R&D funds levied on business must build organisations that offer short-term benefits through a clear strategy, says Athar Osama.

Improving access to information technology can help communities assess their own vulnerability and boost local planning, says John Waugh.

The revised malaria death toll suggests a need for research into uncertainties in controlling neglected tropical diseases, says Mark Booth.

India's carefully targeted strategy against polio holds lessons for other countries, and for other diseases, argues Priya Shetty.

Open innovation is key to the success of iHub and can change the working culture of any community of innovators, says Linda Kamau.

Encouraging demand for new and increasingly cheap interventions available now can boost health in developing countries, says Charles Kenny.

Some Muslim countries' powerful financial incentives to make quick progress in research could backfire, cautions Athar Osama.

Rio+20 should set up a scientific cooperation mechanism drawing on capabilities in both North and South, say Gisbert Glaser and Alice Abreu.

Business models that pair up cheap solar technologies with cell-phone services can provide the poor with renewable energy, says Carl Pope.

The proposed UN World Environment Organisation is badly needed to give poor countries a strong voice in green policy, says Zakri Abdul Hamid.

New clinical trial designs can work for testing both Western and traditional medicines, argue Liang Liu and colleagues.

The online encyclopaedia can fill a resource gap for students, policymakers and the public, say Samuel A. Assefa and Alex Bateman.

New funding and concrete results are paving the way for scaling up mhealth technologies — but carefully, writes Priya Shetty.

Agro-ecology offers simple solutions and can align climate change with food security agendas, says UN adviser Olivier De Schutter.

Countries are using innovative schemes to train and retain health professionals — but they need support, says WHO expert Manuel M. Dayrit.

Arab Spring revolutionaries turning to governance must adopt knowledge and innovation as barometers for progress, says Athar Osama.

The scientific community should create new intergovernmental organisations that promote innovative science in Africa, says Calestous Juma.

The developing world is not well served by traditional research publishing, but can break new ground with open access, argues Leslie Chan.

Princess Sumaya bint El Hassan of Jordan discusses how global cooperation on science can benefit a knowledge-hungry world.

Josette Sheeran, executive director of the UN World Food Programme, argues for programmes that build sustainable food security.