tag:theconversation.com,2011:/global/topics/future-fellowships-15709/articlesFuture Fellowships – The Conversation2015-05-26T22:24:04Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/421882015-05-26T22:24:04Z2015-05-26T22:24:04ZAAS President: Science needs support to build a better Australia<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82827/original/image-20150525-32578-1kfb35j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=89%2C248%2C1751%2C1197&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Australia has a long history of first class science.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.scienceimage.csiro.au/tag/In-the-lab/i/4698/technician-in-csiro-laboratories/large">Willem van Aken/CSIRO</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>A shift has occurred in the past year in the way the Australian public, politicians and business talk about science. Scientists are no longer considered to be “<a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/scientists-angry-about-ian-macfarlanes-precious-petals-remark">precious petals</a>”. We are being taken seriously. We are being heard.</p>
<p>At the end of last year we welcomed the <a href="https://theconversation.com/shaping-2015-the-challenge-for-australias-new-science-minister-36588">reinstatement</a> of the word “Science” into the portfolio of the <a href="http://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/macfarlane">Minister of Industry and Science</a>. It seems like a small thing, but it’s symbolically significant. And it was followed by further indications from the government that it is listening to science. </p>
<p>The three key federal government portfolios of Industry and Science, Health, and Education and Training all speak to important pillars for the scientific community. And we are pleased that these three Ministers join the Prime Minister, the Chief Scientist and others at the <a href="http://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/2015/04/commonwealth-science-council-2/">Commonwealth Science Council</a>. </p>
<p>It’s a council that has five Australian Academy of Science Fellows as members and has already met twice this year. We are heartened at the interest that the Prime Minister has shown in this body. </p>
<p>The Government has also committed to working with the council and the <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ian-chubb-5153">Chief Scientist</a> to develop a <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-a-national-science-strategy-is-good-for-australia-40254">science strategy</a>, and will be consulting broadly with the sector over the coming months. This is important for Australian science and research, and I encourage every researcher and science organisation with an interest in Australia’s scientific future to provide considered input into the consultation.</p>
<p>In March, Science Minister Ian Macfarlane made a positive, respectful and forward-looking <a href="http://www.minister.industry.gov.au/ministers/macfarlane/speeches/address-science-meets-parliament">speech</a> at <a href="http://scienceandtechnologyaustralia.org.au/science-meets-parliament/">Science Meets Parliament</a>, in which he made it clear that he believes science is fundamental to our national prosperity, and that our scientific institutions have the capacity to provide a strong platform upon which to build the Australia of the future.</p>
<p>We are making headway. The political narrative about science is starting to shift.</p>
<h2>Turning talk into action</h2>
<p>In the <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/federal-budget-2015">Federal Budget</a> handed down two weeks ago, there was a welcome <a href="https://theconversation.com/budget-brief-how-does-science-and-research-funding-fare-41434">reprieve for science funding</a> in the coming financial year. However, there are still forecast cuts of around A$290 million to key Australian science and research programs that will take effect in the financial year 2016-17.</p>
<p>Despite immediate relief for NCRIS and an ongoing commitment to establish a Medical Research Future Fund, overall funding for science in Australia will <a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-science-is-no-better-off-after-the-2015-budget-41827">continue to decline</a>. </p>
<p>Unfortunately NCRIS has been funded through significant reductions in block grants to researchers in universities. This is like taking engines off the jumbo jet.
