The “Manifesto for Science in Portugal”, written by Professor Mariano Gago in 1990, highlights, among others, the importance of Renewing in Science Education and Creating a Scientific culture in our country.

But long before the Manifesto, the importance of technological innovation for the national development and growth had already been proven: the invention of the caravel and the nautical astrolabe was instrumental for Portugal to venture in the Maritime Discoveries. These, in turn, proved to be extremely important to discover new lands, more natural resources and new peoples to trade with, which would enrich our country financially and culturally and allowed it to grow and to establish a world empire.

The symbiotic relationship between education and technology is one of the most fascinating and clear realities today. Investment in education leads to the development of more and better technology that, in turn, provides us with better tools to study and learn. Although it is essential for the development of nations, this virtuous cycle is often ignored and tilted in favor of quicker gains. In hindsight the fruits born from investment in education, can only be harvested years and years later. As Malcolm X once said, “education is the passport to the future, because the future belongs to those who prepare for it today.”

Still, why is this such a long process, when the pace of technological evolution we witnessed today is so fast? Advances in science, in research and technology should also not speed up the pace of growth and improvement of our society? If we look again at the virtuous cycle, we see that theses axes have to feed each other. All these innovations are of little use if they are not reinvested and applied in the design of new educational processes – the challenge is to understand how to apply certain technical novelties and to create value on top of it. In addition, we need maturation and learning time so that the marriage between both strands bears fruit.

A good example is technologies like Quantum Computing, Blockchain, Augmented and Virtual reality, among others. What will be their impact on businesses, families and society in general? Although there are many ideas on the subject, it is still difficult to understand the repercussions they may have. But it’s also worth remembering that less than a decade ago we spoke with the same tone of distrust and uncertainty about Cloud, IoT, Automation, and others, and today they play a key role: remote and online work, smart gadgets that we can control remotely and many other amenities that we have learned to appreciate.

It is, therefore, essential to provide the School and the Academy with the necessary tools so that they may create, experiment, research and develop solutions that may be implemented in civil society. Having an educational strategy based on innovation is essential for the evolution of any country. In Portugal, in the 1970s, a quarter of the population did not know how to read or write and the economy depended to a large extent on agriculture and forestry. Now, only through successive investments in better teaching conditions, more research opportunities, more support for entrepreneurs and companies trying to develop technology in our country, can we take the leap to new digital economy and get closer to some of the most technologically advanced countries.

It is, therefore, important not to lose sight of two of the strategies referred to by Professor Mariano in his Manifesto: Renewing Scientific Education and Create Scientific Culture. If education is the gateway to a better future, technology and scientific innovation they are the key that allows us to open it.