Back to Work - The time for Sweden to step up on science diplomacy is now!

The sun set a bit earlier today than it did yesterday. Autumn nears and it’s time to pivot back from vacation- to business-mode at the OSI Seoul - Office of Science and Innovation .?After one full year as head of the OSI in Seoul, it is rewarding to embark on yet another season together with my stellar colleagues at the Embassy of Sweden in South Korea.

This summer (in addition to some well-deserved R&R) I’ve taken part of a great many stimulating conversations, read a lot of good books, and have had time to reflect on impressions from the past 12 months. The transformational effects of science and tech are apparent to all of us, almost on a daily basis. Technology makes our lives longer, our streets safer, our hardware faster, our businesses more profitable and our work more productive. Tech is also an increasingly important factor in international relations. This is why science diplomacy is becoming a more important tool in our diplomatic arsenal and needs to be expanded in terms of its utility in Sweden's foreign policy.

“Technology has become the world’s most important strategic asset, not so much the instrument of foreign policy, as the driver of it.”

-Mustafa Suleyman

Education, research, science and technology need to be strong components of Sweden's national and foreign policy development. At no previous time is this more urgent, and in no place more relevant than in a small smart country like Sweden, where prosperity is so tightly linked to innovation-capacity, high-tech exports, and (not least) our position as one of the most advanced, sustainable and innovative countries in the world.

With a new Swedish research and innovation bill being drafted and a new EU R&D framework program in preparation, the time to step up our collective effort is now. Sweden has for nearly a century flourished thanks to the industries and capacity we have nurtured on the basis of investments in research, innovation, ingenuity and entrepreneurship. But these capabilities were forged in a different world and a different time. The great values of tomorrow will be built on the foundations of AI, synthetic biology, robotics, energy, quantum technology, space, edge computing, advanced materials etc. As we speak, an international sprint is ongoing to take strategic positions in all of these. We need to do the same, not just in rhetoric but in action.

My own frame of reference is of course based on daily impressions here in Seoul. The sheer depth of South Korea's ambitions on future technological supremacy are difficult to ignore. Research discoveries and tech-industry advances are front-page news every day. Long-term and ambitious industrial and research policy development are at the center of the political debate. The country has the most highly educated population of any nation on earth and growing up to be a Professor or Samsung-engineer is the dream of every child. South Korea realizes the important roles knowledge and technology play on the future of their country. Of course, Korea has its own challenges and shortcomings. Their ambitions for the future are, however, indicative of the competition we are up against. And they are rallying the whole of their society to take lead.

Countries like Sweden, characterized by high intrinsic freedom, individual empowerment, and institutional autonomy are at great risk of succumbing to fierce global competition if we cannot effectively find ways to harness both the collective potential of our national assets AND secure global partnerships with like-minded nations. There are tremendous opportunities and values at the door. Sweden needs to be an active part of the international race to develop, control and reap the benefits of tomorrow's emerging technologies.

Technology and political order are today more intertwined than ever. If we play our cards right, act with systemic long-term strategy and make the right investments, we can secure a new century of Swedish prosperity in research and technology. Along with my colleagues at Sweden's Offices of Science and Innovation across the globe, I believe science diplomacy can make a real difference on this journey.

Ping Tina Sundstr?m Karlberg Maria Brogren Per-Arne Wikstr?m Marika Amartey Kaliff