To do science, you need excellent scientists to make the best use of top quality infrastructure; it can’t be one or the other. NCRIS needs a long-term sustainable funding model that addresses both ends of this equation.</p>
<p>The Minister for Industry and Science and the Prime Minister say they want science to play a greater role with industry, and yet in this budget there was A$30 million cut from the <a href="http://www.business.gov.au/grants-and-assistance/collaboration/crc/Pages/default.aspx">Cooperative Research Centres</a>, which are specifically designed to help improve collaboration with business and help generate jobs from research and development. It will be important to consider an alternative model to promote academia-industry engagement.</p>
<p>While there are forecast selective cuts there have also been selective increases – for the <a href="http://www.synchrotron.org.au/">Synchrotron</a>, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (<a href="http://www.ansto.gov.au/">ANSTO</a>), <a href="https://theconversation.com/budget-brief-how-does-science-and-research-funding-fare-41434">Antarctic research and medical research into exotic tropical diseases</a> – and we look forward to seeing those increases sustained into the future. </p>
<p>We’re also pleased that there will be a <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/futurefel/future_default.htm">Future Fellowships</a> scheme this year, albeit with just 50 fellowships on offer. It’s a good start for this important initiative to support and retain some our best and brightest young researchers, and we will continue to advocate for the programme to be restored to its former scale.</p>
<p>As the <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/mining-boom">mining boom slows</a>, this should be a time of growth in science funding. We should be preparing Australia to build a knowledge economy so that we do not simply survive but thrive in an increasingly competitive world.</p>
<p>We should be supporting our world-class research infrastructure, and our world-class and emerging researchers, to create new knowledge and innovation. And we should be supporting scientists and industry to forge strong links to translate this innovation into economic growth and security.</p>
<p>This is a challenge for politics, yes. But it’s also a challenge for the science sector.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/82829/original/image-20150525-32575-y39uo6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">CSIRO scientists deploy the CTD instrument from the Southern Surveyor to monitor the distribution and variation of water temperature, salinity and density.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.scienceimage.csiro.au/tag/in-the-field/i/10807/deploying-the-ctd-instrument-from-the-rv-southern-surveyor/">Bob Beattie/CSIRO</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Building a strong voice</h2>
<p>On the domestic front we must continue to persuade the Australian community of the importance of science as a major cultural contributor and a driver to national prosperity through wealth creation and improved productivity.</p>
<p>We must continue to focus on education, working with young people who will inevitably become the decision makers of the future. We must continue to build strong support, professional development, and mentorship for early- and mid-career researchers – such as that provided by the <a href="https://www.science.org.au/emcr-forum">Early- and Mid-Career Researchers Forum</a>, which grows from strength to strength.</p>
<p>And we must convince the community not only of the value of science as a discipline, but also as a provider of informed and trained minds who can meaningfully contribute to the workforce in many different areas from those directly related to their scientific training.</p>
<p>A major challenge facing the research community is to develop a profitable engagement with industry. There are many ways in which this can be realised, but common to all must be an acceptance that each party should benefit from this kind of engagement. </p>
<p>Here in Australia there are very few large companies engaged in fundamental and applied research. Much activity is carried out in small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which will invariably have limited capacity to fund collaborative research.</p>
<p>The solution to this must be seen as a task of government, which will inevitably reap the dividend in the taxation of increased earnings arising from the success of these small companies.</p>
<p>Just as we support the notion of a <a href="http://www.researchaustralia.org/mrff/mrff">Medical Research Future Fund</a>, so would we support industry engagement, through the Cooperative Research Centres and other mechanisms. It is, of course, important that this kind of engagement is not supported at the expense of our capacity for curiosity-driven research that is inevitably the wellspring of many translatable research discoveries. </p>
<p>All the evidence suggests that government is willing to engage constructively with scientists, and particularly Fellows of the Australian Academy of Science. </p>
<p>We have also gained the support of the President of the <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/">Business Council of Australia</a>, who is a <a href="http://www.bca.com.au/about-us/our-board">Fellow of the Academy</a> and a passionate advocate for STEM education and research infrastructure. </p>
<p>Ministers take note of the opinions expressed by the Academy, as demonstrated by the recent campaign to preserve <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/ncris">NCRIS</a>. We are now regularly consulted when policy is being formulated, but there is much more to do to reach the stage where government routinely both consults and listens to us, and builds on our contribution. </p>
