<div dir="ltr">Greetings ASA Members<div> it is a great pleasure to note two astronomy related Honours announced today:</div><div><br></div><div><ul><li>David Luchetti, who has worked with the Government and astronomers to enable large projects (SKA for example)</li><li>Alan Finkel (a former Chair of the CAASTRO Advisory Board).</li></ul><div><br></div></div><div>David Luchetti was awarded the Public Service Medal. The citation reads:</div><blockquote style="margin:0 0 0 40px;border:none;padding:0px">Mr David Anthony LUCHETTI<br>For outstanding public service to science and industry policy in Australia, particularly in the Square Kilometre Array project.<br><br></blockquote>Alan Finkel was made a Companion of the Order of Australia. His citation reads:<blockquote style="margin:0 0 0 40px;border:none;padding:0px"><div>For eminent service to science, to national energy
innovation and research infrastructure capability, to climate
change and COVID-19 response initiatives, and to science
and engineering education. </div></blockquote><div><br></div>Please join me in congratulating David and Alan on the recognition of their achievements.<div><br></div><div>On a different topic, below (and attached) is the latest news from STA.</div><div><br></div><div>Best wishes to all</div><div><br></div><div>John L</div><div><br><div><br><div><div><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">---------- Forwarded message ---------<br>From: <strong class="gmail_sendername" dir="auto">Science and Technology Australia</strong> <span dir="auto"><<a href="mailto:mmrelease@isentia.com" target="_blank">mmrelease@isentia.com</a>></span><br>Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2022 at 06:04<br>Subject: BUDGET 2022: TIME TO ‘DOUBLE DOWN’ ON OUR SCIENCE INVESTMENT<br>To: <<a href="mailto:john.lattanzio@monash.edu" target="_blank">john.lattanzio@monash.edu</a>><br></div><br><br>
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<p style="font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:18px;font-weight:bold;line-height:1.25em;margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px">
BUDGET 2022: TIME TO ‘DOUBLE DOWN’ ON OUR SCIENCE INVESTMENT</p>
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<td><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif"><span style="color:#ff0000"><strong>WEDNESDAY 26 JANUARY 2022 </strong></span><br>
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The 2022 Budget should “double down” on Australia’s return-generating investments in science to prepare for new complex challenges after this pandemic, fast-track our economic recovery and smooth the nation’s climate transition.<br>
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This would start with boosting direct R&D investments to shift Australia closer to the top-ten OECD countries to seize economic opportunities for our nation.<br>
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The first major stride towards that goal would be a $2.4 billion Research Translation Fund to secure Australia’s science future and generate strong returns on investment.<br>
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In its pre-Budget submission, Science & Technology Australia proposes the fund and other strategic investments to safeguard our economy, build on the country’s outstanding science capability, respond to threats, and seize new income-generating opportunities.<br>
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“Australia should use the next federal Budget to fund science like our lives and our economy depend on it - because they do,” said Science & Technology Australia CEO Misha Schubert.<br>
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“We should heed the lessons of the pandemic and ‘double down’ on our investments in science to see off major threats and seize new economic opportunities for Australia.”<br>
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“As we enter the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s never been clearer that Australia needs the deep expertise of scientists to navigate this historic challenge - and many others.”<br>
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“Science has given us diagnostic testing, respirators, medical equipment, epidemiological expertise, and – crucially – life-saving vaccines.”<br>
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“Those vaccines have saved lives from COVID-19, and could open the door to a host of potential new vaccines against cancers - and create tens of thousands of Australian jobs.”<br>
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Science & Technology Australia President Professor Mark Hutchinson urged the Government to use the 2022 Budget to safeguard the future of our science talent, institutions, and infrastructure.<br>
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“The lessons of the past few years are clear. We must invest deeply in science and scientists. The success of science is crucial to our safety.”<br>
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“Now is the time to secure the next-generation science capabilities we need to face the next set of complex challenges that will confront our country.”<br>
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The pre-Budget submission sets out fiscally responsible initiatives to deliver strong returns on investment to both tax revenue and the economy. They include:</span></span>
<ol>
