CES technology trade show adopts social theme

Las Vegas, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Farm equipment took the

keynote spotlight at the CES technology trade show in Las Vegas,

as "human security for all" became the first theme in its

56-year history. In his speech opening the Consumer Electronics Show on

Thursday, John Deere Chief Executive John May laid out a

strategy of using technology to feed a hungry world as arable

land and rural labor decline while costs are rising. "Technology allows farmers to create more with less,"

May told an audience of 2,000 at one of the world's largest tech

events, organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). The trade group is partnering with the World Academy of Art

and Science and the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security

to encourage the tech industry to help tackle the world's most

pressing problems. "This is the next big idea," said Walt Stinson, co-founder

of electronics retailer ListenUp, who approached the CTA about a

potential partnership. Several panels discussed how innovation helps to solve

global challenges. Representatives of Nokia of America Corp

, Siemens AG and Alphabet Inc's

Google talked about applying technology to help create a

sustainable supply of food and closing the global education gap. Working to improve the human condition ultimately pays

dividends, said Ketan Patel, a longtime Goldman Sachs banker who

now runs the Force for Good Foundation. "If you add to the purpose of every tech company, all of a

sudden you have a moral purpose, you have something that could

be hugely profitable," Patel said, "because your technology

reaches a customer base that (previously) was not profitable." The CES sessions are the first phase of the trade group's

"rolling thunder" campaign to raise awareness across all sectors

of the economy, said Garry Jacobs, executive chairman of the

Human Security For All campaign. The group plans to make its

pitch to the world's universities in the coming months. "These challenges cannot be handled by nation states or

multilateral institutions," said Jacobs. "It requires the

cooperation of global society in its different segments."

(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski in Las Vegas; Editing by Richard

Chang)