<p>For example, the absence of a holistic Australian international research collaborations strategy is becoming an embarrassment. Traditionally, Australia has been recognised as a significant player in the international scientific arena through its participation in many activities. Historically it has been well recognised that if we are not seen internationally, we will slip from the minds of those with whom we wish to engage. </p>
<p>It is on the base of strong historical opportunities that Australia plays such a prominent role in the international scientific community. We supply Presidents, office-bearers and committee members to a vast array of international scientific unions and societies, and hundreds of Australian scientists participate in their research programs. Our high profile abroad makes us respected international partners and we are chosen because we have a reputation for delivering good value in a research collaboration. </p>
<p>It is with these goals in mind that we seek to remind government that we can help in matters of science for diplomacy as well as science for the benefit of sharing information and capacity building. The Academy believes in the value of scientific collaborations that transcend political and religious beliefs and contribute to the peaceful co-existence of nations. </p>
<h2>Looking ahead</h2>
<p>It is up to all scientists to speak to power when it’s warranted. To become involved in educating and mentoring the next generation. To speak to the media and ensure that science has a voice in the public sphere.</p>
<p>We are improving well-being. We are helping to prepare this nation, and the world, for an uncertain future. We are strengthening our economy. We are nurturing our international connections. We are innovating.</p>
<p>Together we are making a difference. We are working towards a better informed, more capable, more agile Australia.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This is an edited transcript of the speech given by Professor Andrew Holmes, President of the Australian Academy of Science, delivered at the Science at the Shine Dome 2015.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/42188/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Holmes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australian scientists are listened to by government and business, but must do more to ensure their advice and work contributes to a stronger future for Australia.Andrew Holmes, President of the Australian Academy of Science, CSIRO Fellow & Laureate Professor of Chemistry, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/414342015-05-12T11:33:14Z2015-05-12T11:33:14ZBudget brief: how does science and research funding fare?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/81388/original/image-20150512-22545-4tqimn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Facilities funded under NCRIS, such as the Murchison Widefield Array, will continue to be supported under this budget.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MWA_32T_Tile.jpg">Natasha Hurley-Walker/Wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The Conversation’s Budget briefs series aims to answer reader questions about the 2015 federal budget. Thanks to reader @NigelJk for this question.</em></p>
<p>The National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-the-national-collaborative-research-infrastructure-strategy-ncris-38837">NCRIS</a>) has won an extra year of funding, worth $150 million, giving greater certainty to researchers working at 27 research facilities across the country.</p>
<p>There’s also $13 million for the Australian Synchrotron – the biggest piece of research infrastructure and our flagship infrastructure internationally.</p>
<p>But this has come at the expense of block funding grants, which support the scientists who conduct their research in NCRIS facilities. Funding research infrastructure by cutting $262.5 million in support for the researchers who use it is nonsensical.</p>
<p>And there’s been no word in the budget for the <a href="https://theconversation.com/future-fellowship-cuts-hit-early-stage-researchers-hardest-39180">Future Fellowships</a> program for mid-career researchers, which appears to remain tied to savings measures contained in the Higher Education Reform Bill.</p>
<h2>NCRIS reprieve</h2>
<p>NCRIS <a href="https://theconversation.com/science-infrastructure-funding-is-being-held-hostage-by-government-38423">hit the headlines</a> earlier this year over fears that as many as 1,700 highly skilled jobs would be lost in a political battle over funding. But in March, Education Minister Christopher Pyne <a href="https://theconversation.com/pyne-backflips-on-research-infrastructure-funding-cut-38849">committed</a> to an additional 12 months of funding for the $150 million program, taking the total amount outlined in this budget to $300 million.</p>
<p>Last week, The Australian <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/health-science/science-research-spared-the-budget-axe/story-e6frg8y6-1227339518985">reported</a> that the one-year lifeline would be extended to two. The longer-term funding for NCRIS will be announced after a <a href="http://docs.education.gov.au/node/36773">Research Infrastructure Review</a> led by businessman Philip Clark and Chief Scientist Ian Chubb, due out soon.</p>
<p>Back in March, Nobel Laureate and astronomer Brian Schmidt <a href="https://theconversation.com/pyne-backflips-on-research-infrastructure-funding-cut-38849">said</a> that while he was grateful for the NCRIS funding reprieve, scientists “certainly need a longer-term cycle” to avoid uncertainty over crucial research.</p>
