Written by The second day of the Conferences was dedicated mainly to the themes of environment and health, with opening remarks given by Helena Canhão, the Dean at Nova Medical School, who introduced the day highlighting the need of reshaping the essence of medical education: students need to be not only skilled but also open to diversity, compassionate and equipped with a leadership capacity. Furthermore, Helena brought up the relevant issue of longevity as a challenge and opportunity for future doctors, recognizing the urgency of this issue, which is currently being explored by the Nova Longevity Institute. This collaboration between Nova Medical School, Nova School of Business and Economics and Sir Richard Roberts is a pioneering center of research and implementation of measures for longevity accessible to all.
Fernando Alexandre, Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, also took part in this first segment, focusing the increasing complexity of the world and challenges it poses to democracies. As many shocks, such as epidemics, wars and climate change, have made the world progressively volatile, education and innovation have become instrumental pillars to foster trust in democracies and fight populist ideas, which simplify solutions for complex problems. Thus, to find the best suited policies and make informed decisions about a country’s future, everyone should be guaranteed equal opportunities to access education.
Innovation, as result of human capital and science investment, naturally leads to solutions for global problems.
Peace Talk
The first panel debate delved into the peace thematic, and was between former Presidents, Dalia Grybauskaite (Lithuania) and Elbegdorj Tsakhia (Mongolia), accompanied by former Prime Minister, Mehdi Jomaa (Tunisia), and moderated by Rebecca Abecassis, Editor, Expert, Author & Producer of European News Programs with RTP Portugal. The debate was centred around multilateralism and whether it could still be a powerful peace promoting tool.
Dalia Grybauskaite introduced the proposed theme tracing back to 2014, when she warned world leaders that Russia was a terrorist state with a dangerous President. After meeting with Putin in 2010, she realized that Lithuania could not depend on Russia for energy, as the latter was using it to make countries dependent on it for a future expansion. This prompted the ultimate decision for Lithuania to become energetically independent from Russia. Grybauskaite concluded her statement further inferring that negative leadership and dictatorship is growing and promoting its brutal power, mentioning that Putin has already presented himself as an “Informal leader of the World”. This argument was supported by Mongolia’s former President, who adds that change starts now:
“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
As the debate progressed, Mehdi Jomaa advanced a different perspective, as he is not in the first line of fire of the discussed conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Accordingly, society is leaving a world order (post WW2), in favour of arising disturbance and conflict, with injustice feeding the current global issues. He then mentions that Tunisia is a part of the Non-Aligned movement, so it has neutral position. But it is a part of the new global south: There is an emergence of new powers, the global south is an expression of the will to reorganize the world and be connected to what is happening but also the need for negotiation around the tables and not with weapons.
He further expanded on the conflict and political instability in Palestine, emphasizing that it should be given equivalent support as Ukraine but is not.
We are living a double standard. When it’s about global powers we show interest, but otherwise we don’t. Where is the UN and its Security Council? Palestinians have the right to be self-determined and peace needs to emerge through respect of international law.
The recent death of Hamas leaders is not enough, the support of the US and EU is crucial to assure Palestinians right to live and kick start peace talks. Medhi concludes by highlighting the need to work towards justice and the respect of international law.
The debate ends with Tsakhia’s last statement, noting that there is still a good global trend in a want for a better future, with more than 140 countries having voted for the Pact for the Future. He believes in a brighter and more prosperous future for the world.
Health & Longevity
The conferences then moved on to Health & Longevity, with a Nobel Talk given by Sir Richard Roberts, Chief Scientific Officer at New England Biolabs. The 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine Laureate argued that bacteria are not always the villain, as it titles the speech “Why we should love bacteria”.
Sir Richard contextualizes the audience by stating that every human has 10 to 14 bacterial cells in their body keeping them alive: help with digestion and keep the skin in good condition, for instance. Despite its visible strengths, bacteria still have a bad name to them due to the perceived notion that these are at the root of most diseases.
“There is so much we don’t know about them and yet they are essential.”
The concept of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) is then introduced, as more than 700 million people face hunger, and 60 million children’s growth is stunted because they do not have access to the proper nutrients and food. Thanks to the biotech revolution, scientists know how to breed plants in better ways, make them more nutrient dense.
However, Greenpeace has been advertising against GMOs without evidence of their danger, leading the European parliament to ban them. To reverse such decision 172 Nobel Laureates have supported an open letter to Greenpeace and every UN Ambassador urging an acknowledgement that GMO technology is safe and should be supported for the sake of the developing world, who desperately need improved yielding crops with added nutritional value.
Moreover, climate change is devastating life as we know it and greenhouse gas emissions are a major problem. Bioengineered crops can help the food supply, to mitigate climate change, by making crops consume more CO2 out of the atmosphere.
