This series of webinars is an initiative of the Association for the Promotion of International Scientific and Technical Relations (AVRIST, www.avrist.fr). It is motivated by a few observations:
-Despite a long-standing history of excellent scientific institutions and a large and enterprising scientific diaspora, and despite some promising successes, India continues to face a number of challenges to meet its high expectations in science and technology. In the globalisation process, India occupies an original place that sets it apart from the dragons or China that founded their first phase of development on exports of manufacturing goods.
-From a geostrategic point of view India has unquestionably a power policy and is perceived by other countries, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region, as an active or a potential partner of a balancing policy with China. France and India have for long defined each other as a "strategic partners", much before France declared the Indo-Pacific region as a strategic priority.
-However, the research, higher education and innovation components of this power policy are not clearly deciphered, with the possible exceptions of its space policy and the emphasis on frugal innovation: India is an emerging global economic player and is also recognized as an active player in the fields of science, technology and innovation.It is of interest to its partners to explore to what extent, and in which sectors the innovations developed in India contribute to an original development path for the country.
These webinars propose, through mixing the experience of French and Indian players involved in India in their respective fields – academics, industrialists, diplomats – with the experience of researchers – sociologists, political scientists, economists, etc. – whose field of study is India, to contribute to a better understanding of its original place, of the more specific role assigned to innovation in its development, and of the prospects for future development and cooperation.
The following subject matters will be addressed:
- India's challenges: demographics (education, gender imbalances, rural poverty, real but low- employment growth…), climate (urban pollution, droughts, access to water…), infrastructure, interregional balances, energy…
- Concrete actions and results in certain sectors such as: manufacturing, infrastructure, agriculture, food, health and life sciences, urban development management, creative industries and information and communication technologies…
- Current and predictable evolution paths of India's national and regional scientific and innovation policies and of Indian science diplomacy.
- A final roundtable will discuss the prospective for mutually beneficial relationships.
Targeted audience: scientific and academic communities, heads of European companies active in India and Indian companies active in Europe, operators of competitiveness relations and European clusters, diplomats, innovation-promoting bodies, investors.