<p>The government had been threatening to withhold NCRIS funding unless the Senate passed its university deregulation legislation – a negotiating tactic that ended up <a href="https://theconversation.com/pyne-backflips-on-research-infrastructure-funding-cut-38849">backfiring</a>. </p>
<p>Having offered a reprieve for NCRIS, the government’s science budget appears to be treading water. There are forecast increases, but these are outweighed by the forecast cuts.</p>
<p>There is an ongoing commitment to establish and fund the Medical Research Future Fund: good news. But there’s no significant news for the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council.</p>
<h2>Radioactive waste</h2>
<p>Also mentioned in the budget is that Australia’s facilities are running out of room to store radioactive waste. The federal government will spend $22 million over the next three years to bring together existing waste sites and boost storage at Lucas Heights in Sydney.</p>
<p>ANSTO’s current waste-storage facilities are expected to reach full capacity by 2017. Meanwhile we’re due to take back our intermediate-level radioactive waste. The measure will ensure ANSTO can continue to store additional radioactive waste beyond 2017, pending the establishment of the National Radioactive Waste Management Facility. </p>
<p>The measure will provide additional storage capacity for up to 45 cubic metres of intermediate-level waste and 1,200 cubic metres of low-level waste.</p>
<p>Meanwhile the Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs) – so very important to the government’s stated aim of encouraging links between science and industry, and of translating research and development into jobs – have had their funding cut by $29.8 million. What will replace them?</p>
<p>Two more positives: the budget has allocated an additional $9.4 million for Antarctic research and $15.3 million for research into tropical diseases.</p>
<p>The story for science doesn’t end on budget night. The government has committed to working with the Australian Chief Scientist to develop a science strategy and will be consulting broadly with the sector over the coming months. This will be a big deal for Australian science and research and it will be important for every researcher and science organisation with an interest in Australia’s scientific future to provide considered input into the consultation. </p>
<p>As the mining boom slows, this should be a time of growth in science funding. We should be preparing Australia to build a knowledge economy so that we can not just survive but thrive in an increasingly competitive world.</p>
<p>We should be supporting our world-class research infrastructure, and our world-class researchers, to create new knowledge and innovation. And we should be supporting scientists and industry to forge strong links to translate this innovation into economic growth and security; not putting our future wealth and well-being at risk by plundering science for short-term savings.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Read more of The Conversation’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/federal-budget-2015">Federal Budget 2015</a> coverage.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/41434/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Les Field does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy and Future Fellowships schemes have won a reprieve in this year’s budget.Les Field, Secretary for Science Policy at the Australian Academy of Science, and Vice-President & Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/403242015-04-23T20:18:23Z2015-04-23T20:18:23ZBudget cuts are harder if people know the benefits of research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/78300/original/image-20150416-5615-a97zai.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An uncertain future for science funding as the federal budget draws closer.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Maggie Hardy</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>An old academic joke you start to hear around federal budget time goes something like this: “Researchers could strike but no one would care, because no one would know we’ve gone until 10 or 15 years later.”</p>
<p>Most of us working on the coal face of science probably won’t see any outcomes in our lifetime – although with the rapid developments in technology that may be changing.</p>
<p>It takes a large degree of foresight to continue funding research when we know the result is decades away, and it says a lot for Australians that we’ve been so successful on a global stage.</p>
<p>But already this year researchers have battled with threats of funding cuts for critical infrastructure, through a scheme called <a href="https://theconversation.com/research-infrastructure-cuts-harm-science-the-economy-and-the-nation-38478">NCRIS</a>. With an outpouring of public support, from researchers and our supporters, the decision was reversed and 1,700 jobs in Australia were saved, but <a href="https://theconversation.com/pyne-backflips-on-research-infrastructure-funding-cut-38849">only for another year</a>.</p>
<p>The Future Fellows scheme, which funds 100 to 200 outstanding mid-career researchers, hasn’t been so lucky. Originally designed to be a five-year <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/pdf/future_consultation.pdf">program</a>, this is the only one of its kind from the Australian Research Council (ARC), one of two major national funding bodies for research.</p>
<p>At this time, no new funding program has been proposed to replace Future Fellows, and the state of this scheme remains <a href="https://theconversation.com/future-fellowship-cuts-hit-early-stage-researchers-hardest-39180">undecided</a>. </p>
