Former President Prof. Roger Downer returns for extramural lecture

“Towards
environmental and socio economic sustainability: A vital role for
AIT”

“AIT, with its broad global reach and a clear mandate for
research and education relevant to the needs of society, can and should
play a pivotal role in effecting the changes that are required to
correct some very troubling global trends.” This was a key
message that former AIT President Professor Roger G.H. Downer brought
to a large crowd of academics and students gathered at the Bender
Auditorium for his extramural lecture titled, “Towards
environmental and socioeconomic sustainability: A vital role for
AIT”.

With former AIT President Prof. Alastair North and the current AIT
President Prof. Said Irandoust both looking on,
Prof. Downer returned to AIT on September 1 with a
thought-provoking assessment of the world’s current environmental and
socio-economic situation, and analysis of key causes for global
concern.

The eloquent President Emeritus at the University of Limerick
(Ireland), and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the University of
Waterloo (Canada), was clearly troubled by the fact that three
pillars supporting our collective societal existence are, as he put it,
“in serious trouble.” The environment, economic concerns, and social
equality are dangerously stressed with fractures and fissures, and
their possible collapse could have untold consequences for much of
humanity, Professor Downer warned.

Rhyming off some statistics of today’s inequitable
world where 80% of planet's wealth is controlled by 20% of its people;
where 3 billion individuals survive on less than $2 dollars a day;
where per capita income of the richest 20 countries is 40 times greater
than that of the 20 poorest countries; and where the combined Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) of the 41 poorest countries is less than the
combined wealth of the 7 richest individuals, the Irish academic set
the tone for his talk.

The ecological footprint of a population or country was defined
by Prof. Downer as the area of land and water required on a continual
basis to produce the resources consumed and to assimilate the wastes
that it produces. Moreover, bio-capacity was referred to as the actual
area of land and water available to that population or country. Stark
in his assertion that current human behaviour is counter-productive to
long-term sustainable existence, he informed AIT that in 2003 the world
crossed a Rubicon of sorts, entering an uncertain era marked by
chronic bio-deficit. Today, he said, most countries
are exceeding their biocapacity and the world is living beyond its
means. We are currently witness to ecological footprints of developed
countries which are five to twelve times greater than those of lesser
developed countries and, as populations grow, biodeficit
of nations will increase further.

So what’s to be done in these unsustainable times? For starters,
Prof. Downer called on all to review carefully the term ‘sustainable
development’, as it has been defined since the 1987, UN Commission on
Environment and Development, chaired by the former Prime Minister of
Norway, Gro Harlem Brundtland, which published a far-reaching
assessment of the state of our planet titled “Our Common Future”
(Oxford University Press). Prof. Downer explained that the
recommendations of the Brundtland Report have been widely accepted and,
indeed, have become the mantra underlying many subsequent policy
decisions at national and international levels.

An underlying premise of the Brundtland Commission was recognition of
the importance of global environmental and socio-economic stability in
ensuring a viable and sustainable future for mankind. The
World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED)
further defined sustainable development as,
‘development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs.’ It called for a 5-10-fold
increase in gross world industrial activity over the next century (WCED
p. 15, 89); alleviation of poverty and raising standard of living of
poor nations to that of developed world (WCED p. 1, 15, 17, 44);
environmental sustainability and preservation of the ecological base
for development.

Clearly for Professor Downer, such talk makes the
term ''sustainable development'' an oxymoron. That's because the
planet cannot sustain a 5-10% increase in industrial activity, he
said, as it is already exceeding its biocapacity. Additionally, he
was clear that lesser developed nations cannot achieve standards of
living currently enjoyed by wealthy nations, since there is
insufficient biocapacity. He remained unequivocal:
“Implementation of recommendations of the Brundtland Report will
compromise future generations considerably.” The relevance
and appropriateness of some of the recommendations of the Brundtland
Report were then considered within the context of an ever-changing
global climate.

In his follow-up arguments, Prof. Downer made the case
that major changes are required in the current global system and that
these can result from the impact of public opinion on the practices of
nation states and major corporations. The world of
business is changing – he said, global enterprise has greatly increased
the importance of supply chains, and knowledge as
commodity. Consequently, when viewed this way, any
alleviation of global poverty must involve facilitation of economic
independence – sustainable enterprise, he argued.

Ultimately such a prescription will require
developed nations to accept the fact that continued
industrial growth is not possible, and that some economic opportunity
must be made available to lesser developed nations, Professor Downer
added. At the same time, research into new technologies and new sources
of renewable resources must be supported and public opinion must be
mobilised to encourage nations and corporations to bring about
change.

However, in order to mobilize and influence public opinion,
there must be greater understanding and public awareness of
the issues. In his summation, Prof. Downer ended his lecture by
exhorting today’s Asian Institute of Technology to be mindful of how it
too can be an agent for change. “AIT, with its broad
global reach and a clear mandate for research and education relevant to
the needs of society, can and should play a pivotal role in effecting
the changes that are required,” he concluded.

For a copy of Prof. Roger Downer's presentation, please click:
Thailand Presentation

The video link of Prof. Roger Downer's lecture can be seen at:
203.159.28.31/Lecture/Downer-1-Sept-08.wmv

Bio-data of Professor Roger G.H.
Downer

Professor Roger G. H. Downer received his tertiary level
education at Queens University Belfast (B.Sc., M.Sc., D.Sc.) and
the University of Western Ontario (Ph.D.). His career
includes appointments as Professor of Biology and Chemistry and
Vice-President, University of Waterloo, Canada, President, Asian
Institute of Technology, Thailand and President and
Vice-Chancellor, University of Limerick. He is author or
co-author of five books, 164 scientific publications and is recipient
of a number of awards and honours including election as a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Canada, Royal Irish Academy, the honorary degrees of
LL.D. (Belfast) and D.Sc. (Waterloo), the FRJ Fry Gold Medal and the
ESC Gold Medal. He has served as President, Canadian Society of
Zoologists, Vice-Chair, Biological Council of Canada, Chair NSERC Grant
Selection Committees in Biology and Food and Agriculture, Member of NSF
(USA) Grant Selection panel in Regulatory Biology, Chair, Birr
Scientific Foundation, Chair, Munster Rugby Board, Chair, National
Self-Portrait Collection, Chair of the John and Gertrude Hunt Museum,
Limerick, Chair, IRFU, Education Committee, member of the Executive
Council, Irish Red Cross and as non-executive Director of Nucryst
Pharmaceutical Corporation, Westaim Corporation, Shannon Development
and the Limerick Enterprise Development Board. His current activities
include membership of several corporate boards, consulting in
education, economic development and corporate strategy, writing and
speaking assignments. Professor Downer is married to Jean and
they have three children and two grand-children.