Search

Begin New Search Topic Science and Technology Publication Year within 10 Years

421. Diplomacy in the Digital Age

Author:
Matthew W. Barzun
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Video
Institution:
Columbia University World Leaders Forum
Abstract:
This World Leaders Forum program features an address by The Honorable Matthew W. Barzun, Ambassador of the United States of America to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, followed by a question and answer session with the audience. All guests are invited to a reception at the conclusion of the program. A former Internet pioneer himself, Ambassador Barzun will discuss the potential and the constraints of digital technologies and media for today's diplomats. Matthew Barzun has been the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom since 2013, after serving as Ambassador to Sweden from 2009 to 2011. Before his ambassadorships, he had an extensive career in business and politics, including leadership positions in both of President Obama's electoral campaigns.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Science and Technology, International Affairs, and Mass Media
Political Geography:
United Kingdom

422. The Case for Intellectual Property Rights: Should Patents Be Strengthened, Weakened or Abolished Altogether?

Author:
Joel Blit
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation
Abstract:
The case for patents rests crucially on three conditions: that innovation is undersupplied in the absence of patents; that patents promote increased innovation; and that the welfare benefits of any additional innovation outweigh the welfare costs associated with the temporary monopoly that patents generate. While it is probably true that innovation is undersupplied, the empirical evidence is mixed on whether patents foster innovation. This may be due to patents stifling cumulative innovation because of holdup and ex ante uncertainty over patent rights. This policy brief recommends that to reduce the potential for holdup, uncertainty around patent rights should be reduced. Patents should be easily searchable and more easily understood by non-legal experts. In addition, patents should be narrower and more clearly demarcated. To the extent that the welfare costs of patents appear to outweigh their benefits, the requirements for obtaining a patent should be tightened. Further, patents should be made less broad and, concomitant with the reduction in the length of the product cycle, the length of patents should also be reduced.
Topic:
Human Welfare, Science and Technology, and Communications

423. Combatting Cyber Threats: CSIRTs and Fostering International Cooperation on Cybersecurity

Author:
Samantha Bradshaw
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation
Abstract:
This paper examines the role of computer security incident response teams (CSIRTs) in the emerging cyber regime complex and asks what might be driving the lack of trust and information sharing within the community. ThePow commercialization of cyber security and threat vulnerabilities, the Internet’s development as a new power domain, the growth of the CSIRT community and the emergence of a cyber regime complex are examined as factors that are giving rise to and exacerbating existing problems around information sharing and trust.
Topic:
National Security, Science and Technology, International Security, and Cybersecurity
Political Geography:
Global Focus

424. Global Patent Pledges: A Collaborative Mechanism for Climate Change Technology

Author:
Bassem Awad
Publication Date:
11-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Abstract:
Access to and timely diffusion of green technologies required for adaptation and mitigation are among the major challenges faced by the international community. The role of the patent system has become the subject of increased attention in climate change discussions on technology transfer. New mechanisms for collaborative innovation are required to foster the green technology sector.
Topic:
Climate Change, Economics, Environment, Markets, and Science and Technology
Political Geography:
Global Focus

425. The New Energy Innovation Economy

Author:
Dave Grossman, Roger Ballentine, and Andy Karsner
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
The 2015 Clean Energy Innovation Forum, “The New Energy Innovation Economy,” was co-chaired again this year by Roger Ballentine of Green Strategies and Andy Karsner of Manifest Energy. Topics discussed included the ongoing transformation of the energy user experience; distributed generation and disruption incumbent electricity business model; challenges in bridging the energy technology gap between development and adoption; and the impact of climate concerns on accelerating change.
Topic:
Climate Change, Economics, Energy Policy, Markets, and Science and Technology
Political Geography:
United States of America