<h2>What are scientists doing?</h2>
<p>How we measure the value of research, and those who conduct the research, is difficult to determine. A recent <a href="http://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/2015/03/science-a-major-contributor-to-the-economy/">report</a> prepared for the Office of the Chief Scientist and the Australian Academy of Science showed that the advanced physical and mathematical sciences contribute around A$145 billion to the economy each year.</p>
<p>About 7% of total Australian employment (760,000 jobs) is directly related to advanced sciences. But we should remember science and research also contribute to our lives in <a href="https://theconversation.com/measuring-the-value-of-science-its-not-always-about-the-money-39361">intangible ways</a>, and to the development of Australia’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/cuts-to-future-fellowships-will-cost-more-than-just-jobs-39186">future leaders</a>, too.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/2014/12/benchmarking-australian-science-technology-engineering-mathematics/">Most of us</a> work at institutions of higher education, and the rest in business or government positions.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=275&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=275&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=275&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/79066/original/image-20150423-3129-a1sidu.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Employment of researchers, by sector, 2011, from the Office of the Chief Scientists report: Benchmarking Australian Science,Technology, Engineering & Mathematics.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/2014/12/benchmarking-australian-science-technology-engineering-mathematics/">Office of the Chief Scientist/OECD, MSTI, January 2014.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Investing in research is a smart move. A 2011 <a href="http://www.acilallen.com.au/projects/5/research-and-development/38/the-university-of-queensland-research-institutes-working-together-to-advance-institutes-working-together-to-advance-queensland-and-australia">analysis</a> found for every dollar invested in any of four research institutes at <a href="http://www.uq.edu.au/">The University of Queensland</a> (Institute for Molecular Bioscience (<a href="http://imb.uq.edu.au/">IMB</a>), the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (<a href="http://www.aibn.uq.edu.au/">AIBN</a>), the Queensland Brain Institute (<a href="http://www.qbi.uq.edu.au/">QBI</a>) and the Sustainable Minerals Institute (<a href="http://www.smi.uq.edu.au/">SMI</a>), between A$15 to A$17 dollars are returned to the Queensland economy.</p>
<h2>Who gets to talk about science</h2>
<p>Taxpayers should be told how their money is being spent, and that isn’t just limited to the number of papers published. How scientists are being trained, and how we are taught to communicate our science, should be a priority as well.</p>
<p>Professor <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/les-field-101362">Les Field</a>, secretary for science policy at the Australian Academy of Science, sees the value in working to raise the profile of research in the community:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The case for investing in science (in its broadest sense) would be much easier if science enjoyed a similar profile with the public as, say, health, education, sport, or social services. And there is nothing that will convince Government of the value of science than an overwhelming positive groundswell from the public. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>His comments are <a href="https://www.science.org.au/sites/default/files/user-content/documents/emcr-forum-science-pathways-2015-program.pdf">part of an introduction</a> to a <a href="https://www.science.org.au/emcr-forum">forum</a> taking place in Adelaide this week for early- and mid-career researchers (EMCRs). The aim is to improve their communication skills so they can better explain what they are doing and why.</p>
<p>Dr <a href="http://www.rmit.edu.au/contact/staff-contacts/academic-staff/s/sriram-dr-sharath/">Sharath Sriram</a>, chair of the Australian EMCR Forum, told me of the importance of promoting science communication among early-stage researchers:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Most scientists are excellent at what they do in relation to asking probing questions to draw answers to their research problem. ECMRs represent the future scientific leaders and it is critical that they learn to frame the content of their communication to the context and their audience, rather than losing the information in jargon or dismissing the importance of science communication.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The conference will use a combination of panel discussions and examples of best practices to illustrate four pillars of science communication:</p>
<ul>
<li>the practice of communicating research</li>
<li>defining and refining your message</li>
<li>communicating with others outside your discipline</li>
<li>working with the media.</li>
</ul>
<h2>The way forward</h2>
<p>The more the public know and care about what Australian research is focused on, and the value of that research, then perhaps we will have a broad, vocal base of advocates for research.</p>
<p>But if no one cares if researchers strike, what can we do when our livelihood is threatened?</p>
<p>In 2011, in response to reports that the federal budget was set to cut medical research funding, the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research started the <a href="http://www.discoveriesneeddollars.org/home">Discoveries Need Dollars</a> campaign.</p>