<li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Boost direct R&D investment to shift Australia closer towards investment levels in the top ten OECD countries;</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Create a new $2.4 billion Research Translation Fund to turn more of Australia’s science into applications that will generate returns on investment;</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Safeguard the next wave of science breakthroughs by lifting ARC and NHMRC research grants budgets to $1 billion/year for each agency;</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Secure the future of science and research infrastructure with long-term funding certainty for the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy;</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Deepen investment in climate science and low-emission technologies, including extending the proposed Patent Box initiative to include clean energy tech;</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Avert a disastrous exodus of science talent by shifting to longer-term grants, employing researchers on longer-term contracts, adopting fixed timelines for grant applications
and announcements, and slashing red tape in grant applications;</span></span> </li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Invest $3 million in an STA Bench to Boardroom program to turbo charge training for scientists to pursue commercialisation;</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Access Australia’s full STEM talent pool by investing $2.3 million to advance women in STEM through STA’s groundbreaking Superstars of STEM program; and $4 million to establish
an Indigenous STEM Network;</span></span> </li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">A $2.3 million endowment to secure Science meets Parliament for the decade; and</span></span>
</li><li><span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Resource the promised review of the Job-Ready Graduates legislation and top up funding for STEM degrees if they have fallen under the new model.</span></span>
</li></ol>
<span style="font-size:14px"><span style="font-family:tahoma,geneva,sans-serif">Science & Technology Australia is the peak body for the nation’s STEM sector, representing more than 90,000 scientists and technologists. <br>
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<a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/iCXZCQnMBZfkVZ98qfx5OBt?domain=scienceandtechnologyaustralia.org.au" target="_blank">Read Science & Technology Australia’s pre-budget submission here</a>. <br>
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<strong>Media contact</strong>: Martyn Pearce, STA: 0432 606 828</span></span><br>
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</div><br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div><b><span style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(53,28,117)">I'</span><span style="color:rgb(11,83,148)">m</span><font color="#000000"> </font><span style="color:rgb(106,168,79)">a</span><span style="color:rgb(241,194,50)">n</span><span style="color:rgb(230,145,56)"> </span><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)"><span style="color:rgb(153,0,255)"><span style="color:rgb(230,145,56)">L</span><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">G</span></span><span style="color:rgb(142,124,195)">B</span><span style="color:rgb(53,28,117)">T<span style="color:rgb(11,83,148)">I</span></span><span style="color:rgb(106,168,79)">Q</span></span><span style="color:rgb(0,255,0)"> </span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0)"><span style="color:rgb(241,194,50)">A</span><span style="color:rgb(230,145,56)">l</span><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">l</span><span style="color:rgb(142,124,195)">y</span></span></span></b><i><span style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif"><b> </b> - Find out more at </span></i><a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/qSiaCXLW2mUXArG1NCmzGEs?domain=monash.edu" style="color:rgb(17,85,204);font-family:arial,sans-serif;white-space:pre-wrap" target="_blank"><i>monash.edu/lgbtiqa</i></a><i><br></i></div><div><i style="font-size:12.8px"><br></i></div><div>Professor John Lattanzio</div><div>President, Astronomical Society of Australia</div><div><br>School of Physics and Astronomy<br></div><div>Monash University Victoria 3800 AUSTRALIA<br><br></div><div>Ph: +61 (0)3 9905-4428<br>WWW: <a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/lNShCZY1Nqi5vBxERfXX7f_?domain=maths.monash.edu.au/" target="_blank">users.monash.edu.au/~johnl/</a><br><div>
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<span></span>
<span><a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/262vC2xMQzipry6vGsLXt2o?domain=orcid.org" target="_blank">orcid.org/0000-0003-2952-859X</a></span></div></div></div><div><font size="1"><br></font></div><div><div><font size="1">-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br>"...<span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light"">it’s a human story that builds to a climax and it’s personal from end to end. </span></font></div><div><span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light""><font size="1">You start out wondering why you bought those blue pajamas and later you’re </font></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light""><font size="1">wondering why you were born. You go from the foolishly absurd to the deadly </font></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light""><font size="1">serious and you’ve passed through the gaudy and the nasty along the way. </font></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light""><font size="1">You get to the edge and you’re played out and you wonder where’s the good </font></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light""><font size="1">news? Isn’t there supposed to be good news?"</font></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(29,29,29);font-family:"Clarendon FS Light""><font size="1"> - Bob Dylan</font></span></div><div><font size="1">-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</font><br></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>