Griffith University The ARC Linkage Projects Scheme Leveraging R

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Griffith UniversityThe ARC Linkage Projects
Scheme Leveraging RD dollarsSeptember, 2006
Dr Ian Mackinnon Programme Coordinator Linkage
Projects Executive Director Engineering and
Environmental Science Australian Research Council
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Mission
To advance Australias research excellence to be
globally competitive and deliver benefits to the
community Reflects a focus on excellence of
the funded research, as well as outcomes,
including - commercial benefits - broader
benefits to the community
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Commonwealth support for RD
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National Competitive Grants Program (FY 05/06
556M)
Linkage (LP, LIEF and LX) collaborative research
and infrastructure use - national
international (FY 160M)
Discovery (DP, IRD and Fed Fellows) excellent
research by individuals and teams (FY 290M)
Centres (Centres and Research Networks) national
centres of research excellence (FY 105M)
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The ARC Community

• CEO Professor Peter Hoj
• DCEO and COO senior public servants
• 6 EDs 3 year positions, coming from senior
  roles in universities or research organisations
• Approx 70 staff
• National office at 8 Brindabella Circuit,
  Canberra Airport
• Annual departmental budget approx 15 M to
  administer research funding of 556 M per annum
• College of Experts, 75 senior university and
  industry researchers contracted to the ARC for up
  to 3 years.
• A pool of active researchers who assist the
  assessment process via peer-review of proposals

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ARC directions

• ? Building scale and focus
• Emphasis on cross-disciplinary approach to
  solving problems
• Building linkages between researchers and
  end-users
• Engagement with community
• Increasing internationalisation
• Attracting and retaining excellent people
• Emphasis on performance and accountability

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Emphasis on cross-disciplinary approaches to
solving problems

• Discovery
• Linkage, Centres, Networks
• e-Research, Thinking Systems, Ageing well/Ageing
  productively
• Cross-government funding of large Centres
• ARC/NHMRC co-funding

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Building linkages between researchers and
end-users

• Demand for Linkage rising
• Investment in large Linkage projects
• Diversification of partners

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Increasing internationalisation

• Research more global, more collaborative, more
  expensive need to share resources, combine
  skills
• ARCs AIM To ensure Australia benefits from and
  makes a strong contribution to international
  research developments, partnerships,
  collaboration and policy

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International policy

• Maintain and build on existing ARC support for
  international research collaboration
• Capture and create opportunities for
  international research collaboration through
  strong links with overseas research funding
  agencies
• Facilitate new opportunities for international
  research collaboration

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Attracting and retaining excellent people

• Supporting quality research
• Fellowships at all levels
• High quality research environments

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Early Career Researchers

• Need for -
• excellence in research training and early career
  development
• environments characterised by quality research
• excellence in mentoring
• international experience

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Emphasis on performance and accountability

• Evaluating outcomes of grants
• Communicating research outcomes more effectively
• Institutional reviews to monitor use of funds
• Improving our systems

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Linkage Projects

• Primary aim
• Encourage and extend cooperative approaches to
  research by strengthening links within
  Australias innovation system and within
  innovation systems internationally
• Participant roles
• Chief Investigator, Partner Investigator
• APAI (Aust. Postgraduate Award, Industry)
• APDI (lt 3 years from PhD),
• Linkage Industry Fellowships (LIF)
• Partners
• Private sector private non-profit organisation
  a Govt org with funds not committed to internal
  research or any other purpose of research,
  evaluation and/or consultancy.
• Does not fund clinical medical and dental
  research training
• Eligibility ruling can be requested

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Linkage Projects
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Linkage Projects

• Selection Criteria
• Investigators Track Record 20
• Project significance and innovation 25
• Project approach and training 20
• Project national benefit 10
• Collaborating Organisation commitment 25

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LP Selection process

• Assessment by Australian based readers (who read
  and rank up to 20 applications), or by committee
  members only for smaller value applications
• Where received, provision of assessment reports
  to applicants, and receipt of applicant
  rejoinders
• Consideration of applications, assessment
  reports, and rejoinders by the Committee, who
  rank applications and form recommendations for
  funding (including duration and budget).

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Linkage Projects
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Linkage Projects 2006
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Linkage Projects 2006 Average Size
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Linkage Projects 2006 Rd 1
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Linkage Projects 2006 Rd 2
includes 121 APAIs includes 22 APAIs
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Partner Organisation CommitmentLinkage Projects
2006
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Number of Partner Organisations
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Partner Organisation Commitment
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Suggestions

• LP is about collaboration relationships matter
• Establish shared expectations and goals
• Sort out IP early and clearly establish
  fundamentals of contractual arrangements as early
  as possible (e.g. while drafting proposal)
• Review the ARC draft funding agreement with
  University before proposal submission
• Appreciate the cash leverage about 21
  within your organisation as an industry partner
  understand IP implications
• Establish regular and alternate communication
  channels within the RD group
• Recognise possible cultural differences in
  workplace (including where the work will be
  undertaken)

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Thank you