The next talk explores the theme of longevity, introduced in the beginning of morning, as the two guest speakers answer the question: Is the obsession with health turning ageing into a medical condition?
For the past decades, the growing aging population has been perceived as a burden, due to more need of assistance, which has led to the concepts of successful ageing versus bad ageing. Thus, people are turning common experiences of ageing into diseases and starting to diagnose too early, which is the issue tackled by speakers Alexandra Brandt Jonsson, medical anthropologist and associate professor of health and society at Roskilde University in Denmark, and John Brandt Brodersen, general practitioner and professor at the Centre of General Practice University of Copenhagen and the Research Unit for General Practice.
Overdiagnosis can have three types: Over-detection, over-definition and disease mongering, which regards the widening of diagnostic boundaries to expand treatment market. Moreover, experiencing a decrease in physical and cognitive abilities is seen as a danger, not part of the idea of “successful ageing”, contributing to an overdiagnosis of natural challenges that come along with age.
To further explore the matter and its impact on the environment, the guest speakers brought empirical data: 80% of carbon footprint of healthcare comes from clinical activity, with 60% of which being evidence-based care, 30% being of low value, and 10% being harmful care, directly aligned with overdiagnosis. By reducing the 40%, the carbon footprint can be reduced by 1/3, and resources allocation improves in efficiency. However, the growing tendency to progressively medicalize foments the need for macro action.
Planet Talks
The Planet Talks of the morning are introduced by Elizabeth Kite’s inspirational talk on what could be learnt from the world’s most vulnerable nations in order to lead better. Kite dedicated the talk to sharing her insights on how resilience and leadership in Tonga, the world’s third most vulnerable nation to natural disasters and rising sea levels, can guide society toward creating a more sustainable and inclusive future. This line of thought is further explored in the next talk, with guest speaker Rui Diogo, Multi-awarded researcher and writer, who debated how critical global issues can be addressed through the convergence of ancient wisdom and modern science.
Food systems and biodiversity are also focal points when addressing the climate and environmental sustainability. Professor Carlos Gonçalo das Neves and Meghan Sapp discuss how regenerative agriculture and practices are essential for a successful systemic transformation, in an insightful conversation moderated by Gabriela Ribeiro.
The former talks paved the way for the next panel debate about energy and climate change management, powered by EDP. Guest speakers Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive Director of UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services), and Michael Liebreich, chairman and CEO of Liebreich Associates and Co-Managing Partner of EcoPragma Capital, join moderator Vera Pinto Pereira, to address inclusive strategies to drive energy transitions in today’s world. The audience is given context on the shared goal of the Paris Agreement to limit warming to 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels, implying a net zero CO2 emissions globally by 2050, and Jorge Moreira da Silva opens the debate by arguing that the issue has trespassed climate, including now inequality and an overall sustainability crisis.
Both speakers agree that there is a need for generosity and solidarity, from developed countries, towards the countries who don’t have the means for an energetic transition.
The energy transition is about more than going green and the climate, it is about social impact.
Policies and investments play, thereby, a crucial role, however, these need to be backed by an actual capacity of implementation, especially in the less developed countries. It was also noted that innovation plays a vital role, even more so if it is present in all the intertwined sectors mentioned: not just science, but also political and financial. Engineers and scientists are essential, but would need the support of business professionals, to help scaling up and take the technologies forward, as well as that of politicians, to raise ambition and implement the policies needed to spread the technologies
The speakers did have diverging opinions in terms of optimism of reaching the 1.5ºC goal: Jorge Moreira da Silva takes an optimist stand, arguing that the developed countries can surely reach this goal but need to help the rest of the world to do so as well, whereas Liebreich was more pessimistic about the threshold being reached in time.
Policy Talk
Before the lunch break, the audience is presented a brief talk with Sarah Aswhin, head of department at LSE, and Francisco Veloso, dean at INSEAD, moderated by Graham Miller, about education’s role in the turbulent global landscape.
The past years have marked a substantially turbulent time for education, relating to challenges of sustainability, the emergence of AI, and an instable political climate. Historically, Universities have the delicate role of creating safe and respectful spaces that foster debate, experimentation, freedom of speech and access to facts while existing within a political framework.
Within this talk, speakers agree that it is crucial to create and uphold a space where students feel safe to express themselves and learn in whichever way adapts best to them which is still immensely complex to accomplish. There is still a lot of work to be done.
Closing Remarks
As this enriching morning comes to an end, the audience is reminded of the pivotal insights shared across the various domains, from health and longevity to peace and climate action. These discussions have underscored not only the complexity of today’s challenges, but also the collective strengths required to address and combat them.
NAC thanks all the speakers for all the invaluable contributions as we look forward to building upon this momentum in the days to come.
Marta Nascimento
Madalena Martinho do Rosário
theawarenessnews.com 