VZCZCXYZ0011
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHSG #0856/01 1451809
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 251809Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1536
INFO RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA PRIORITY 1741
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 3647
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES PRIORITY 0314
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 1399
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ MAY 5217
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA PRIORITY 5089
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF EDUCATION WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000856 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
OES/STC FOR HOWARD 
WHA/BSC FOR MOSS 
ECA FOR DAS FARRELL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON SENV ENRG PREL CI
SUBJECT: CHILE-U.S. JOINT COMMISSION ON SCIENCE & 
TECHNOLOGY, MAY 9-10 
 
¶1. Summary. The U.S. and Chile held a Joint Commission 
Meeting (JCM) on Science and Technology in Santiago from May 
9-10.  This was the second JCM held under the original 
scientific cooperation agreement, which was signed in 1992. 
A 20-member USG delegation was led by OES Assistant Secretary 
Claudia McMurray.  The Government of Chile (GOC) used the JCM 
to highlight its emphasis on science and technology as a 
means to diversify and grow its economy.  Both delegations 
agreed to add women in science as a new agenda item to the 
JCM.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. The U.S. and Chile signed a basic science and technology 
cooperation agreement in 1992, which has now been extended to 
¶2011.  The GOC hosted the second Joint Commission Meeting 
(JCM) on Science and Technology in Santiago May 9-10.  (Note: 
The U.S. hosted the first JCM in Washington in January 2004). 
 Assistant Secretary Claudia McMurray of the Bureau of 
Oceans, Environment and Science (OES) headed the 20-member 
USG delegation, which included members from the Department of 
Defense, National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Geological Service and 
Embassy Santiago.  The 40-member GOC delegation was led by 
Ambassador Gabriel Rodriguez who heads the newly-created 
office of Energy, Science, Technology and Innovation at the 
Chilean MFA.  The GOC delegation included official 
representatives from Chile's space agency, agriculture and 
mining ministries, national commission for science and 
technology, science academy, as well as academics from 
several universities. 
 
¶3. Rodriguez opened the JCM by laying out the GOC's broad 
vision of how to foster science and technology.  He said the 
main challenge is institutional, i.e. designing new Chilean 
institutions to meld economic development with enhanced 
research and development.  Chile wants to move beyond an 
economy that is based on commodities and develop 
knowledge-based sectors.  In more concrete terms, the GOC 
wants to use science and technology to foster economic growth 
that will double per capita income in 15 years, to the point 
that Chile enters the ranks of the developed world.  GOC 
leaders have determined that one way to achieve this would be 
to leverage its international trade network and build 
"strategic associations".  These would create long-term 
relationships that will foster a culture of innovation, with 
science and technology as its bedrock. 
 
¶4. Rodriguez continued that the next "innovation wave" for 
Chile will be in biotechnology and life sciences.  The GOC's 
new strategic mandate is to position itself in niche markets 
by: (1) developing human capital through international 
graduate study exchanges in science and engineering, 
especially with the United States; (2) building up the 
national information and communication technology 
infrastructure through regional and local innovation; and (3) 
promoting international partnerships and high-tech investment 
on common projects.  Rodriguez said the GOC already has a 
number of key agencies working on innovation:  the National 
Council of Innovation for Competitiveness (Chile ranks 27 of 
125 countries listed on OECD's Competitive Index, leading 
Latin America and the Caribbean), the National Council for 
Science and Technology (CONICYT), the Development 
Organization for Science, Technology and Innovation (CORFO), 
and the Ministry of Agriculture.  Chile also boasts solid 
universities and national research centers, which, however, 
need to be more connected to the private sector. 
 
¶5. The bulk of the JCM was held at the working group level, 
with alternating presentations from attending U.S. and 
Chilean agencies.  Topics covered climate change, energy, 
natural disasters, biotechnology for agriculture and health, 
astronomy, biodiversity, oceanography, fisheries, geology, 
information and communications technology, women in science, 
and education.  Many of the USG agencies represented at the 
JCM already interact regularly with their Chilean 
counterparts.  The GOC's main goal in hosting the JCM was to 
educate a broad array of GOC agencies outside the MFA on the 
depth and breadth of U.S.-Chile cooperation on science and 
technology.  In general, the GOC expressed its strong 
 
interest in broadening academic exchanges with the U.S. in 
science and math.  This includes adding additional 
scholarships paid by the GOC to send up to 100 Chilean 
graduate students to the U.S. in these fields annually. 
 
¶6. At the conclusion of the formal JCM on May 10, the U.S. 
and Chile released a joint press statement emphasizing the 
link between continued bilateral collaboration on science and 
technology and sustainable economic growth.  The joint 
statement also highlighted groundbreaking U.S.-Chile research 
in climate science that will commence in 2008 and seek to 
fill data gaps concerning the impact of greenhouse gas 
emissions on the South East Pacific Region. 
 
¶7. Both the U.S. and Chilean delegations lauded the addition 
of women in science as a new agenda item for the Joint 
Commission and will seek ways to foster participation of 
women in scientific fields in both countries.  To this end, 
OES A/S McMurray hosted a roundtable discussion at the 
American Academy of Science on May 11 to discuss practical 
ways to achieve this goal.  The roundtable was co-hosted by 
Executive Director Vivian Heyl of the National Commission for 
Science and Technology (CONICYT). 
 
¶8. Comment. The Joint Commission and its attendant meetings 
usefully reviewed the on-going U.S.-Chile dialogue on the 
environment, science, and technology (EST).  Chile's 
attitudes towards EST continue to evolve.  The three-year old 
U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement had a strong (and funded) 
environmental chapter, which has helped encourage the GOC to 
begin setting up an independent Ministry of the Environment. 
The Bachelet administration talks often about the link 
between science and technology and sustained economic growth. 
 So at this point, the GOC is saying all the right things on 
science and economic growth.  How to create the links that 
make that link reality is a bigger challenge in Chile than 
outside observers might conclude.  A conservative business 
sector and commodity-based economy will require real 
incentives.  To that end, Chile is eager and ready to deepen 
bilateral ties with the U.S. in scientific fields.  We will 
continue to do all to work towards that goal. 
KELLY