The opening ceremony of the Environmental Technology House of the Science and Technology Park at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences (IASBS) has been held in the presence of the founder of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences (IASBS), Prof Yousef Sobhouti; the IASBS President, Prof Sadollah Nasiri Gheydari; the Director General of the National Office for Environmental Economics and Technology, Dr Elnaz Keyvani; the Director General of the Zanjan Provincial Department of Environmental Protection, Mr Seyyed-Reza Mousavi Meshkini; the Head of the IASBS Science and Technology Park, Dr Abbas-Ali Zamani; and a number of officials, faculty members, researchers, and others active in the environmental and technology sectors.

Speakers at the ceremony stressed the need to strengthen links between universities, executive bodies, industry, and technology-based and knowledge-based organisations, and to use scientific and technological capacities to identify and resolve environmental issues.

The IASBS President, Prof Sadollah Nasiri Gheydari, stressed the role of universities in national development and in resolving fundamental challenges, saying that the capacities of universities and scientific centres must receive greater attention to advance the country and address important issues such as the environment.

He pointed to the academic standing of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences (IASBS), and said that, based on the Ministry of Science’s qualitative indicators, the university was among the country’s leading universities. He stressed the need to use its academic and specialist capacities to address the issues facing the province and the country.

The IASBS President also pointed to the university’s activities in environmental protection and water-resources management, noting that the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences had been one of the country’s first “water-friendly” universities. In recent years, it had pursued measures including the installation of water-consumption control systems, the use of solar panels, and wastewater treatment. He also described the establishment of the Climate Change Research Institute, through the efforts of the founder of the university, Prof Yousef Sobhouti, as another important measure in this field.

Prof Nasiri Gheydari then described the opening of the Environmental Technology House and the holding of events related to water and the environment as positive steps towards developing scientific and technological co-operation. He added that the university was ready, drawing on the capacities of its faculty members and researchers, to work alongside bodies responsible for environmental protection and industry to provide scientific and technological solutions.

At the beginning of the programme, the Head of the IASBS Science and Technology Park, Dr Abbas-Ali Zamani, pointed to the growing importance of environmental issues. He said that the environment was no longer a marginal issue, and that addressing challenges in this field required the use of technology and innovation.

Dr Zamani described the Environmental Technology House as a link between the university, society, technology companies, and industry. He stressed that the House could provide the basis for converting real environmental issues into technological challenges and offering scientific and practical solutions.

The programmes related to the “For Water” event and the establishment of the Water and Environment Innovation Centre were also outlined. Identifying local challenges, issuing calls for ideas, holding specialist boot camps, developing prototypes, and creating opportunities to present proposals to industries and investors were described as some of the stages envisaged in this process.

The Director General of the Zanjan Provincial Department of Environmental Protection, Mr Seyyed-Reza Mousavi Meshkini, also pointed to the need to balance development with the protection of natural resources. He said that technology played an important role in achieving sustainable development and responding to environmental challenges.

Mr Mousavi Meshkini said that a significant proportion of the solutions to the province’s environmental issues should be obtained from the capacities of universities, and stressed the need to use the expertise of faculty members, researchers, and talented people. According to him, around 13.5 per cent of the province’s area was located in areas under the management of the Department of Environmental Protection. In the field of human environmental protection, more than 1,000 enquiries concerning the establishment of industrial units were reviewed annually, and industries and mines were continuously monitored.

The Department of Environmental Protection DG also pointed to the challenges arising from mining activities and expressed hope that the Environmental Technology House could provide the basis for the university community and talented people to engage with the province’s operational and local environmental issues and offer practical solutions.

Next, the founder of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences (IASBS), Prof Yousef Sobhouti, explained the environmental consequences of development and excessive resource consumption, referring to the development of technology and the growth of the world’s population and resource consumption.

Prof Sobhouti highlighted the effects of climate change and rising greenhouse-gas emissions, stressing the need to manage resource consumption, reduce emissions, and explore solutions such as carbon sequestration and storage.

The Director General of the National Office for Environmental Economics and Technology, Dr Elnaz Keyvani, also stressed the need for synergy among executive bodies, universities, and industry, saying that resolving environmental challenges required effective links between these sectors.

She described the Environmental Technology House as a networked, facilitating structure that should help turn universities’ scientific achievements into solutions applicable to industry and environmental protection.

Dr Keyvani highlighted the need to focus on local issues in the provinces, identifying water, waste, and pollution caused by mining activities as important priorities. She stressed the need to identify these issues and assign them to university teams and knowledge-based companies to develop technological and economic solutions.

In this connection, a proposal was put forward to select Zanjan Province as a pilot for the development of environmental technology and the environmental economy, with a focus on mining-related issues. The proposal was approved by the Director General of the National Office for Environmental Economics and Technology, Dr Elnaz Keyvani. The plan could provide an opportunity to use the capacities of the province’s talented people, scientific institutions, and technology organisations to examine the environmental consequences of mining activities and offer specialist solutions.

In the final part of the ceremony, the appointment decree for the management of the Environmental Technology House was presented to the manager, Dr Majid Ojaghlou.

A copy of the book Sobhouti’s Words, bearing a handwritten note and signature by the founder of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences, Prof Yousef Sobhouti, was also presented by the IASBS President, Prof Sadollah Nasiri Gheydari, to the Director General of the National Office for Environmental Economics and Technology, Dr Elnaz Keyvani.

At the end, the managers and guests visited the offices of, and viewed the achievements of, knowledge-based and technology companies based at the IASBS Science and Technology Park, and learned about the capacities and activities of these organisations.