Australian Innovation System Report 2012 Compendium of Program Updates

AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH COUNCIL (ARC)

Special Research Initiative for a Science of Learning Research Centre

The ARC is establishing, with the assistance of the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, a national Research Centre for the science of learning. The Centre is a key recommendation of the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council Expert Working Group report, Transforming Learning and the Transmission of Knowledge (2009). The Special Research Initiative for a Science of Learning Research Centre will draw together education professionals and researchers ranging in areas from neuroscience and cognitive development to pedagogy and educational technology. The Research Centre will cover a comprehensive range of geographic, demographic and socio-economic groups and explore the synergies between researchers, community institutions and education providers.

The selection process is expected to be completed in 2012, providing up to $4 million per year over four years to investigate the complex issues of learning processes.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/sri/slrc.htm

Special research initiative for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Researchers’ Network

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Researchers’ Network (ATSIRN) is a new initiative under the ARC’s Special Research Initiatives scheme. Up to $800,000 per year over four years will be provided to establish a national network which will bring together Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander researchers from across Australia, from different research institutions, at different career stages and from a range of disciplines. The Network will be led by experienced Indigenous Australian researchers, with strong research track records, who will build research programs and mentor research students and early career researchers working on research that generates understanding about Indigenous knowledge and culture.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/sri/atsirn.htm

Discovery Indigenous

In 2011, the ARC replaced the Discovery Indigenous Researchers Development scheme with a new scheme—Discovery Indigenous. The Discovery Indigenous scheme was introduced to support research programs led by Indigenous Australian researchers and build the capacity of higher degree research students and early career researchers. Whereas the previous scheme was focused on developing the research expertise of Indigenous Australian researchers to a level which is competitive for mainstream research funding, the objectives of the new scheme have been refocused to include supporting and retaining established Indigenous Australian researchers.

The Discovery Indigenous scheme includes a new award - the Discovery Indigenous Award - which can be awarded for up to three consecutive years and is available at five different salary levels to accommodate all career stages. The ARC received 29 proposals, including requests for 10 Discovery Indigenous Awards, for funding commencing in 2012 under the Discovery Indigenous scheme. On 1 November 2011, $3.8 million of funding was awarded to 10 projects over three years, including funding for five Discovery Indigenous Awards.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/di/di_default.htm

Discovery Early Career Researcher Award

The ARC introduced the Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) scheme in 2011 to provide more focused support and enhance opportunities for early career researchers in both teaching and research, and research-only positions. DECRA has replaced Australian Postdoctoral Fellowships and the targeted funding for early career researchers under the Discovery Projects scheme. The scheme attracted over 2000 applications in the first round, for funding commencing in 2012.

The objectives of the DECRA scheme are to:

• 
  support and advance promising early career researchers;
  
• 
  promote enhanced opportunities for diverse career pathways;
  
• 
  focus research effort in the National Research Priority areas to improve research capacity and policy outcomes; and
  
• 
  enable research and research training in high quality and supportive environments.
  

On 14 November 2011 funding was awarded to 277 early career researchers under the DECRA scheme, with each awardee receiving $125,000 in funding; including a fixed salary of $85,000 and $40,000 for project expenditure.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/decra.htm

Excellence in Research for Australia

Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) evaluates the quality of the research undertaken at Australian universities by discipline. Committees of distinguished researchers undertake ERA evaluations, based on comprehensive data about the research activities of universities and their own disciplinary expertise. ERA gives government, industry, business and the wider community assurance of the excellence of research conducted at Australian universities. Its findings inform policy decisions and investment to support improvements in Australia’s research capacity. Australia’s use of peer judgement based on indicators to evaluate research after the fact, and to enhance research excellence by linking evaluation outcomes to funding has received international recognition (OECD, Performance-based funding of public research in tertiary education institutions, 2010, Chapter 1).

