Bright Solutions Feature Address 

By Senator Danny Montano
Minister Of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education 
at The NIHERST Bright Solutions Award Ceremony, 
January 14th 2003, 
Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre.

Dr. Bhoe Tewarie, Chairman of The Board of Governors of NIHERST and Principal of the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine

Ms. Maureen Manchouk; President of NIHERST

Inventors

Distinguished guests

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Good Afternoon. Firstly permit me to extend best wishes for the New Year to all.

It is indeed a pleasure to support the initiative of NIHERST; and TIDCO. I am happy to have the opportunity to address you the young inventors of Trinidad and Tobago.

I would like to commend the President of NIHERST and her team for the visionary concept of the “Bright Solutions” category which I am advised is a competition that combines science and technology with community problem solving in a real-world setting. It is aimed at youngsters with untapped potential, who are creative problem-solvers and use the resources around them to make a difference.

I am sure we have all heard “necessity is the mother of all inventions”. In the modern age however, the pursuit of profit seems to be at the heart of most modern inventions. Most modern inventions and innovations seem to be driven by the inventor who wants to make life easier and faster. And, we know that there is a direct link between invention and profit. The success of the many “dot com” companies in the mid 90’s is testimony to this fact. You can see also the income earning potential of new inventions, you need only turn to the infomercial channels on TV and see the capital value of new inventions as marketers and advertisers seek to convince us that we need whatever if the latest product. It is the possibility of generating profit that has been behind the establishment of many research and development institutions. 

In fact most research into space technology as well as pharmaceuticals is driven by the profit motive.

Today I salute your innovative endeavors and I would wish all our citizens to be inventive and innovative. But it is not necessary only to invent a device, it is vital also that we are innovative in the way we do things. It is a culture of innovation that will catalyze the transformation of our society. 

Steven Jay Gould stated “ Science is, and must be, culturally embedded and can either aid or retard advancing knowledge” In the 21st Century the global economy is marked by knowledge-based growth, characterized by rising efficiency in the transmission, retrieval and analysis of information. However, there is the danger that if we fail to develop and harness a culture of science, innovation and technology the transformation of our society to developed status may be retarded.

It means therefore that we need to expand the outreach of NIHERST’s initiatives. Whilst I am happy to learn of outreach programmes that takes science to Fyzabad, Mayaro, Couva, San Fernando and Laventille we must ensure that we reach Cedros, Marac, Mamoral, Biche, Roxborough and Plymouth. 

The emphasis must be to zero in on those who can be described as grassroot/home inventors, since there is no law that says to be an inventor you need be a University scholar. 

In fact the gift of invention requires one basic skill and that is to ability to be creative, to stretch your imagination beyond the visible horizon. We all dream and imagine. But there are those amongst us who are blessed with the gift to stretch their imaginations beyond that, which is presently visible. There are those who dream of that which might be. They dream of things not yet known. For us ordinary people we wonder where those ideas come from. We know only that they are gifts to human beings without bias as to race or class, nationality, gender or religion. Indeed science has proven absolutely by genetic testing that we are all the same regardless of how me might appear.

Nolan Bushnell, arguably the father of computer entertainment, built the first computer game in the bedroom of one of his eight children. He later went on to found Atari in 1972 and subsequently launched the video game revolution; four years later he sold Atari in 1976 for US$28million. When asked to identify what got him started he stated that it was in his third grade class when he was assigned to do the unit on electricity and got to play with the science box. 

He later went home set up the card table, found all the flashlights and batteries and pieces of wire and old stuff around the house and started tinkering, and never stopped. That was the genesis of the video game revolution.

Recently when many of these larger than life international inventors were polled, they offered an enlightening mix of personal experience and advice for young people and concern for the future that has some relevance. 

These international inventors flagged concerns about the education system, particularly when it comes to technology. Steve Wozniak the co-founder of Apple Computer who now runs classes for children described a tendency for teachers to be computer phobic. These revolutionaries stress the importance of formal education because, for many of them, teachers were their early inspiration. The co-founder of Apple says his high school teacher was very much his hero. But his teacher did not just use a course out of a textbook, he wrote his own assignments. For these inventors their teachers made learning fun.

Teachers who are willing to inspire and share in the success of their students must therefore be prepared accept the responsibility for when their charges fail. I am not suggesting that parents abdicate their responsibility. I want to state, to emphasize the importance of teachers being present in the classroom from pre-school right through to post secondary. A move to developed nation status must mean zero absenteeism from instructors. Further more we must be careful to avoid making early judgments about the ability and aptitude of young learners. The biblical parable of the shepherd who goes in search of one of his flock is instructive. We need to move forward, yes, but this nation can only move forward if we ensure no one is left behind. 

My message for young persons is that you may not think you have the aptitude for something like technology, or you may have pre-disposed notions about what you could do in life. I want to tell you that there is always more hope than you can imagine. My suggestion is to work at what you are good at in life, even if it seems like a pastime or even just a hobby or just the sort of thing you do on your own when there is no reason to do it, like when there is no grade or salary. Eventually, if you are good at it, it will have value.

The fact is the development of the Knowledge Sector will require drivers and our young people need to adopt a culture of science and innovation. Science, Technology and Innovation drives globalisation, competition and development. The new challenge for Government is to make learning institutions more robust and relevant. This Government is very much aware of the importance of exploiting Science Technology and Innovation for wealth creation, social progress and environmental quality. Furthermore we will seek to encourage our people by upgrading existing educational facilities and by establishing a new Trinidad and Tobago University of Science Engineering and Technology, which will place special emphasis on Research and Innovation.

Today I want to throw out a new challenge to students at post secondary institutions, be they private or public. At my Ministry we are presently preparing a National Policy for Tertiary Education. In this regard we have included representatives from private institutions. Recognising that this will affect mainly young persons I am inviting students of all tertiary institutions in Trinidad and Tobago to contribute to this National Policy by way of an essay competition titled “The way forward for Tertiary Education”. We will offer cash prizes for the best three submissions. I ask that the essays not exceed 5000 words and be submitted to the Ministry by February 28th. We hope that we will be able to include some of the suggestions that come forward in the National Policy document.

Once again I would like to congratulate you young inventors on your success. I hope that you will all go on to greater and better things. 

Thank You.