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A greater investment in research and innovation by the states could help address the funding crisis facing the sector , a University of Queensland academic says .
Chris Salisbury , postdoctoral fellow at UQ , says previous examples of states investing in research have generated positive outcomes .
“ It ’ s a viable [ option ] because it has been shown to work in the past … State governments over the last decade and a half or so have played very strong and supportive roles in promoting and advancing research capacity and the building of world-class research infrastructure ,” Salisbury says . “ They ’ ve been shown to take an interest in this area and have the financial wherewithal and intensive political capital to make some positive change in the research landscape .”
He said involvement by the states can be “ politically rewarding but also , as shown in states like Queensland and Victoria , very positive in terms of … building new facilities , attracting leading researchers and leading to the discoveries of new technologies , etc .”
Here , Salisbury discusses the role state governments could play in supporting research , given the decline in investment from the federal government .
Time to make an impact
Conditions are right for state governments to once again pour money and influence into the research sector .
Chris Salisbury interviewed by Antonia Maiolo
CR : Can you explain what role the states could have in this area , and why you believe this is a viable option ?
CS : Not at all discounting the assistance of the federal government , which is still an important part of this equation , there is always a case for an entrepreneurial approach by state leaders – being supportive of areas that might not be top priorities for the federal government .
It can be politically rewarding but also , as was shown in states such as Queensland or Victoria , especially in the 2000s , very positive in terms of research outcomes .
Can you paint a picture of what roles states have played in terms of supporting research in the past and perhaps provide an example ? Most obviously , and closest to my own experience , what happened here in Queensland when the Beattie government came into office in 1998 and then was followed on by Peter Beattie ’ s successor , Anna Bligh .
It was almost a decade and a half of very prominent government support and involvement in attracting research expertise , building research capacity and constructing
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