‘Internationalism’ in the science centre context implies a striving towards greater collaboration and cooperation between science centres and museums, and their service providers, across the globe. The spirit of internationalism respects the need to celebrate national culture heritages and traditional knowledge but encourages people of all nations to work together to promote common causes and interests. It is about not only being a citizen of a country but of the world.
The ‘common cause’ in our case is science, one of the most international and valuable of all human endeavours, as there is no such thing as Western science or African science, there is only ‘science’. Newton’s laws apply equally well in Africa as in Asia or America. Science is one of the main tools that humankind has in its toolbox to resolve the many problems facing the world, yet it is under threat. The disproportionate exposure given to radical anti- and pseudo-science groups by the ‘megaphone’ of the Internet means that the voice of science has been superseded in some regions, and the value of science is being questioned. This is a dangerous trend that science centres and museums should be at the vanguard of confronting.
Science centre and museum communities are very well organized internationally with umbrella bodies in every region, and efficient regional conferences being held either annually or bi-annually. formula D_ staff regularly attend the ASTC, ECSITE, ASPAC and SAASTEC as well as AAMconferences and have also attended the annual conferences of NAMES, RedPOP, CASC (Canadian Association of Science Centres) and SAMA (Southern African Museums Association) in the past. These participations ensure that, although we are located at the southern tip of Africa, we remain in contact with, and contribute to, world trends in science centre and museum development.
At formula D_ we tailor our products and services to promote universal values, break down barriers between people, respect local cultures, and address the major challenges that face humankind, such as the environmental crisis. We endeavour to design products and services that have global applicability while respecting local and regional norms and values. By taking this approach, we increase our market share, diversify our revenue streams, strengthen our brand, open up new innovation opportunities, and act as a thought leader.
Science today is not carried out by isolated individuals slaving away in remote laboratories but by a multi-brained, multi-generational super-organism, a kind of ‘collective genius’, that has the potential, more than in any previous era, to co-create solutions to some of the world’s most intractable problems. This has been made possible by the unprecedented connectivity that we enjoy today through the Internet, Metaverse and other digital media. This digital connectivity has meant that the human brain is no longer the most complex system in the universe as it has been superseded by the community of human brains working together, supplemented by robotics, AI, 3D printing, the Internet of Things (IoT), quantum computing and other technological advances. This unparalleled potential should enable us to solve all our problems, but it is being hindered, and even blocked, by a lack of international collaboration and cooperation among nations.
These new, empowering technologies also teach us to be humble, to recognise our shortcomings as human beings, and to acknowledge that our global socio-economic and environmental model is failing. The current post-industrial information age equips is with the tools to correct past wrongs and redress past imbalances, which can be achieved as the fuel for this revolution is not steam, coal, gas or nuclear power but ideas, data and information. This is the currency with which science centres and museums deal on a daily basis.
What is most exciting about this Information Age is that major contributions are being made to it, not only by the educated elite, but by new generations of people from both the ‘developed’ and ‘developing’ world, by males and females, rich and poor, and young and old of all cultures. It has specially created opportunities for digitally competent, connected and ambitious young people who are not encumbered by outdated, industrial mindsets and are prepared to create a fresh, new world. What’s more, they are one of the main client bases for science centres and museums.
Science has the potential to be the unifier in this battle of wills, and science centres and museums have the promise of being the agents of change. Yet, despite our ambitious moniker, Homo sapiens (‘wise humans’), and our technological advances, the world today is on a critical knife edge with respect to multiple crises. Will we continue to bicker over territory, water and trade, and destroy the biodiversity that makes life possible, or will we learn to work together as a species for the long-term good of all the inhabitants of the planet, human and non-human, plant and animal? For a fleeting moment during the Covid pandemic, when humankind was faced by a common enemy, we worked together. The question is: can we do it again?
The internationalism that regional science centre and museum conferences promote has the potential to play an important role in shaping people’s mindsets and behaviour in future. By contributing actively to these events, and learning from them, formula D_ has an important role to play.
