 | New Zealand Association of Scientists |
| New Zealand Association of Scientists |
The New Zealand Association of Scientists is a genuinely independent association of scientists who work and lobby to
The Association membership includes physical, natural, mathematical and social scientists and welcomes members with an interest in science education, policy, communication and the social impact of science and technology.
Most speakers have now been confirmed for the 2010 NZAS conference. Confirmed speakers include the Hon. Dr Wayne Mapp, Minister of Science; Sir Professor Peter Gluckman, Chief Science Advisor to the Prime Minister; Dr Garth Carnaby, President of the Royal Society of New Zealand; and Struan Little from Treasury.
Speaking at the conference on the role of the tertiary sector in the innovation system will be Dr Linda Sissons, the CEO of the Wellington Institute of Technology; and Assoc. Professor Rod Dunbar, the director of the Maurice Wilkins Center, University of Auckland.
Science provides a driver for economic growth, but also supports sustainable development. Dr Bob Frame, a principal scientist from Landcare Research, will address science and sustainability.
Discussing specific experiences of science and innovation in New Zealand, in both research institutions and the provate sector, will be Sophie Howard, General Manager of commercialisation at VicLink; Dr Michael Uddstrom, principal scientist at NIWA; Dr Andrew McCoy, CEO of Magritek Ltd; and Dan Mclrea, CEO of Puku Ltd.
The full conference programme is available here.
Government is engaged in the biggest shake-up of science funding and science management the country has seen for over 20 years. It’s clear that the 2010 Budget will be a key component of setting the scene for the coming few years.
“The most serious issues in the science sector are micro-management and excessive competition for too little funding. Beyond reducing compliance costs by reorganising Government science agencies (MoRST and FRST), there is a clear case for significantly increased Government investment in science” said Dr James Renwick, President of NZAS.
“As is well-known, New Zealand is near the bottom of the OECD list in terms of public and private investment in research, science and technology (RS&T). No wonder our productivity and GDP per capita have slipped compared to countries such as Denmark and Singapore that are increasing investment in research and development.”
Government announcements last week on extra funding for facilitating business development are a step in the right direction. “But they do little to ease key issues facing the RS&T sector” said Dr Renwick. “Taking money away from health, social and environment research to part-fund the new development initiatives sends a very bad signal. If investment in already underfunded basic research doesn’t keep up, we’ll have little for business to develop, in the longer term.”
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The most significant changes in the New Zealand science system for 20 years are now under way. There will be major changes in the ways Crown Research Institutes are funded and managed and the Government is merging the Ministry and the Foundation for Research Science and Technology (MoRST and FRST) into a new Department for Science.
Dr James Renwick, President of NZAS, welcomes these changes. “The Government is taking bold steps to fix a system that has long been broken and is to be commended for this.”
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The New Zealand Association of Scientists is heartened by the findings of the CRI Taskforce. President Dr James Renwick said ''the recommendations of the report echo a number of the main points that NZAS made in its submission, and Government implementation of the Taskforce’s recommendations would go a long way to addressing some of the main concerns identified in the NZAS survey of scientists.''
The Association feels that the Taskforce has carried out an excellent analysis of the CRIs, the problems they face, and how these issues affect their ability to work in the national interest. Their recommendations are very much a step in the right direction, and will allow for adaptive change.
Successful implementation of the recommendations and the philosophy they embody will depend on all of us, and upon the quality of the interactions within CRIs, between the CRIs, their boards and stakeholders, the universities, independent research groups, and the wider public. The key to successful implementation and a positive way forward will be to balance priorities across capability development and maintenance, strategic research, advice and future watch, given the level of funding the Government and other organisations are willing to put in.
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