A national campaign that seeks to raise public awareness of local, regional and global issues that affect the Kingdom's future was launched Monday.

His Majesty King Abdullah patronised the launch of the Drivers of Change campaign, held on the sidelines of the 15th Jordan Science Week.

His Royal Highness Prince Hassan, president of the Higher Council for Science and Technology, also attended the launch of the campaign, which seeks to motivate national dialogue on issues of concern to the country.

The initiative, which is designed, supervised and implemented by Jordanians, benefits from the expertise of Arup, which developed a research-based publication, Drivers of Change, with a view to help people identify and explore leading factors that will affect the world in the future, said Omar Bashir, executive director for the community development sector at the Royal Scientific Society (RSS).

Her Royal Highness Princess Sumaya, head of the science week preparatory committee, voiced appreciation for the King's support for science, referring to the launch of El Hassan Science City, which she said helped turn creative ideas into products.

The Princess said the campaign corresponds to King Abdullah's call for the government's economic policy to focus on achieving food and water security and long-term planning to meet the country's energy needs.

In his address at the ceremony, Prime Minister Samir Rifai stressed the government's commitment to implement the King's directives in the Letter of Designation and to develop the educational process.

The 18-month campaign entails holding workshops for citizens from all sectors of society, including universities, business, banking, civil society, academia, the Jordan Armed Forces, ministries and public agencies among others.

“The campaign seeks to increase the involvement of citizens in the decision-making process and start a nationwide debate on issues of top priority to the Kingdom,” Bashir said.

These include water, energy, waste, climate change, urbanisation, demographics, poverty and food, Bashir said, adding that the campaign will help formulate the country's vision in addressing these issues.