426. Data Intelligence for 21st Century Water Management: A Report from the 2015 Aspen-Nicholas Water Forum

Author:
Dave Grossman, Martin Doyle, and Nicole Buckley
Publication Date:
12-2015
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
The 2015 Aspen-Nicholas Water Forum, brings together each year a select group of water experts with diverse knowledge - from finance and policy to technology and ecosystems - to explore the future of our water system; the role of corporations and municipalities in managing water risk; and the innovations in, and convergence of, water policy, finance, and technology to identify potential game changers. The forum this year specifically focused on water and big data to understand how the emergence of large, but dispersed, amounts of data in the water sector can best be utilized to improve the management and delivery of water for a more sustainable future. Understanding what water data we have, how we collect it, and how to standardize and integrate it may well be a prerequisite to taking action to address a wide range of water challenges.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Science and Technology, Natural Resources, Water, and Global Markets
Political Geography:
Global Focus

427. Strengthening a Free and Open Internet in a Changing and Complex World

Author:
Elise Hu
Publication Date:
07-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Strengthening a Free and Open Internet in a Changing and Complex World, the report of the 2014 Forum on Communications and Society, addresses critical issues related to openness on the Net. Highlights include details about the net neutrality debate, and a series of principles developed by participants that policy-makers can use when considering Internet regulatory decisions.
Topic:
Civil Society, Science and Technology, Communications, Governance, and Regulation

428. Reforming American Public Diplomacy

Author:
Richard Kessler
Publication Date:
05-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Abstract:
The 2014 Dialogue on Diplomacy and Technology took place August 3-6, 2014 in Aspen, Colorado. The Dialogue, Reforming American Public Diplomacy, explored whether the US Government’s apparatus for global discourse is adequate to the times.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Human Welfare, Science and Technology, Governance, and Global Markets
Political Geography:
Global Focus

429. Toward a Social Compact for Digital Privacy and Security

Publication Date:
04-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation
Abstract:
On the occasion of the April 2015 Global Conference on Cyberspace meeting in The Hague, the Global Commission on Internet Governance calls on the global community to build a new social compact between citizens and their elected representatives, the judiciary, law enforcement and intelligence agencies, business, civil society and the Internet technical community, with the goal of restoring trust and enhancing confidence in the Internet. It is now essential that governments, collaborating with all other stakeholders, take steps to build confidence that the right to privacy of all people is respected on the Internet. This statement provides the Commission’s view of the issues at stake and describes in greater detail the core elements that are essential to achieving a social compact for digital privacy and security.
Topic:
Security, Science and Technology, Communications, Mass Media, Governance, Digital Economy, and Internet
Political Geography:
Global Focus

430. Climate Technology Partnerships: Form, Function and Impact

Author:
Arunabha Ghosh, Anupama VijayKumar, and Sudatta Ray
Publication Date:
10-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for International Governance Innovation
Abstract:
With halting progress in climate negotiations, there are growing calls for partnerships among self-selected pools of countries, in the expectation that they would facilitate consensus (among both developed and developing countries) and result in faster decision making. In critically examining such a claim, this paper asks: what kinds of partnerships could facilitate coordinated climate-related action across several countries? By focusing largely on technology partnerships (a key demand in climate negotiations), it examines characteristics of successful partnerships and the conditions under which they are created and sustained. While the motivations of existing partnerships are diverse, their functional scope has remained limited. A review of more than 30 initiatives reveals that very few had been designed to extend beyond sharing knowledge and some preliminary research and development activities. Even fewer had enlarged functional focus on actual transfer of equipment, joint production or extensive deployment mandates. The paper intensively analyzes the purpose, membership and governance of four partnerships. Drawing on their lessons, the paper identifies critical features — appropriate financing, leveraging capacity, flexible intellectual property rules and coordination across several institutions — which could become the foundation of new partnerships to deliver measurable action and possibly increase trust among negotiating parties.
Topic:
Climate Change, Development, Energy Policy, Science and Technology, Intellectual Property/Copyright, and Governance
Political Geography:
Global Focus