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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. 6
SCOPE AND PROCESS In November and December 2011, the department undertook preliminary consultation with stakeholders – from government and the research sector – to gain some initial ideas regarding: • the addition of an NRP to better reflect the priority of humanities, arts and social science (HASS) disciplines in Australia’s research enterprise; and • possible refinements to the priority goals under the NRPs, including consideration of more explicit recognition of non-defence national security issues. This consultation paper has been developed on the basis of these preliminary consultations. Use of a *yellow highlight* indicates proposed amendments to the NRPs and their associated priority goals 1 . Following the completion of consultations, a final report will be provided to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research for consideration. A NEW PRIORITY FOR THE HUMANITIES, ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES KEY FINDINGS OF THE REVIEW The majority of stakeholders consulted during the recently completed review of publicly funded research agreed that the HASS disciplines were important to innovation. Moreover, a number of stakeholders considered that there would be value in augmenting the existing research priorities with the inclusion of an additional priority to better acknowledge the strategic goals of HASS in the national research endeavour. This was considered to be an effective way for the substantive contributions of these research disciplines to be acknowledged in their own right, rather than as an adjunct to the natural sciences. In addition, HASS was seen as essential to ensuring community acceptance of current and future innovation. A range of views were expressed on the importance of the HASS disciplines, including their role in knowledge transfer and their function in providing Australia with the capacity to understand other cultures, languages, societies and places. Views were that the 2011 Strategic Roadmapping process for research infrastructure has demonstrated that the inclusion of a HASS-related priority is possible, and that the augmentation of the NRPs in a similar manner by government would clearly signal the importance of HASS to research endeavour and generating creative solutions, as well the disciplines’ role in engendering true cultural shifts for critical debates (e.g. climate change). CURRENT RECOGNITION In Powering Ideas, the government recognised the value of Australia’s public research capacity in the humanities, arts and social sciences and their critical role in delivering important economic, social, environmental and cultural benefits for Australia. A number of other recent government initiatives have given explicit recognition to HASS disciplines, including: • Inspiring Australia: A National Strategy for Engagement with the Sciences (DIISR, 2010) acknowledges that the sciences – comprising the natural and physical sciences, the humanities, the arts and the social sciences – are fundamental elements of a 21st century creative economy. 1 All yellow highlit text is preceded and followed by an asterisk shown in 2 point font, to make the highlighting machine readable. 7
Page 1 and 2: NATIONAL RESEARCH PRIORITIES 2012 P
Page 3 and 4: TABLE OF CONTENTS HOW TO MAKE A SUB
Page 5: INTRODUCTION This is a consultation
Page 9 and 10: Australia’s strategic research go
Page 11 and 12: AN ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE AUST
Page 13 and 14: FRONTIER TECHNOLOGIES FOR BUILDING
Page 15 and 16: SAFEGUARDING AUSTRALIA Preliminary
Page 17 and 18: THE NATIONAL RESEARCH PRIORITIES AN
Page 19 and 20: • Understanding our region and th
Page 21: 5. Are there any amendments which s

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