This award provides partial support for a conference addressing the roles that science and engineering societies in the Caribbean could play in improving the application of S & T to development needs in the region. The conference has been organized jointly by the Center for Energy and Environment Research of the University of Puerto Rico, the Caribbean Association of Universities and Research Institutes, and other regional organizations, together with the Western Hemisphere office of the AAAS. It is modeled after similar conferences held in Africa and India in the past few years and builds on a worldwide United Nations conference on the same subject held in 1983. The agenda is generally organized to focus discussion on the status of the societies in the islands, ways in which they could be strengthened, and ways in which they could assist their members to apply their capabilities to the problems of development. Working Groups have prepared action recommendations for the conference in the areas of communication, education and natural resources. No single Caribbean nation has the critical mass of scientists in all the fields necessary to address their many technical development needs effectively. The small size of these countries precludes their ever achieving such a critical mass. Strengthening communication and concrete collaboration among the scientific communities of the islands, including Puerto Rico, will strengthen their capabilities and infrastructure. They will become better able to carry out relevant research and also better able to collaborate effectively with the U.S. and other industrialed countries. This conference is well designed to explore concrete ways to channel and link the abilities of local scientists through regional networks.
