INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION ACTIVITIES
(2003 - 2004)

Co-operation with other academies of sciences, scientific unions and associations; maintenance of international scientific relations and representation of Latvia's science in international scientific organisations belong to statutory tasks of the Latvian Academy of Sciences (LAS).

REPRESENTATION OF LATVIA'S SCIENCE IN INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS

Carrying out a commission of the Government, LAS is representing Latvia in several international institutions. These include:

·        NATO Science Committee

·        EU Scientific and Technical Research Committee, CREST

·        Joint Research Centre Board of Governors

In 2003 and 2004, LAS continually represented Latvia's science in non-governmental international organisations, which deal with strategic problems of science development. These included:

·        International Council for Science, ICSU—an international non-governmental organisation uniting both the academies of sciences and international scientific unions.

In October 2004, Vice President of the LAS A. Siliņš took part at the meeting of the EU members of ICSU in Brussels, where the role of ICSU in relation to the new European configuration was discussed.

·        Union Academique Internationale, UAI—an international union of humanitarian academies.

In June 2003, Maija Kūle, full member of the LAS, director of the University of Latvia Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, represented the LAS at the General Assembly of UAI in Lisbon, where she took part in the working group to prepare and international project “Human Rights, Human Duties, Human Dignity.”

·        International Foundation for Science, IFS.

·        European Federation of National Academies of Sciences and Humanities, ALLEA.

In March 2004, J. Stradiņš, president of the LAS, and J. Ekmanis, vice president, participated at the 6^th General Assembly of ALLEA in Brussels.

Since 2003, the LAS has been active in the ALLEA Working Group on Research Co-operation, where the LAS is represented by President J. Ekmanis.

Thanks to Latvia's membership in the European Union, the LAS has joined the Europan Academies' Science Advisory Council, EASAC. The above council was established to advise the EU political institutions about the scientific aspects of public policy issues. At the EASAC meeting in Amsterdam (June 2004) LAS was represented by J. Jansons, vice president.

LAS is also a member in the InterAcademy Panel on International Issues, IAP.

Co-operation between the academies of sciences of the three Baltic States saw successful continuation, as well as the co-operation between the academies of sciences of the Nordic countries. The 9^th Baltic Conference on Intellectual Co-operation, “Globalisation, Europe, and Regional Identity” was held in Vilnius in June 2003. In addition to the participants from the academies of sciences of the Baltic States, the 9^th conference also had representatives from Poland, Denmark, and Germany. Reporters from Latvia included J. Stradiņš, president of the LAS, A. Siliņš, vice preseident, and K. Pētersone, chair of the Foundation for the Latvian National Library. The 10^th Baltic Conference on Intellectual Co-operation, “The Baltic: Past, Present and Future” will be held in Helsinki in June 2005.

Since December 1997, the LAS has had an Agreement on Scientific Co-operation with the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO. In December 2003, a Latvian delegation headed by A. Siliņš, vice president of the LAS and chairman of the UNESCO Science Group in Latvia, paid a visit to UNESCO, aimed at getting a better insight in the activities of the organisation, having personal meetings with programme directors, and finding support for regional events in Latvia.

LAS is also maintaining contacts with the World Federation of Scientists that is a free association of world scientists.

 

PARTICIPATION OF THE ACADEMY MEMBERS
IN INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS AND HONOURS

Many members of the LAS are members in different international scientific organisations.

Full members of the LAS J. Stradiņš, E. Blūms, R. Kondratovičs, M. Kūle, T. Millers, J. Lielpēters, U. Viesturs, J. Volkolākovs, A. Caune, I. Knēts, and J. Vētra are members in the Academia Scientiarum et Artium Europaea. LAS has also signed an Agreement on Co-operation with the above academy.

Full Member of LAS J. Stradiņš is a corresponding member in the Saxonian Academy of Sciences, as well as a foreign member in the Estonian and Lithuanian Academies of Sciences.

In January 2004, a large jubilee exhibition dedicated to J. Stradiņš, the Foreign Member of the Lithuanian AS, was opened at the Library of the Lithuanian AS, which raised keen interest among visitors.

For promoting co-operation between the scientists of the Baltic and Nordic states in 2004, J. Stradiņš was awarded the Cross of the Terra Mariana, the highest award in Estonia.

At the General Meeting of the Saxonian Academy of Sciences (Leipzig), held in April 2004, J. Stradiņš, full member of the LAS, was awarded the highest prize of the academy—the Wilhelm Ostwald Medal, for his contribution to the history of sciences.

