“Make research in all areas of knowledge at the service of peopleThus, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge and Innovation (Ctci), Caroline Ginza, He summarized the main important objective of the ministry’s work for the portfolio for the next four years.
The statement you gave in your speech First visit to the Biobío . region The Great South Central Region, which stretches from O’Higgins to Biobío and is one of the five large regions into which the Department of Ctci’s Department is divided, after taking office after the inauguration of Gabriel Boric as President, and that sociologist with a PhD in Literature, highlighted as a concrete step To move forward on the path of achieving the goals to be achieved in pursuit of the great institutional goal which ultimately aims at promoting national progress.
Science without centralization
Portfolio strategy focuses on four objectives, most notably “ Strengthening the system of science, technology, knowledge and innovation. suggesting From improving researchers’ working conditions to generating a greater role for research In different regions of the country. Also strengthening the capabilities of universities and centers.” Another major goal he highlighted is “Serious work to achieve decentralization of research, so that it is in the service of different regionsGainza asserted that his trip to Biobío was an effort and a clear sign of the struggle against the centralization of science.
“Other strategic goals are the democratization of knowledge. This is how we participate as researchers and universities in the challenges of the country and the territories. Finally, Work on the supremacy of advanced knowledge and sciences in the country and put them at the service of the new development model“, precise.
The remarks came in the context of an interview she gave to the Undersecretary by TVU, a television channel of the Universidade Concepción Media (UdeC) to which Diario Concepción belongs, when it addressed various issues related to the challenges of the Ministry, Chile and its role during his trip to the region as he sought to learn about the Ctci system The local, its strengths and challenges. In the activities undertaken for this purpose, the Formation of the first council for social sciences, arts and humanities in the region; meeting with the authorities of the Council of Rectors of Universities of Biobío-Ñuble consisting of the Universities of Concepción, Bío-Bío, Católica de la Santísima Concepción and Federico Santa María; And with the regional government. In addition, he visited higher educational institutions and research centers. From all this, he declared his intention to “Initiate links between the various actors in the Ctci ecosystem: universities, regional governments, researchers, and the world of innovation“.
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Domestic strength and challenge
It is no secret that science in Chile is concentrated in the metropolitan area, which is mainly developed within the Academy. Therefore, an important part of the economic resources, both technical and human, are concentrated in the Chilean capital and its universities, at the expense of other regions.
Of course, this does not mean that in the rest of the country there are no strong capabilities, institutions and prestige, being among the most merits of Biobío and which Carolina Gainza defines as “very importantFor portfolio and country work due to the presence of relevant universities and regional centers for research development.
In this highlighted the UdeC For his contribution to the generation of science and knowledge. “It is one of the most important universities in the country, along with the universities of Chile and Cattolica. But its importance lies in the creation of a regional pole, a regional development pole, which is very important for our Ministry.‘, he claimed. And from there he announced that ‘we are going Work to strengthen regional universities so that the research conducted is linked to regional policies. This is why the link between universities and regional governments is so important. Also so that researchers can contribute to their areas and not have to see the metropolitan area as a space for professional development.”
He also warned that centralization is manifested at the national and local levels and that the second layer of the problem they will seek to solve is Concentrate resources and capabilities in regional capitals. So the local challenge to the ministry he referred to is the need to “decentralization within the Biobío, so that not everything remains in Concepción, but also in other cities “.
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“All countries that have advanced in their development have invested in science”
At the end of 2019, the work of the Ctci Ministry began, the smallest portfolio, created to respond to the demand for a new institutional framework to meet the challenges of the development of science in Chile and the country itself; A mission that Carolina Gainza acknowledged with many more to come, both because she has a few years of experience and because there are so many complex problems that require changes and solutions that won’t be quick and don’t just depend on the organization.
Quantum leap
It is that centralization is only one of Chile’s greatest evils and the main evil is that Barely 0.38% of GDP is pumped For science, the average for OECD countries is 2.4%. This shows that the immediate solution is to increase what is meant for science, as Gainza highlighted this One of the government’s commitments is to reach 1% of GDP by 2030.
Progress in this is progress as a country. He emphasized that in this way, you have to focus on her. From our ministry, We understand development not only as economic growth, but also as social welfare and cultural development. In this sense, Research must go hand in hand not only with putting science at the service of economic growth, as is usually envisaged, but also with the well-being of societies.“, He said.
In this line, the file Ctci National Development Strategy, It was recently handed over to the government and prepared by 16 Chilean specialists on various subjects that make up the Ctci National Council and one of them is Dr. Andrea Rodriguez, Vice Rector for Research and Development at UdeC, State projects based on science and knowledge to achieve sustainable development.
A new model of development and model for the country, but has been tested for a long time in other models to follow: “All countries that have advanced in their economic, social and cultural development are those that have invested in sciences, humanities and social sciences‘, detained.
In the field of investment, progress will be made in the short term, because the need for science exists today and cannot wait a decade. For this year, he made a significant contribution to the Agricultural Innovation Fund and began work on the 2030 Knowledge Program that will provide Funds to promote the social sciences, humanities, and the arts in universities. He said that the other pillar will be the establishment of centers and it will be one of the pillars Institute of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities whose design will begin in 2023, to be able to reach the Biobío where it is scheduled to be installed outside Santiago.
All the places
Implicit is another challenge faced by the Ctci institution, the system in general, and society at large to change views about science and research, since the prevailing view is the traditional one that associates them with the subtle and natural things known as “the invariable”. It ignores the social sciences, humanities, and arts, which many call the ‘soft’ sciences in terms of their value in generating knowledge.
The scientist to which Carolina Ginza belongs, who highlighted that the word of knowledge in the ministry recognizes all areas of knowledge. “It is a collective gain for researchers in the humanities, social sciences, and arts to be recognized as relevant to the country’s challenges. Today we cannot address problems such as the climate crisis, migration, the situation in La Araucanía or technological development without the critical and social perspective that these regions generate.Contemporary society faces increasingly complex problems, of multifactorial origin and multidimensional impact that require appropriate approaches and solutions, which cannot be done solely by the discipline or “hard” sciences and are categorized as necessaryMultidisciplinary and multidisciplinary work.
The gender gap
The gender gap in science and research is another big problem in Chile and the world. The gender radiography of the CTCI Department showed that 54% of those entering undergraduate studies are women and 34% of those who graduate from the system with a doctorate degree. Among the things attributed to her by the agent Stereotype Which, although less so over the years, indicates the existence of male and female fields such as Stem (an acronym in English for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). There is, too Pay gaps between men and women within the system, and in managerial and leadership positions. Many difficulties in advancing in the academic career are related to motherhood and family due to Another gap in shared responsibility, As the task of raising or caring for relatives is carried out mostly by women.
In this regard, he raised the need for policies to end gender inequality to be inclusive in different ministries in order to start Work from a young age so that women’s scientific careers are not extinguished, they join the university, stay and climb their career path.
