KEY POINTS
- Australia’s National Research Priorities (NRPs) are:
- An environmentally sustainable Australia
- Promoting and maintaining good health
- Frontier technologies and transforming Australian industries
- Safeguarding Australia.
- NRPs, introduced in 2002, are designed to focus the Australian Government’s research effort into those areas that can deliver significant economic, social and environmental benefits to Australia.
- All Australian Government research bodies have implemented the NRPs within their processes for enhancing the scale and focus of their research effort.
- Since 2003-04 NRP agencies have provided three annual reports and one triennial report to government. The triennial report was released in August 2007.
- These reports demonstrate that the NRPs are achieving the goals of contributing to Australia's future prosperity and well-being by enhancing the quality and impact of Australia's research, building critical mass in the identified priority areas and promoting collaboration between research organisations and industry.
- The NRPs were considered as part of the Review of the National Innovation System released on 9 September 2008. The review was tasked with developing a set of national innovation priorities to complement the NRPs, ensuring the objectives of research programs and other innovation initiatives are complementary.
FACTS AND FIGURES
NRPS AND THEIR ASSOCIATED PRIORITY GOALS
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An Environmentally Sustainable Australia Transforming the way we utilise our land, water, mineral and energy resources through a better understanding of human and environmental systems and the use of new technologies.
Priority goals:
1. Water – a critical resource
2. Transforming existing industries
3. Overcoming soil loss, salinity and acidity
4. Reducing and capturing emissions in transport and energy generation
5. Sustainable use of Australia’s biodiversity
6. Developing deep earth resources
7. Responding to climate change and variability |
Promoting and Maintaining Good Health Promoting good health and well being for all Australians.
Priority goals:
1. A healthy start to life
2. Ageing well, ageing productively
3. Preventive healthcare
4. Strengthening Australia’s social and economic fabric
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Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries Stimulating the growth of world-class Australian industries using innovative technologies developed from cutting-edge research.
Priority goals:
1. Breakthrough science
2. Frontier technologies
3. Advanced materials
4. Smart information use
5. Promoting an innovation culture and economy
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Safeguarding Australia Safeguarding Australia from terrorism, crime, invasive diseases and pests; strengthening our understanding of Australia’s place in the region and the world; and securing our infrastructure, particularly with respect to our digital systems.
Priority goals:
1. Critical infrastructure
2. Understanding our region and the world
3. Protecting Australia from invasive diseases and pests
4. Protecting Australia from terrorism and crime
5. Transformational defence technologies |
The term of the NRP Standing Committee members expired on 31 December 2007. The Standing Committee has been allowed to lapse until the outcome of the Review of the National Innovation System.