National Research Infrastructure Council discussion paper “A process to identify and prioritise Australia's Landmark Research Infrastructure needs”

22 July 2010

The Council for Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences welcomes the discussion paper, and supports the move towards a transparent and policy based approached to funding of major projects.

• The Council welcomes the inclusion of all research areas within the landmark projects area, moving from earlier explicit concentration on STEM areas of research to include the humanities, arts and social sciences.

The Council for HASS notes and supports the submission by the Academy for the Social Sciences in Australia and in particular notes its comments  that maintenance, upgrading for new ICT capabilities, and technical support for large scale projects should be included in the costing of them. These components may not be physical infrastructure in traditional terms, but are an integral part of infrastructure in the knowledge economy.

• Projects in the humanities and social sciences (for instance in data management as the Academy of Social Sciences paper outlines) may not need as much upfront investment in facilities but do need the long term commitment to technical support and management of global collaboration, and should not be treated as less important than other projects carrying a bigger facilities price tag.

The Council suggests that the identifying and prioritisation processes must be linked explicitly with priorities developed for project development of smaller scale projects.

• Therefore the criteria summarised for Question 4 should include an assessment of merit in comparison to smaller scale projects of equal importance in the fields of academic and innovative merit alongside the existing criteria of relevance to priorities, technical feasibility and collaboration.
 
• Although the paper does not see more than 2 or three landmark projects, defined by scale of funding for facilities, emerging in a decade, these must be considered in context against other projects which may have as great significance in innovation and roadmap priorities but cost less in terms of facilities.

The Council further notes that projects in several of the HASS areas will have multiple funding streams, including both public and private sources and potentially including several levels of government. For example, in the creative arts areas, large scale facilities will likely have multiple uses and differing performance indicators for the funding partners involved.

NRIC's list of criteria already includes technical feasibility, but the Council for HASS wishes to draw the attention particularly to the need for assessment of the governance structure and project management in these projects.

About the Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences

Supporting more than 85 member organisations in their relationships with policy makers and the broader community, the Council is an important network for knowledge and skills in the humanities, arts and social sciences disciplines. The Council for HASS helps members to contribute to public debate through programs for knowledge exchange and media awareness.

It promotes and provides advocacy services for the humanities, arts and social sciences. The Council serves as a coordinating forum for teachers, researchers, professionals and practitioners in the sector.

Council members engage in research and professional practice in disciplines from education, history, languages and philosophy, to demography, journalism, geography and sociology. Leading universities, discipline associations, peak bodies and collecting institutions are represented in the Council's membership body. The performing and visual arts areas are well represented through art form groups and research and training institutions, as are media arts and design and publishing.

Members are specialists in the knowledge and skills of their disciplines and professions, and are major advocates and networks for their fields.

22 July 2010

 

For more information, please contact:

Helen O'Neil

Executive Director

Council of the Humanties, Arts and Social Sciences

Phone: 02 6201 2740

director [at] chass.org.au