J. Stradiņš, full member of the LAS, and Ā. Krauklis, corresponding member of the LAS, are members in the German Academy of Naturalists, Academia Leopoldina.

Full members of the LAS E. Grēns and V. Tamužs, and Corresponding Member of the LAS A. Šostaks are members in the Academia Europaea, which is an international, non-governmental association of distinguished individual scientists.

In May 2004, I. Kalviņš, full member of the LAS, and V. Jākobsons, honorary member of LAS, were presented the Saint George Medal Honour, Eminence, Labour, for successful co-operation in science and culture; they were awarded by the International Rating Academy Golden Fortune in co-operation with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

 

BILATERAL SCIENTIFIC CO-OPERATION

In 2003 and 2004, the Academy continually co-operated with the academies of sciences of other countries within the frames of bilateral agreements.

·        In March 2004, the tripartite agreement on scientific co-operation of the academies of sciences of the three Baltic States was prolonged.

·        In May 2004, the Protocol appended to the Agreement on Scientific Co-operation with the Polish Academy of Sciences saw prolongation.

·        In October 2004, a new agreement on scientific co-operation was signed with the Saxonian Academy of Sciences, Germany.

Starting from 1 January 2004, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to discontinue the Agreement on Scientific Co-operation.

As of 1 January 2005, the Latvian Academy of Sciences thus has 28 bilateral scientific co-operation agreements with the following foreign scientific institutions:

§         Austrian Academy of Sciences

§         Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

§         the British Academy

§         Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic

§         European Academy of Sciences and Arts

§         French Academy of Sciences

§         Estonian Academy of Sciences

§         Israel Ministry of Science and Technology

§         Royal Society of Canada

§         Russian Academy of Sciences

§         Lithuanian Academy of Sciences

§         Royal Society of London

§         Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters

§         Polish Academy of Sciences

§         Slovak Academy of Sciences

§         Slovenian Academy of Sciences

§         Academy of Finland

§         Hungarian Academy of Sciences

§         Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities

§         National Science Council of the Republic of China (Taiwan)

§         National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

§         Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities

§         Finnish Academy of Science and Letters

§         Italian National Academy of Sciences (Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei)

§         Swiss Academy of Sciences

§         National Academy of Sciences of Belarus

§         the Berlin–Brandenburg Academy of Sciences

§         Saxonian Academy of Sciences

As a sample of successful bilateral co-operation it is possible to mention an exhibition “Italy–Latvia: Dialogues of History, Science and Culture” jointly organised by the Academia Nazionale dei Lincei, Italy, LAS and the Latvian Academic Library in November 2003. The exhibition was unveiled by Professor of philology Sante Graciotti, a member of the Lincei Academy. Prospectively, a similar exhibition will also be organised in Italy.

Within the frames of the above agreements the Academy continued the exchange of scientists.

 

DYNAMICS OF SCIENTIFIC EXCHANGE UNDER BILATERAL AGREEMENTS

 

Year	To Latvia		From Latvia
	number of visits	man-days	number of visits	man-days
1995	19	202	29	279
1996	20	267	43	471
1997	26	196	35	334
1998	36	166	39	457
1999	42	274	59	655
2000	33	260	68	715
2001	49	285	47	629
2002	40	355	65	602
2003	60	417	51	604
2004	64	455	47	408

 

EXTENSION OF SCIENTIFIC CONTACTS

In October 2003, the LAS was visited by the representatives of the Max-Planck Society, Germany, and Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG to seek possibilities for closer co-operation.

In November 2003, A. Siliņš, vice preseident of the LAS, took part at the World Science Forum in Budapest, which was a follow-up of the World Science Conference organised in 1999 by the UNESCO and ICSU. Patrons of the forum were Professor Ferenz Madl, President of Hungary; Romano Prodi, President of the European Commission, Koichiro Matsuura, Director General of UNESCO; and Professor Jane Lubchenco, President of ICSU. At the conclusion of the forum, Professor Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga, President of Latvia and full member of LAS, gave a lecture.

In September 2004, the LAS received a delegation from different USA science and technology organizations including the National Science Foundation, the U.S.Civilian Research and Development Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, and others. The visit was aimed at getting information and establishing contacts for possible further co-operation.

In December 2004, J. Stradiņš, full member of LAS, attended a meeting organised by the German Academy of Naturalists Academia Leopoldina, where he was invited together with the representatives of the academies of sciences of other new EU Member States.