By Sameh Fawzi The seventh meeting of the Arab Reform Forum at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina appeared in a new shape. First, the meeting, organised by a new middle generation and youth leadership and attended by almost 800 participants, saw all Arab countries represented. Second, it tackled new issues, such as the digital revolution and climate change in addition to intra- Arab relations. Third, the meeting came a few hours after an important gathering of the Arab youth, who mostly decided to participate in the Arab Reform meeting. This new shape of the annual Arab Reform meeting gave it a different style and flavour. Researchers and activists with concerns related to the environment and digitalisation participated effectively and linked what is happening on these tracks to the Arab future. In the Arab world, we tend to only speak about politics -- the Palestinian cause, the fragile Iraqi situation, Iranian nuclear ambitions, and intra-Arab conflicts. A very little attention, if any, is paid to concrete and practical issues that relate to the Arab future. In Egypt, we speak little about scientific research. This is a predicament. Our elite, until now, doesn't recognise that the Arab future is strongly shaped by the knowledge, science and technology we produce. The Arab Reform meeting this year shed light on hands-on issues. Not only is Israel ahead of all Arab countries in science and technology, but also Iran and Turkey are on the same trajectory. This is how nations build their future. Director of the Bibliotheca Ismail Serageldin was courageous enough to establish this agenda, and take up the responsibility of awakening people about the importance of science to our future. His closing speech at the forum underlined that the future depends upon critical thinking, not archaic perceptions that take us away from the path of advancement. This week's Soapbox speaker is a political analyst.