The ERA 2010 National Report was released on 31 January 2011. It reports on performance relative to world standards for each unit of evaluation (that is, each discipline evaluated at each institution), using a one to five point rating scale (with three or above being world standard or above, and five being the highest rating for excellence). Disciplines are classified according to the codes in the Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Two-digit codes correspond to broad fields of research and four-digit codes to more specific disciplines. National Research Strengths for Australia (fields in which four or more universities received a 5 at the four-digit level) are:

1. 
   Astronomical and Space Sciences;
   
2. 
   Cardiovascular Medicine and Haematology;
   
3. 
   Clinical Sciences;
   
4. 
   Ecology;
   
5. 
   Electrical and Electronic Engineering;
   
6. 
   Evolutionary Biology;
   
7. 
   Geology;
   
8. 
   Historical Studies;
   
9. 
   Human Movement and Sports Science;
   
10. 
    Immunology;
    
11. 
    Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry;
    
12. 
    Medical Physiology;
    
13. 
    Oncology and Carcinogenesis;
    
14. 
    Optical Physics;
    
15. 
    Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences;
    
16. 
    Physical and Structural Chemistry;
    
17. 
    Plant Biology;
    
18. 
    Quantum Physics; and
    
19. 
    Zoology.
    

Of the 131 fields of research assessed at the four-digit level, there were 108 fields in which four or more Australian universities were performing at world standard or above. Of the 22 fields of research assessed at the two digit level, there were 21 fields in which ten or more universities were performing at world standard or above. Ratings of world standard and above were widely distributed across all discipline clusters:

The second round of ERA evaluations currently underway will enable Australia to track research performance of universities over time and provide further valuable information about where to guide research investment. The government has implemented a range of improvements to the ERA methodology for 2012, based on feedback from reviews of the ERA 2010 process and consultations with the research community. The ERA 2012 Submission Phase opened on 5 March 2012 and closed on 4 May 2012. All 41 universities submitted comprehensive information on their research activities, including data about staffing, publications, awards, grants, commercial income and patents. Eight discipline-based Research Evaluation Committees (or RECs) are conducting the ERA 2012 evaluations, which will conclude late in 2012.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/era/default.htm

Industrial Transformation Training Centres

As part of the ARC’s new Industrial Transformation Research Program, announced by the Australian Government in December 2011, up to 50 Industrial Transformation Training Centres will be established over five years. ARC support for the centres will include funding to provide up to 600 PhD students with ‘hands-on’ experience in industry settings. Further information regarding this scheme is following.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/itrp/itrp_default.htm

Industrial Transformation Research Program

Through the new Industrial Transformation Research Program, to be administered by the ARC, the Government will invest $236 million over five years in quality research and development partnerships that will help transform Australian industries so they can prosper in a richer, fairer and greener Australia. The Program will:

• 
  focus on research areas that are vital for Australia’s future economic prosperity - such as engineering, materials science and nanotechnology, communications, chemical engineering and biotechnology;
  
• 
  support Industrial PhD students and researchers to gain ‘hands-on’, practical skills and experience in these important areas; and
  
• 
  foster important partnerships between business and universities.
  

The new program will have two key components: Industrial Transformation Research Hubs and Industrial Transformation Training Centres.

Industrial Transformation Research Hubs

The ARC will fund the establishment of up to 20 Industrial Transformation Research Hubs over five years. In these hubs, managers, researchers and industry workers will work together to address some of the big problems facing Australian industries today.

Industrial Transformation Training Centres

The ARC will fund the establishment of up to 50 Industrial Transformation Training Centres over five years. The centres will provide innovative doctoral and postdoctoral training and will be built upon close collaboration between industry and university-based researchers. It is expected that up to 20 of these training centres will include training in social impact, inclusion and industrial and community transformation.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/itrp/itrp_default.htm

Special Research Initiative in Synchrotron Science

In April 2012, the ARC ran an accelerated selection process for the Special Research Initiative in Synchrotron Science. The Initiative will provide $30 million over four years ($25 million contributed by the ARC and $5 million contributed by the National Health and Medical Research Council), with a consortium of 36 universities contributing a further $25 million in cash.

The Initiative is a large-scale cooperative endeavour between higher education organisations, led by experienced researchers and staff, who will manage a program of access for researchers to the Australian Synchrotron.

Website for further information:

www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/sri/synchrotron_science.htm