Across history, knowledge has undoubtedly been the building block of human civilizations. The era we live in shows special, unprecedented importance that gives due value to knowledge in human life. This special importance consists in two main truths:

1- Accumulation of human knowledge and the skills and possibilities that emerged therefrom, which contributed to the betterment of standards of living and the establishment of comfort for a number of countries that succeeded in making knowledge and skills compliant enough to increase their material production rates and income. Many countries were able to exceed others in progress and development, to build renewable potentialities, and to acquire the label of developed countries by taking advantage of cumulative knowledge, renewing it constantly, and setting up the systems that enable them to benefit from it.

2- Development of information technology, communication systems, their applications and spread at reasonable costs at a large scale to easily and rapidly handle knowledge far from the constraints of boundaries and the strains of distances.

These technologies opened up new horizons for the spread of knowledge and its benefits. They enabled many ambitious countries to develop by bridging the gap that separates them from already developed ones, and to develop their production potentialities and their status. Thus, in this era interest in progress and development requires due concern with the implementation of knowledge that we need to build new and renewable possibilities, and to fully profit by information technology and telecommunication in order to build a knowledge economy that would fulfill durable development, using new means that would decrease reliance on exhaustible resources such as oil, and would ensure survival to this country.

World Bank reports have focused lately on the possibility of profiting by the knowledge revolution in the fulfillment and durability of development. Knowledge is seen as a production factor that gets added to work, capital, and natural resources. And one of the documents of the World Bank mentions four pillars to build a knowledge economy:

1 - Education and training

2 - Knowledge infrastructure

3 - Institutions and incentives

4 - Research methodologies and development

In light of all this, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is witnessing a distinguished resurgence of knowledge owing to the support and follow-up of the Custodian of the two Mosques and his Heir to the Throne, may Allah protect them, of scientific research, the generation and development of knowledge in furtherance of a likely durable national development and the promotion of Saudi society, its civilizational role, and its economy to improve the standards of living of its citizens. This support consists in many deeds such as honoring the scientists who won patents, and bestowing “King Abdulaziz Medal” on them. It also consists in supporting scientific research in the fields of nanotechnology, the Al-Medina Al-Munawara City of Knowledge, the sponsorship of the gifted by creating a special institution for them, the foundation of King Abdullah University for Sciences and Technology, and other areas of knowledge verging on the development and integration of the knowledge system of the Kingdom, which works hard towards keeping abreast with scientific and technological progress worldwide. To contribute to this resurgence of knowledge led by the Custodian of the two Mosques and his Heir to the Throne, may Allah protect them, King Saud University deems it important to hold such a conference and wishes to organize it.