domestic S&T communities have clear responsibilities in all of these areas.
Conclusion
From what I have said, it is obvious that the exponential spread of S&T is here for good or for evil, and are potent forces in both instances. To ignore S&T at the formal domestic levels, does not mean that S&T will not have significant influences on societies both from the inside and the outside.
The logical conclusion then is that more S&T must be applied for gainful occupations and jobs, if there is to be a deflection from the temptation by the young to use S&T for anti-social purposes.
The message is clear from all quarters, greater local investments in S&T are a must for all societies, especially those with serious crime and domestic problems. If this is not done, those who impart knowledge and technologies for nefarious instead of constructive uses, will have the upper hand.
What is clear is that S&T will not remain inconsequential in any society. Furthermore, what is also true, is that poverty will not remain untouched by S&T. Those who ignore the role that S&T can play in poverty, do so at their own peril.
Dr Arnoldo Ventura is a researcher at the Mona Institute of Applied Sciences, University of the West Indies, Mona Campus. email: mias@uwimona.edu.jm
