Acceptance Speech by Gedeon Dagan
at the
Stockholm City Hall, 13 August 1998

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Your Majesties, Your Royal Highness, Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am overwhelmed by the events of this evening that are ''firsts'' of my life:
- It is the first time I have the honor and the privilege to be in the company of a Royal Family and I can tell you a most gracious one.
- It is the first time I am being paid handsomely for something done in the past and not for a job to be performed.
- It is the first time I am wearing a tuxedo. I can tell you I got already used to the first two and I am ready for encores...

A distant observer may be astonished by the celebration taking place here today of an Israeli scientist being hosted by the Swedish establishment. The reason is the many contrasts between our two countries and societies, such as:
- In historical terms, Sweden has had its last war some two hundred years ago as opposed to the war ridden Israel.
- The climates are so different, the long and gray Swedish winter as opposed to the blazing sun of the prolonged Israeli summer.
- The national temperaments are as contrasting as the cool one prevailing here and the hot Israeli one.
- The heterogeneous and divided Israeli society as compared to the more homogeneous Swedish one.
However, in spite of these contrasts, my presence here is quite natural in view of the prevalent common grounds on which we stand together, and I will mention two of them.

Attitude toward science
Science and scientific research enjoy a high standing in both our societies. This is reflected by the public attitude, by the government support, by the number of scientists, by the scientific productivity and by the international recognition. To illustrate this point I shall refer to the data base of the Institute of Scientific Information in USA, that permits one to find out the number of publications published in each year by scientists from a particular country. Using the number of publications per population as an indicator and taking USA as 100%, we find the following figures for 1996 and a few leading countries: United Kingdom 71%, France 93%, Israel and Sweden around 130%. Together, Sweden and Israel have produced 2.5% of the total scientific output of the world in the same year, much beyond their share in the population of the science making countries.

The vital role of water
Water is a key element of our two societies.
In Israel, the development of scarce water resources has made possible the absorption of the large number of immigrants and the establishment of the state. Water is vital for satisfying the drinking and industrial needs and into making the desert blossom. There are few topics that are considered as central as water in the public opinion. Water also is a key factor in the regional conflict and an important issue in the peace process. In Sweden water is less scarce, but it is part of the national landscape and soul. I do not remember any of Ingemar Bergman's movies in which water, as a lake or river does not appear. Keeping the water clean for present and future generations has become one of the Sweden's most known and celebrated achievements.

The Stockholm International Water Institute has done an admirable job in promoting these two causes that unite us, namely science and water. The patronage of Your Majesty greatly enhances these causes and I am proud to have been selected as the 1998 Stockholm Water Prize Laureate.

Your Majesties, Ladies and Gentlemen, by receiving this prestigious prize, I see myself as an ambassador. First of all, I view myself as a representative of the worldwide hydrological scientific community and mainly the few colleagues and friends with whom I collaborated during the years. It is not by chance that a prominent one, Prof. Vladimir Cvetkovic from the Royal Institute of Technology of Stockholm, sits here today.

I also see myself as an emissary of a certain Israel, that is not projected often on the TV screens and whose voice isn't heard enough. Namely Israel that is part of the enlightened community, a country that promotes the enrichment of knowledge for the benefit of mankind, a society that contributes to the peaceful development of the world and of the region. This is the spirit of Israel that we value and cherish and I am proud to be its representative.