(Expansión) – Collaborative projects that aim to achieve transformations, that seek to displace the frontier of knowledge, that consolidate scientific-technological research and that open new lines for economic and social development. That should be the commitment of Mexico’s science and technology policy.
Mexico has a network of 11 trade agreements, with preferential access to 46 countries and 1,150 million potential consumers, its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 1,291 billion dollars, placing it as the 15th economy in the world; however, this economic potential is not directly correlated with the country’s position in terms of its scientific capacity, which, according to the SCImago Journal Rank, places it in position 29 out of 239 nations.
It is necessary for researchers to be challenged to participate with their knowledge in dealing with the complex scenarios presented by Mexican society, not only seeking to achieve progress in research topics, but even more so in the mission of strengthening the development of research with a application projection capable of generating new challenges that modify traditional research agendas.
That intangible asset is here, represented by more than 35,000 researchers who make up the National System of Researchers (2021), the challenge lies in achieving the concordance of this scientific capacity, with attention to the social and economic needs of the population.
An example of how to achieve this compatibility is through increasing the percentage of integration of national technologies in investments related to high-impact sectors, it is then about triggering an accelerated process, where the more than 33,000 scientific publications (2021 ), concretized by Mexican researchers, promote the development of patentable technological solutions, which are not developed today and that require the scientific and technological potential of universities and research centers.
It is necessary to adopt a new vision regarding the transfer of knowledge, broaden and deepen it towards a more social and cultural sense, a fact that is intrinsically related to the social responsibility of the University.
For this reason, it is worth asking: is it feasible to develop relevant scientific and technological knowledge in the face of social needs? And are there adequate mechanisms to achieve a better social dissemination of the positive impacts of the application of knowledge?
Today the importance of knowledge for the industrial development and prosperity of nations is revealed, which demands the need to disseminate, transmit and transfer the scientific and technological knowledge generated within universities, research centers and laboratories to the social fabric. and productive for its application, this means guaranteeing a process of democratization of knowledge, both in its understanding and in its use.
Mexico requires a joint vision of universities, public and private sector institutions, whose objective is to promote academic-industry collaboration based on specific knowledge transfer activities, capable of creating an ecosystem of services for both companies and universities. and research centers, here is a first approach:
a) Services for researchers
– Monitoring of the technological and knowledge demand of the different industrial sectors and its dissemination to the different research groups of the University.
– Identification and connection with technology partners (universities, research centers, consultants and companies).
– Advice for the recognition and declaration of an invention with commercial potential.
– Negotiation and formalization of technology transfer projects with the industrial sector (Licensing, Consulting and Creation of spin offs).
– Training programs for the generation of a culture of innovation and technology transfer between the academic community and the environment.
– Design of strategies for the protection of the intellectual property of the results of the research and/or its dissemination.
– Guidance on principles, processes and practices of knowledge transfer and linkage with the industrial sector.
– Exchange of researchers in companies, to favor the creation of new transferable technologies, as well as the development of new lines of research.
– Valuation of technology generated by the University.
b) Services for entrepreneurs
– Identification of the technological and knowledge offer pertinent to the demands of the different industrial sectors.
– Realization of strategic and technological plans, studies of technological vigilance and competitive intelligence, elaboration of intellectual property strategies, valuation of intangible assets.
– Generation and negotiation of technology transfer agreements (licensing, consulting and creation of technology-based companies).
– Access to public and private funding sources that support the implementation of innovation projects.
– Development of business plans and marketing plans for new products, processes and services.
Universities generate science and technology, capable of creating economic value and social development. Countries such as England, Germany, the United States or France recognized and applied this signal, which has allowed them to be at the forefront of economic development and social progress in the world.
Raising scientific and technological knowledge to the status of a social good is necessary, as well as mandatory; generate, disseminate, transfer and apply it to generate wealth, but also to seek cultural progress and greater social cohesion.
Editor’s note: Juan Alberto González Piñón is the director of Spark UP and an academic at the Faculty of Business at the Universidad Panamericana. Follow him on . The opinions expressed in this column correspond exclusively to the author.
