Executive Summary: Pursuit of Excellence - Department of ...

Pursuit of Excellence
2012 Review of Government Funding to the
Learned Academies

© Commonwealth of Australia 2012
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Executive Summary
The Learned Academies are important national assets which provide a unique and
valuable contribution to the pursuit of excellence in Australia’s innovation system and
in the provision of advice to government on issues of national and international
significance. They play a distinctive role in promoting and fostering research and
scholarship in all disciplines, enabling innovation. While each academy is different in
scale (in level of funding and in the disciplines it represents), nonetheless they share
many common goals, including representing their disciplines; recognising the
preeminent scholars in their fields through the election of Fellows; contributing to the
broader policy debate; exploring issues of national and international importance and
collaborating internationally within their disciplines.
The Learned Academies and Australian Council of Learned Academies (ACOLA) are
provided with Australian Government funding to support activities to foster
understanding of the importance of, or promote research and scholarship in, science,
technology, social science and/or humanities in Australia.
This review of Australian Government funding to the Learned Academies and
ACOLA under Higher Education Support Act 2003 – Higher Education Research
Promotion (HESA-HERP) and Learned Academies – Supplementation covers the
period 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2010.
Funding to the Learned Academies is regularly reviewed, the last review being held
in 2005. The scope of these reviews has varied over the years. In 2005, the review
scope was wider than the current review and looked at the role and effectiveness of
the Learned Academies and National Academies Forum (now ACOLA). The 2005
Review recommended major strengthening of the role and activities of the Learned
Academies and led to a substantial increase in funding, through Learned Academies
- Supplementation, for their core operations. This review, the 2012 review, is a
standard evaluation of an ongoing government program. It is not a review of the
performance of either the Learned Academies or ACOLA.
The current 2012 review has assessed expenditure of HESA-HERP and Learned
Academies - Supplementation against the Department of Finance and Deregulation’s
expenditure review principles and finds in summary:
Appropriateness — the Learned Academies have provided improved access to
information due to the knowledge, research and scholarship of their members. It was
therefore appropriate to use public funds to support them as they provided an
important national public good as well as contributing to the achievement of social
inclusion objectives. The national innovation system is underpinned by Australia’s
capacity to undertake high quality research that addresses national challenges and
opens up new opportunities. The Learned Academies bridge all disciplines and play
a critical role in fostering excellence in research and in contributing to public policy
debates on issues of national importance.

Effectiveness — the objective of the Higher Education Research Promotion (HERP)
and Supplementation funding is to foster understanding of the importance of, or
promote research and scholarship in, any discipline. The Learned Academies have
effectively met this objective through both their domestic and international activities,
including through hosting fora, providing advice to government reviews, supporting
researchers and publishing major expert reports on a wide range of issues. Specific
advantages of the Learned Academy include low overheads, the voluntary nature of
the work provided by Fellows, the breadth of skills and expertise, and the alignment
of the Learned Academies to the national policy and the science research and
innovation system. Moreover, as the Learned Academies have the capacity to tap
into the breadth of skills and expertise of Fellows and to marshal contributions
(including voluntary contributions) from their networks of researchers, other
stakeholders and international connections, the grants they receive can leverage
significant resources that help deliver the government’s policy objectives.
Efficiency — the Learned Academies vary in terms of their size, their level of
funding, their structure and their administrative arrangements. The review found that
the Learned Academies and ACOLA had used the increased HERP support and
Supplementation funding, flowing from the 2005 review, to boost the capacity of their
organisations to contribute independent, expert, evidence-based advice to inform
policy debates and deliver international activities. The increased funding has not
acted as a disincentive for the Learned Academies to engage with the government
through other programs. The Learned Academies continue to receive income from a
range of government and non-government sources and are highly effective in
leveraging the HERP funding.
Integration — HERP funding provides certainty which underpins the Learned
Academies’ core functions and enables them to seek project specific funding from
other sources to pursue strategic objectives. HERP funding acts as an enabler for the
Learned Academies to successfully apply for funding from other government
programs to deliver additional activities that complement the overall HERP objectives
and government priorities.
Performance assessment — The Learned Academies met all reporting and
compliance requirements for HERP funding, the review noted however that the
conditions of grant under HESA-HERP do not currently include specific performance
measures, nor do they specify the format or direct content for annual reporting. As a
result there is considerable variation in the style and content of the Learned
Academies’ annual reports. To be consistent with better practice grant administration,
there is merit in the government working with the Learned Academies and ACOLA to
develop a consistent annual reporting process to assist in performance assessment
and accountability purposes.
Strategic policy alignment — the Learned Academies and ACOLA play a unique
and critical role in promoting and fostering excellence in research which underpins

the national innovation system. The Learned Academies are also uniquely placed to
continue to provide independent, evidence-based advice to government and thereby
contribute to a broad range of the government’s strategic longer term policy priorities.

Summary of recommendations
In the context of HESA-HERP and Learned Academies - Supplementation, the
review panel made the following recommendations regarding key issues for the
Learned Academies, ACOLA and the government to take forward:
1. The government continue to provide ongoing support to the Learned
Academies and ACOLA to enable them to foster understanding of the
importance of, and/or promote research and scholarship in, science, social
science or the humanities in Australia for the national benefit.
2. The government consider options to enhance the strategic role of the Learned
Academies and ACOLA in providing the Australian Government with
independent, evidence-based advice on issues of national importance.
3. The Learned Academies and ACOLA meet individually with senior officials (at
least twice a year) to exchange views on strategic priorities and emerging
issues of national importance.
4. The Learned Academies maintain their strong connections with stakeholders,
including the public sector, industry, non-government organisations and
international organisations.
5. The Learned Academies continue to make efforts to communicate their
capabilities and activities which advise the community of the issues on which
they can provide independent advice.
6. Within available resources, the Learned Academies maximise their domestic
and international activities to enhance collaboration opportunities within and
across disciplines.
7. The Learned Academies continue to encourage the promotion of early and
mid-career researchers, including in new and emerging fields; and continue to
engage with researchers in under represented disciplines or groups, including
women and Indigenous researchers.
8. The Learned Academies should share experiences to continually improve their
practices and procedures.
9. The government work with the Learned Academies and ACOLA to streamline
reporting requirements, including consideration of relevant performance
indicators.
10. Government support for ACOLA should continue to focus on managing and
maintaining appropriate inter- and extra-academy communication linkages and
encourage collaboration between the Learned Academies.