New democratic forms are needed to tackle the most pressing problems of the time – to save the planet from the climate crisis and to enable corrections to the capitalist economic system. The American political scientist Margaret Levi (Stanford University) was honored on Monday in Berlin with this approach for her concept of an “extended community of fate”.
On the anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s breakthrough, the Falling Walls conference recognized Levy’s model as one of the scientific “breakthroughs of the year”. The event aims to show that science stands for tearing down walls.
Promote the wellbeing of the planet
Levi wants to help renew democracy by clarifying what it means to be a “state” and to accept the role of the “citizen”. She proposes redesigning institutional arrangements and governance that promote the well-being of the whole population while supporting innovation and productivity.
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The Falling Walls jury concluded that Levi’s project taught how innovative institutions can help individuals understand that their destinies are inextricably linked with other people. “Levi shows us how we can create a new political economy model that promotes the well-being of the planet without losing sight of economic productivity and innovation.”
The jury was impressed by a concept that “tears down the narrow walls of national solidarity and sovereignty” and at the same time advocates a bold conception of justice.
In addition to Margret Levi, nine other scientists were honored. Mikhail Eremets from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry (Mainz) in the “Physical Science” category received the award for his work “Room-Temperature Superconductivity”. His aim is to apply superconductivity to everyday life, which could solve numerous problems in the field of energy and data transmission.
Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg (London) received an award in the “Science in the Arts” category for her work “Machine Auguries”. With the help of innovative techniques, the artist created new bird sounds that should help us understand our negative impact on nature.
Chrystina Russell from Southern New Hampshire University received an award in the “Digital Education” category for her “Refugee Education” project, which theoretically focuses on millions of refugees worldwide. So far, several thousand, mainly on the African continent, have acquired accredited Bachelor’s degrees through online learning offers – with high success rates of up to 95 percent.
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Shawana Tabassum was recognized as an “Emerging Talent” by the University of Texas at Tyler for her “Neonatal Health Disparity” concept. She pioneered a device that enables biomarker values to be measured in just ten minutes. The aim is to avoid the fatal delay in diagnosing and treating diseases that often occurs in newborns in poor countries.
Sky observation for the blind
Nicolas Bonne from the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation (University of Portsmouth) received the award in the category “Science Engagement Initiatives” for his idea “Astronomy for the Vision-Impaired”. Bonne himself came up with an idea of how the non-seeing could perceive galaxies as printed 3D models the size of a human hand.
The best science start-up was the Berlin “Made of Air GmbH” for its work “Carbon Negative Material”. The science-based start-up is fighting climate change by bringing carbon-negative materials to market on a large scale.
Jacob Friis Sherson from Aarhus University was among the ten winners – in the “Science and Innovation Management” category for his work “Hybrid Intelligence”.
Metin Sitti from the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart received an award in the “Engineering and Technology” category for his work “Wireless Medical Robots Inside Our Body”.
As reported, the work “Next Generation Biopharmaceuticals” by Christian Hackenberger from the Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology (FMP) in Berlin in the Life Sciences category also caught the attention of the jury.
All 600 short presentations by the finalists in the competition can also be viewed on the website after the conference has ended. The gain is visibility in research, there is no monetary bonus.
