NCRIS: The power behind Australia’s science

NCRIS delivers 

The impact of NCRIS is clear, however the program itself is not often centre stage. It is time to shine a light on NCRIS.  From supercomputers and microscopes, to data collection and software platforms NCRIS provides the infrastructure that supports Australia’s scientists.

The result is a network of world-class research facilities that are driving innovation and research in Australia and internationally. This network is made up of 22 NCRIS projects, which link over 200 institutions employing more than 1,900 highly skilled researchers and technical experts. This interconnected infrastructure and the specialist teams who run NCRIS programs allow Australia to meet the key challenges outlined in the UN sustainability goals and tackle some of the biggest scientific and societal challenges we face today. These have been highlighted in the Lateral Economics report as: 

• Bushfire preparedness. With a range of sensors across Australia supported by NCRIS facilities such as TERN and AURIN, Australia can be better prepared for bushfire threats in the future. 
• Cyclone warnings. IMOS is providing rich, high frequency data from Australia’s surrounding oceans which can provide early warning signs of cyclones, not to mention ocean acidification and sea level rise associated with climate change.
• Population health. A range of NCRIS facilities (e.g., PHRN, Phenomics Australia, Bioplatforms Australia, Therapeutic Innovation Australia) are helping to improve the health of Australia’s population.
• Understanding the building blocks of reality. NCRIS facilities such as Microscopy Australia, National Imaging Facility, ANSTO, and Astronomy Australia Ltd are contributing to world leading research on the building blocks of the universe and of life.
• Monitoring biodiversity. Australia’s unique biodiversity is being monitored, described and protected by the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA), BioPlatforms Australia, IMOS and TERN. In particular, ALA is our national biodiversity data infrastructure. It integrates and delivers fundamental data on Australia’s plants, animals and fungi to support ecosystem assessment, monitoring and planning.
• Boosting crop yields and resilience. The Australian Plant Phenomics Facility contributes fundamental services in the effort to improve crop yields and crop resilience with genomic and molecular characterisation performed through Bioplatforms Australia.
• Deriving value from data. ARDC, Pawsey Supercomputing Centre and the National Computational Infrastructure enable data from many fields of research across a wide range of scales to be stored, curated, managed and analysed.
• Understanding the earth. AuScope improves our understanding of fundamental earth science and enables a range of benefits including substantial reductions in the cost of and more effective resource exploration.
• Advanced manufacturing. The Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF) and Therapeutic Innovation Australian (TIA) provide industry and the wider community with access to cutting-edge advanced manufacturing technologies. Furthermore, NCRIS organisations such as Astronomy Australia Ltd are involved in advanced manufacturing activities.

(These are selected examples of major benefits of NCRIS-supported infrastructure to the Australian community from the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure (NCRIS) spending and economic growth report, June 2021.

Why Australia needs science innovation

Current global challenges have proven the ability of science to respond and to break new ground when faced with a novel challenge. The fact we have vaccines a year into a global pandemic is testament to this. The ability to respond quickly and skillfully requires infrastructure and team work. The challenges are numerous and Australia has, through NCRIS, been building its scientific capability. A flow on effect of this is that investment in NCRIS has also resulted in a stronger and more resilient economy. The Lateral Economics report noted that:

Dr Cathy Foley in her inaugural speech as Australia’s new Chief Scientist in March 2021 was perhaps thinking along similar lines when she noted that science is critical to solving humankind’s greatest challenges: 

This question highlights the direction in which Australia’s science must head. NCRIS will be a key driver of this interdisciplinary and impact driven future. 

AAL is supported by NCRIS, an Australian Government program to deliver world class research facilities so that Australian researchers can solve complex problems both here in Australia and around the globe. NCRIS is an efficient and strategic way to invest in national scale research infrastructure, driving collaboration to bring economic, environmental, health and social benefits for Australia.

AUTHORS

Philomena Manifold (AuScope), Jo Curkpatrick (Australian Plant Phenomics Facility) Romy Pearse (Astronomy Australia Ltd), Nicola Tew (Population Health Research Network) and Karina Nunez Machado (Pawsey) on behalf of the NCRIS Communications Network

MORE INFORMATION

If you would like to know more about this report, please contact Nicola Tew (Communications Officer, Population Health Research Network, University of Western Australia).

FURTHER READING

National Collaborative Research Infrastructure (NCRIS) spending and economic growth by Lateral Economics, 2021