<p>Nearly 14,000 Australians signed their petition to maintain funding, and the funding was ultimately maintained.</p>
<p>We need to work together, as a community, to protect the investments that are valuable to us as a nation, and as a leader on the world stage.</p>
<p>So researchers who haven’t already started to communicate what they’re doing to others outside their field should consider doing so. It can be good for their research, for their track record, and for their funding – not to mention useful when applying for promotion. They should also let their local communications officer know they’re keen.</p>
<p>More importantly, ahead of this May’s federal budget we can all talk to our <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Members">elected officials</a> and let the government know we value Australian research, and our researchers.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/40324/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maggie Hardy is a member of the Executive Board for the Australian Early- and Mid-Career Researcher Forum.</span></em></p>One way to protect researchers from funding cuts in May’s budget is to make sure they explain the importance of their work to a wider audience.Maggie Hardy, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/393232015-03-29T18:48:24Z2015-03-29T18:48:24ZIf we want to be a smart nation we should keep Future Fellowships<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/76066/original/image-20150326-12293-ysj89f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Resistance against the higher education reforms appears to have led to the scrapping of the Future Fellowships scheme.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">COURTNEY BIGGS/Newzulu</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There are still some unsavoury impacts on science lurking in the undercurrents of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/fee-deregulation">higher education budget tussle</a>. </p>
<p>With very little ceremony, the Australian Research Council’s Future Fellowship’s scheme has been <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/university-reforms-mid-career-researchers-lose-out-as-cash-cut/story-e6frgcjx-1227268602078">quietly pushed to one side</a>. It’s one of the not-so-big ticket items whose continuation was made contingent on the budget savings wrapped up in the higher education reforms. </p>
<p>Earlier this month we did see the Government finally <a href="https://theconversation.com/pyne-backflips-on-research-infrastructure-funding-cut-38849">retreat</a> on its threat to <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/ncris">shut down NCRIS</a>. This is the scheme that supports our major research infrastructure encompassing the <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-the-national-collaborative-research-infrastructure-strategy-ncris-38837">large facilities and pieces of research equipment</a> that underpin some of our strongest areas of research and development.</p>
<p>I can’t help thinking that, having “fixed” NCRIS, the Minister is simply going to threaten to slice off one piece of the research funding pie after another, until the sector is exhausted.</p>
<h2>Why should we care about Future Fellowships?</h2>
<p>The Future Fellowships scheme was born in 2008. It is a four-year grant targeted at supporting outstanding Australian researchers of all stripes who are notionally in their mid-career. </p>
<p>The program is designed to keep these future science leaders in Australia, or to lure them back from overseas, so that Australia can reap the rewards from having nurtured our best and brightest talent. </p>
<p>The Australian Research Council’s website <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/futurefel/future_default.htm">proudly declares</a> that the scheme supports research in areas of critical national importance, with a preference given to researchers who can demonstrate a capacity to build collaboration across industry and research institutions. </p>
<p>The Department of Education has <a href="https://education.gov.au/researchers-faqs#faq3">praised the scheme</a>, saying on its website that without schemes like this, mid-career researchers face a cycle of “uncertain, short term, casual positions” with the risk of losing “our best mid-career researchers to international positions or non-research careers”.</p>
<p>Education minister Christopher Pyne has <a href="http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22chamber%2Fhansardr%2Faec24641-694d-4aba-adb3-c0e00179d7a4%2F0026%22">himself said</a> that the scheme provides “the funding boost that can change the course of a career, and enable them [early career researchers] to make a crucial contribution to solving major problems”.</p>
<p>In July last year, Minister Pyne issued a <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/media/releases/Minister_23July2014.htm">media release</a>, stating that the Future Fellowships scheme plays an important role in building Australia’s research capacity, now and in the future.</p>
<p>I wholeheartedly agree. It was crucial then and it is crucial now. Minister Pyne should stand by his statement and put the Government’s support behind this important scheme.</p>
<h2>Nurturing and retaining talent</h2>
<p>Along with NCRIS, the Future Fellowship scheme is another example of an initiative that has actually worked well. It provides an important <a href="https://theconversation.com/future-fellowship-cuts-hit-early-stage-researchers-hardest-39180">career stepping stone</a> which bridges the formative years of a researcher being trained and mentored into the stage of an independent researcher. </p>
