Address by the President of the Republic, Michel Temer, during the delivery ceremony of the XXIX Young Scientist Award - Planalto Palace
Planalto Palace, 5 December 2018
I want to greet Professor Mario Neto Borges, President of CNPq, and Dr. Vera Lúcia Imperatriz-Fonseca, naturally on behalf of whom I salute all those awarded by the Young Scientist Award.
My greetings to Eliseu Padilha,
Gilberto Kassab,
Federal deputy Rodrigo de Castro,
Paulo Tonet Camargo, president of the Association, of Abert,
Luiz Davidovich, president of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences,
Miguel Krigsner, chairman of Grupo Boticário's board of directors,
Our Banco do Brasil representative,
The representative of the United Kingdom Embassy,
and the ladies and gentlemen in attendance.
And I see here that we're having a party, aren't we? A party of Brazilian science, consequently a feast to Brazilian intellectuality, isn't it? And, in fact, to honour Brazilian science is a duty that I always carry with great pleasure. Ceremonies like this - which are, one sees, true celebrations - fill us with renewed enthusiasm. I say it's exciting to meet so many talented researchers and see the vitality of science in Brazil. Incidentally, Kassab mentioned the inauguration of Sirius, didn't he? That, in fact, in Campinas, is drawing attention of scientists from the whole world, isn't it? And here, our winners are young people of different ages - men and women who have in common the love of knowledge, the dedication, indeed, to knowledge.
And for this very reason I want to... something I have done very often, Professor Nader, Helena Nader... I have done this very often, which is to congratulate Minister Kassab. And here, in particular, the organisers and sponsors of the Young Scientist Award.
I say it is encouraging to note that the initiative is already in its 29th edition, is it not? The theme that served as a motto for the work we recognise today is vital. We cannot think about our tomorrow without reflecting on innovation, the environment and the transformation of our society.
All this indicates - does it not? – that we want to be, more and more, a scientific powerhouse. The ladies and gentlemen know better than anyone else: Science is the activity that moves through the desire to overcome challenges, doesn't it? These are discoveries that are made after facing many challenges. The healing of diseases, the sustainable use of natural resources, the search for solutions to life in big cities, a reality of the moment. These are horizons for those who dedicate themselves to research, to what are, in fact, the horizons that bring us here.
Today, ideas are often, in fact, the most valuable thing. Not infrequently, we all know, in the contemporary world, even if I allow myself the image, a patent is worth as much as a factory. How many big companies - and here is a big company, O Boticario -, that produce so much worldwide... , but sometimes they produce nothing physical. Their wealth lies in intelligence and creativity. Sometimes the product of a company is not material, but rather intelligence and creativity. For our part, as you can see here, we rely on the intelligence and creativity of our scientists and researchers, which were also magnificently represented this afternoon.
Therefore, I would like to convey my greetings to all those who are awarded, but especially to the invaluable collaboration they render to the country.
So, ladies and gentlemen, I am very glad - is it not so, Kassab? – to know that ours is a government that values science and recognises the fundamental role of the researcher. It is one thing to honour science as a whole; another thing is to give prestige to those who produce science, who are in fact researchers. Over the last two and a half years, we have not been overcome by difficulties: we made a point, thanks to the great work of Kassab, of all its staff, the President of the CNPq, of all those who work in this area, we made a point of praising and stimulating the contributions of the scientific community to Brazilian development. And this, in fact, this ceremony today, is showing itself in concrete actions.
When I think of the reactivation, or rather we think of the reactivation of the National Science and Technology Council, which took place in 2016, it was a move that brought the scientific community closer to public administration. And I say this because Brazil cannot do without, and no government can do without, the advice and privileged views of our scientists.
In fact, I also think of the Legal Framework for Science, Technology and Innovation. As in so many other areas, our main goal was to untie ourselves, was to cut red tape, to facilitate the life of those who do science in Brazil.
And I think, as I just mentioned just now, of the efforts to carry out the Sirius Project. Incidentally, as the ladies and gentlemen should know, but it's something, Tonet, it's an awesome thing to get to know that design. You feel optimistic, you feel that Brazil is a great country. We, who are often overly focused on pessimism, on discrediting the country internally and externally, when you go abroad, you say: “Brazil is at the side of the great missions of the world”. And there, as here, Brazilian scientific thought is present. It is Brazilian scientific thought that advances technology. It is Brazilian scientific thought that, as I just reported, in a great meeting that I have attended recently on special education... That we must prepare for the future, considering possible unemployment in the face of automation, of the new technology that could, let us say, eliminate smaller-dimension jobs. But if we have, with the help of the scientific community, the idea of preparing young people for the jobs to come, in the face of this new technology, we are fulfilling an extraordinary social duty. And this duty will surely only be fulfilled and carried forward if we have the collaboration of the scientific class of our country.
Therefore, once again, Minister Kassab, Dr. Mario, Professor Mario Neto Borges... I once again want to greet you for this event, as I have done in several other moments, and say the following: Brazil - I don't mean just the government, but Brazil - owes much to Brazilian science.
My compliments.