Calestous Juma is an internationally recognized authority in the application of science and technology to sustainable development worldwide. He is Professor of the Practice of International Development and Director of the Science, Technology and Globalization Project[1] at Harvard Kennedy School. He also directs the School's Agricultural Innovation in Africa Project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. His latest book, The New Harvest: Agricultural Innovation in Africa was published by Oxford University Press in 2011. [2]
In recognition of his work, Juma has been elected to the Royal Society of London, the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS), the Royal Academy of Engineering, the African Academy of Sciences and the New York Academy of Sciences. He is a member of the Kenya National Academy of Sciences. In 2007 he was listed by Kenya's Standard newspaper [3] as one of Kenya's 100 most influential people.
Juma grew up on the Kenyan shores of Lake Victoria where he obtained early education. He first worked as an elementary school teacher before becoming Africa's first science and environment journalist at Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper. Juma later joined the Nairobi-based Environment Liaison Centre International (ELCI) as a founder and editor of trilingual quarterly magazine, Ecoforum. He later received an MSc in Science, Technology and Industrialization and a DPhil in Science and Technology Policy from the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex. He has written widely on science, technology and sustainable development and contributes to a weekly column in the Nairobi-based Business Daily.[4]
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In 1988, Professor Juma founded the African Centre for Technology Studies[5] (ACTS), Africa’s first independent policy research institution designed to advance research on technology in development. In 1989 ACTS released a path-breaking study, Innovation and Sovereignty that led to the adoption of the Industrial Property Act in Kenya and the creation of the Kenya Industrial Property Office.
His continuing original work focuses on analyzing the dynamics of evolutionary technological change and applying the results in advancing science and technology policy research; providing high-level science and technology advice; and promoting biodiversity conservation.
Juma has made significant contributions to understanding the dynamic role of technological innovation in economic transformation in developing countries. He developed the concept of “evolutionary technological change” to explain how socio-economic environments shape the adoption and diffusion of new technologies. This approach was elaborated in his early works such as Long-Run Economics (Pinter, 1987) and The Gene Hunters (Princeton and Zed, 1989) and remains central to theoretical and practical work. Juma’s contributions to science and technology policy have focused on the role of technological innovation in sustainable development.
He has established himself as a world leader in policy research on biotechnology and directed the International Diffusion of Biotechnology Programme of the International Federation of Institutes of Advanced Studies. He continues to provide international leadership in research, training and outreach through Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. He is also advancing scholarship in this field as editor of the peer-reviewed International Journal of Technology and Globalisation[6] and the International Journal of Biotechnology.[7]
Juma has contributed to biodiversity conservation in two ways. First, he has helped to shape global conservation programmes during his tenure as the first permanent Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Geneva and Montreal. Second, his research has inspired the field of biodiplomacy[8] that focuses on interactions between biosciences and international relations.
Juma’s research has helped to improve understanding on the role of property rights in conservation under the rubric of “ecological jurisprudence” as outlined in the volume, In Land We Trust (Zed, 1996). His work guided international negotiations on the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) as documented in Biodiplomacy (ACTS, 1994). He later became Executive Secretary of the CBD where he advanced the use of scientific knowledge in conservation policy and practice.
Juma teaches graduate courses on the role of science, technology and innovation in development policy.[9] The first course focuses on the role of technological innovation in economic growth with emphasis on emerging regions of the world.[10] The second course examines the policy implications of the introduction of new biotechnology products in the global economy (covering health, agriculture, industry and environment).[11] He also teaches an executive course for senior policy makers and practitioners.The Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (STIP) program runs annually to provide high-level leaders from government, academia, industry, and civil society with an opportunity to learn how to integrate science and technology into a national development policy.[12]
Juma continues to provide high-level policy advice to governments, the United Nations and other international organizations on science, technology and innovation. He chairs the Global Challenges and Biotechnology of the US National Academy of Sciences and serves as co-chair of the African High-Level Panel on Modern Biotechnology[13] of the African Union (AU) and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).
Juma led international experts in outlining ways to apply science and technology to the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals arising from the UN Millennium Summit in the year 2000. Innovation: Applying Knowledge in Development[14] (Earthscan, 2005), the report of the Task Force on Science, Technology and Innovation of the UN Millennium Project[15], was released in early 2005 and its recommendations have been adopted by development agencies and governments around the world. The report has become a standard reference against which governments assess their policies and programmes on the role of technological innovation in development.
In a successor study, Going for Growth[16], Professor Juma proposes that international development policy should be directed at building technical competence in developing countries rather than conventional relief activities. He argues that institutions of higher learning, especially universities, should be have a direct role in helping to solve development challenges.[17]
Juma is member of the Kenyan President's National Economic and Social Council. He has served or serves on the boards and committees of numerous organizations including the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the US National Academy of Engineering, the United Nations University Institute for New Technologies in Maastricht (The Netherlands), the World Resources Institute in Washington, DC, the EARTH University in Costa Rica, the Dickey Center[18] at Dartmouth College, the Thailand National Science and Technology Development Agency [19] and the Public Library of Science in San Francisco. He is also a member of the editorial boards of several leading peer-reviewed journals on science, technology and innovation. He has held numerous honorary positions including the Chancellorship of the University of Guyana.
Juma received the 1991 Pew Scholars Award[20] in Conservation and the Environment for dedication in preserving global biodiversity; the 1992 Rweyemamu Prize for broadening Africa’s knowledge base for development; the 1993 UN Global 500 Roll of Honour for Environmental Achievement[21] for important contributions to Africa’s quest for solutions to the complex issues of biotechnology, biodiversity and the transfer of technology; and the 2001 Henry Shaw Medal for significant contribution to botanical research, horticulture, conservation or the museum community.
In 2006 he delivered the Iowa State University's 6th John Pesek Colloquium on Sustainable Agriculture[22] and the 2006 Hinton Lecture[23] of the Royal Academy of Engineering in London. In the same year he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree from the University of Sussex for outstanding contributions to the promotion of science and technology for development. He also received the honor of the Elder of the Order of the Burning Spear (EBS) from President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya in recognition of "his achievements and distinguished service to the nation". He was cited as a respected "international diplomat who has assisted governments to solve diplomatic problems".