<p>The Future Fellowship scheme encourages younger scientists to stay in Australia or to come home again after taking in some international experience. We really do want to see our brightest and best back in Australia putting their newly acquired skills to good use in pushing forward the research agenda for Australia. </p>
<p>Researchers funded under the Future Fellowship scheme have spanned the breadth of research, from literature to physics. There are myriad projects that establish new working collaborations between science and industry, science and society, and bring measurable improvements and benefits to Australia. </p>
<p>Unable to pass its <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r5325">Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill</a> recently in the parliament, the Minister has declared there will be no new Future Fellowships. </p>
<p>Already, the delay in the passage of this Bill means that we have lost 100 Future Fellows, since the scheme will not run this year. That’s 100 young researchers who could be in the system building their careers, but who aren’t. No matter how you look at it, this means that we move back yet another notch in the overall amount of good research being done in Australia. </p>
<p>We do need to sort this out, and to sort it out quickly. We need to maintain a stable mid-career program to support the next generation of outstanding scientists, and we need this program to be an ongoing business-as-usual program. By letting the Future Fellowships slide, we risk impeding the development of a generation of our younger researchers and maybe even losing some of our highest achievers to other nations. </p>
<p>It is arguably one of the most important things that we do: to nurture our young and to put them on a solid trajectory into the future. We must look after our up-and-coming researchers – they will be the research leaders of tomorrow.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/39323/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Les Field does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Future Fellowships scheme is a great success. Scrapping it would hurt Australia’s future as a smart nation.Les Field, Secretary for Science Policy at the Australian Academy of Science, and Vice-President & Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/391802015-03-26T00:19:00Z2015-03-26T00:19:00ZFuture Fellowship cuts hit early-stage researchers hardest<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75624/original/image-20150323-14636-z1iy23.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Research institutes are important economic contributors to their host cities. The University of Queensland is just across the river from the city of Brisbane.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Photo credit: The University of Queensland.</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australian science has a great reputation for <a href="http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/history-culture/2010/06/australian-inventions-that-changed-the-world/">innovation</a>. From ultrasounds to quantum computing chips, buffalo fly traps to Wi-Fi, Australians have long been at the forefront of technology in medicine, agriculture, and science.</p>
<p>We need stable, national research funding programs to continue this tradition. Competitive grant schemes from the Australian Research Council (<a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/">ARC</a>) and National Health and Medical Research Council (<a href="http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/">NHMRC</a>) provide much of this funding, and are the main mechanism for early-career researchers like us to build ourselves up to be world-class in our fields.</p>
<p>But now, the government is threatening to <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/university-reforms-mid-career-researchers-lose-out-as-cash-cut/story-e6frgcjx-1227268602078">scrap a vital stepping stone</a> for mid-career researchers: the <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/futurefel/future_default.htm">ARC Future Fellowships</a>. With the end of other five-year funding schemes like the ARC Australian Research Fellowship (ARF) and ARC Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship (QEII), the Future Fellowships are the only remaining dedicated funding scheme for mid-career researchers.</p>
<h2>Rungs in a tall ladder</h2>
<p>Forging a <a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-researchers-held-back-in-struggle-for-jobs-funding-11595">career in science</a> isn’t glamorous. It takes more than seven years of training until you emerge at the <a href="https://theconversation.com/are-phd-graduates-expecting-too-much-11854">bottom of the academic pyramid</a>. And <a href="https://royalsociety.org/%7E/media/Royal_Society_Content/policy/publications/2010/4294970126.pdf">only ~0.5% of PhD holders</a> will make it to the level of professor. But we do our jobs because we believe that in the long term our work will help others. </p>
<p>In the early stages of a research career it is especially important to have a clear funding pathway, as researchers are expected to support their own salary and research budget through competitive grant schemes. <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/ncgp/futurefel/future_default.htm">Future Fellowships</a> are a crucial rung in that ladder. </p>
<p>They generally last three to five years, and provide the salary and a modest research budget for many of our brightest mid-career researchers, helping them to develop the skills and experience necessary to earn significantly larger ARC and NHRMC grants later in their career. </p>
