National Research Priorities - Department of Innovation, Industry ...

The new goals and editorial enhancements were designed to promote more effective targeting of social
sciences and humanities research and to stimulate more of the cross cutting research that the NRP
framework seeks to foster. Overall, the enhancements sought to ensure that scientific and technological
applications, many of which have significant economic, social or ethical implications, take account of the
community’s capacity to initiate and respond to change.
The NRPs and their associated priority goals are at Appendix 1.
CONTEXT OF REFRESH
On 3 November 2011, the Australian Government released the Maximising the Innovation Dividend:
Review Key Findings and Future Directions report which sets out the key findings and the
recommendations of the Focusing Australia’s Publicly Funded Research Review (‘the review’).
The review found that there was no evidence of significant shortfalls in Australia’s current framework for
publicly funded research. It noted, however, that there are opportunities for the Australian Government to
achieve a more coordinated, coherent approach to maximise the returns from its investment.
Other key findings were that:
• there needs to be clarity in the roles of the various participants in the Australian research system;
• research activity undertaken by the key participants in the Australian research system is
complementary, rather than overlapping and duplicative;
• a national strategic dialogue and better coordination of research effort and investment are critical to
Australia given its need for scale and world-class capability in areas of research of national importance;
and
• it is critical to Australia’s future productivity that Australian businesses are informed by leading edge
thinking derived from excellent research.
The Australian Government has accepted the four major recommendations from the review, as follows:
• the establishment of a new committee of senior Australian Government officials, led by Australia’s
Chief Scientist, to guide Australian Government research investment;
• DIISRTE to lead a process to update and refine the National Research Priorities, so they are relevant
as broad statements of the Government's aspirations for publicly funded research;
• DIISRTE to conduct a feasibility study on possible approaches for developing an assessment
mechanism for evaluating the wider economic, social and environmental benefits of research; and
• consideration of initiatives to lift the intensity of collaboration between universities and industry and
other end users.
In relation to the NRPs, the review also found that they are generally appropriate as a broad overarching
framework for signalling the Australian Government’s aspirations in relation to public research. To continue
to be relevant, however, the review concluded that the description of the NRPs needs to be refreshed and,
in particular, that the NRPs should be augmented to better reflect the priority of the humanities, arts and
social sciences (HASS) disciplines to the national research enterprise.
This process to refresh the NRPs is not intended to be a wholesale review. Through Powering Ideas the
Australian Government endorsed their continuation, updated as required. The parameters of this update
are provided by the Focusing Australia’s Publicly Funded Research Review, as noted above.
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