Arab Knowledge Report 2009: Towards Productive

solutions that allow use of the availableacademic resources on-line. A furthergoal is to draft legal policies arising fromdiscussions that have sprung up around theEuropean Union. The aim of the projectis to formulate and implement a plan foreducational infrastructure as well as forresearch in the legal field to effectivelyaddress the needs of the knowledge andinformation society. Based on previousinitiatives subsidised by the EuropeanUnion, it can be expected that this projectwill lead to an improvement in legaleducation and succeed in adapting it tothe new social, political, and institutionalclimate. Legal education will thus cometo include electronic, social, economic,and ethical dimensions as well as policymaking.32The Free Knowledge Institute, a nongovernmentalorganisation, believes that“by promoting the use of free knowledgein the fields of Technology, Education,Culture, and Science more individualsand organisations will profit from thebenefits of sharing knowledge.” Theinstitute supports ‘free knowledge’ inall its forms in the fields of informationtechnology, and educational, cultural,and scientific materials, so that it maybe used, studied, modified, and freelydistributed. The institute’s basic goal is tosupport equal opportunity, prosperity, andthe collaborative ethic in creativity andknowledge exchange. Among the institute’smost important initiatives is SELF, fundedby the European Commission, whichhas drawn up a programme to encouragecreativity, cooperation, exchange ofacademic materials, and ongoing training.It gives special importance to free andopen programmes so that all who wishto may contribute by presenting andsharing knowledge without restrictions,drawing inspiration from the example ofWikipedia. 33The European Union has alsoundertaken the drafting of a legalframework to regulate the climate inwhich such institutions operate, to providethe environments and freedoms necessaryto the establishment of the knowledgesociety, and to facilitate its movementand its development. This frameworkis periodically reviewed to help it staycurrent with the continuous changes in theknowledge revolution.We live in the age of the “fifth freedom,”that is, the freedom of movement ofknowledge between countries. Thisexpression was coined by the EuropeanUnion in 2006 and under its rubric it setaside approximately twelve billion eurosto subsidise creativity and technology. 34It follows that, among Arab countries,too, this concept must be applied in theexchange of expertise in the knowledgefields.Our examination of European examplesreveals the fragility and marginality of theinstitutionalisation currently in place inmany Arab countries and in the regionas a whole. Arab institutions of scientificresearch are like isolated islands lackingeverything that is needed for collaborativework aimed at raising levels of scholarshipand creativity, be that between the Arabinstitutes themselves, or between themand scientific research institutes knownaround the world for their productivityand creativity.This impels us to consider thegeneralisation and prioritizing ofinstitutionalism as a way of accessing theknowledge society.ON THE NEED FOR ANALTERNATIVE INDEX:A PROJECT IN CRITIQUEAND TRANSCENDENCEAn analysis of the enabling environmentof Arab knowledge demonstrates thatan alternative methodology is neededfor studying the state of knowledgeand measuring knowledge performancein Arab countries. However, this canonly come about throughº the use of anew index that monitors, as one of itschief indicators, the various freedomsto which this chapter is devoted, to wit,freedom of thought and expression,Arab institutions ofscientific research arelike isolated islandslacking everythingthat is needed forcollaborative workaimed at raisinglevels of scholarshipand creativityAn analysis ofthe enablingenvironment ofArab knowledgedemonstratesthat an alternativemethodologyis needed forstudying the stateof knowledgeand measuringknowledgeperformance inArab countriesARAB KNOWLEDGE PERFORMANCE ENVIRONMENTS89