<p>In fact, last year, as Federal Education Minister Christopher Pyne <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/media/releases/Minister_23July2014.htm">noted</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>It is crucial that we provide support for the nation’s most highly qualified mid-career researchers. We need to ensure that Australia’s best minds stay in this great country to do their research, which in turn bolsters our capacity to innovate.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Scrapping Future Fellowships would have a significant impact on the Australian research community, with knock-on effects for innovation, the economy, and society at large.</p>
<h2>Short term cuts, long term damage</h2>
<p>Future Fellowships have proven to be an excellent way for Australia to attract and retain outstanding mid-career researchers who are moving upwards in their field. This is particularly valuable because we know young scientists are <a href="http://www.nature.com/news/young-scientists-lead-the-way-on-fresh-ideas-1.16934">more innovative</a> than their senior colleagues, so supporting them is a great way to foster new ideas.</p>
<p>Although foreign nationals and Australians returning from overseas are a portion of the people funded, the vast majority of funding has furthered the careers of resident Australians.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=478&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=478&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=478&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/75751/original/image-20150323-17702-jqfw6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=601&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Citizenship and residency status of funded Future Fellowship candidates by year. Data from the ARC.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The threat of dumping Future Fellowships is an immediate concern for mid-career researchers, but also impacts early-career researchers like us as it paints an ominous picture for our career paths. As immigrants ourselves (Michael is from Scotland and Maggie is from the USA), we know the siren song of home gets louder as career opportunities diminish.</p>
<p>It also affects Australian researchers working overseas. A recent example is an Australian scientist currently working in the USA who <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-i-turned-down-a-decra-to-work-in-the-united-states-37264">recently turned down an ARC grant</a> designed for early-career researchers precisely because of the lack of a clear plan for career progression in Australia. We may be successful with one grant, but what of our future in three, ten or 15 years time? </p>
<h2>Missing rungs</h2>
<p>There were never a huge number of Future Fellowships – nationally only <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/pdf/FT14/FT14%20Selection%20Report.pdf">150 to 200</a> – but they were designed for outstanding mid-level researchers who finished their PhD five to 15 years ago, working in areas of national importance, like fundamental sciences and engineering. </p>
<p>These aren’t abstract wanderings but are real, relevant, and valuable projects that help us achieve <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/about_arc/arc_profile.htm#priorities">Australia’s Strategic Research Priorities</a>. Further, this is the funding that we look to as a vital career step as we rise as researchers.</p>
<p>As early-career researchers, we are watching as a rung of career progression is removed from above us and it’s making us ask the question: if there’s a gap in the career ladder, then why should we keep trying to climb? Maybe a different ladder or another country will value us more.</p>
<p>It’s also demotivating to see those above you struggle. Cutting funding this year means that next year there are a larger number of un-funded researchers, fighting over a decreasing pot of money. We know instead of the <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/pdf/FT14/FT14%20Selection%20Report.pdf">18% success rate</a> of funding applications in 2014, it will be even lower in the future.</p>
<h2>How do we fix this?</h2>
<p>We want a positive community of Australian researchers to work with, to learn from and to drive more amazing discoveries. As early-career researchers, we want to be part of work that leads to <a href="http://www.arc.gov.au/about_arc/arc_profile.htm#priorities">“the development of new ideas, the creation of jobs, economic growth and an enhanced quality of life in Australia.”</a>. But how do we do this without a clear strategic plan for building Australia’s brightest researchers? </p>
<p>It’s time that the government works on a plan for research <em>and</em> researcher development in all disciplines. The Office of the Chief Scientist of Australia also supports a <a href="http://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/STEM_AustraliasFuture_Sept2014_Web.pdf">national strategic plan for science</a>. We need to know that we’re not on a career path that will end abruptly. Then we can get back to working on the next Gardasil, Wi-Fi, or – dare we say – Vegemite.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/39180/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Lawrence Crichton is a member of the Executive Board of the Australian Early/Mid Career Researcher Forum.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maggie Hardy is a member of the Executive Board of the Australian Early/Mid Career Researcher Forum.</span></em></p>Scrapping the ARC Future Fellowships scheme would have a significant impact on the Australian research community, with knock-on effects for innovation, the economy, and society at large.Michael Lawrence Crichton, Postdoctoral Fellow in Biomedical Engineering, The University of QueenslandMaggie Hardy, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.