<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8">
<meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 15 (filtered medium)">
<!--[if !mso]><style>v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
</style><![endif]--><link rel="Stylesheet" type="text/css" media="all" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Roboto"><style><!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:"Cambria Math";
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:"Lucida Grande";
panose-1:2 11 6 0 4 5 2 2 2 4;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0cm;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-priority:99;
font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;
color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;}
strong
{mso-style-priority:22;
font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;}
span.EmailStyle24
{mso-style-type:personal-reply;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;
color:windowtext;}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
font-size:10.0pt;}
@page WordSection1
{size:612.0pt 792.0pt;
margin:72.0pt 72.0pt 72.0pt 72.0pt;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
--></style><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="1026" />
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1" />
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]-->
</head>
<body lang="EN-AU" link="blue" vlink="purple">
<div class="WordSection1">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US">Dear ASA members,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US">Attached is a statement from Science and Technology Australia (STA) on the role of research in the economy, and why governments should invest in research.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US">While we all probably know the general script, I hope the specific numbers are useful. They might even help with answering those “why should taxpayers fund astronomy / basic science” questions. The
next election is not far away, after all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US">The ASA is a member organisation of the STA, and we work together to influence policy in areas such as these.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">Cheers,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">Stas<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">------------------------------------<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">Professor Stas Shabala<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">(he/him/his)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">President, Astronomical Society of Australia<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">Discipline of Physics | School of Natural Sciences | College of Science and Engineering<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black">University of Tasmania<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:black;mso-fareast-language:EN-US">------------------------------------</span><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-fareast-language:EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div style="border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0cm 0cm 0cm">
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black">From: </span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:black"><outreach+Science.and.Technology.Australia@streem.com.au> on behalf of Science and Technology Australia <outreach+Science.and.Technology.Australia@streem.com.au><br>
<b>Reply to: </b>"media@sta.org.au" <media@sta.org.au><br>
<b>Date: </b>Thursday, 5 September 2024 at 3:26 pm<br>
<b>To: </b>Stas Shabala <stanislav.shabala@utas.edu.au><br>
<b>Subject: </b>AUS ECONOMY NEEDS A RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT POWER UP<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:0%"><span style="font-size:1.0pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif">AUS ECONOMY NEEDS A RESEARC...
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div align="center">
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0" style="border-spacing: 0">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="600" style="width:450.0pt;padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0" style="max-width:450.0pt">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td valign="top" style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" style="width:100.0%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" style="width:100.0%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif"><img width="600" style="width:6.25in" id="_x0000_i1027" src="https://streem-attachments.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/y9oBDKoN5LWPDYag.png" alt="outreach header image"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<div>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt;color:#FF9900">AUS ECONOMY NEEDS A RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT POWER UP</span></strong><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><strong><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:#E60000">THURSDAY 5 SEPTEMBER 2024</span></strong><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Yesterday’s sluggish National Accounts figures highlight the importance of boosting investment in economy-growing research and development, and reinforce
the urgency of the upcoming strategic review of R&D.</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Early-stage research returns more than $3 for every dollar invested, and research further along the innovation pipeline offers a more than five-fold return,
so leaning into the transformational power of R&D investment offers an economic power up for the nation.</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Australian R&D investment, however, sits at just 1.68 per cent of GDP – well below the 2.7 per cent average of our global competitors, and a country mile
behind global leaders such as South Korea at 4.9 per cent and the USA at 3.5 per cent.</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">“Research and development is transformational for economies and offers powerful and big returns on investment, with benefits extending beyond researchers
and businesses into supply chains and local economic activity and jobs growth,” said STA CEO Ryan Winn.</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">“Lifting R&D investment to match our competitors won’t just create the jobs, products and services we need – it’ll also dramatically boost the national economy.”</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Key to that uplift is deeper investment from Australia’s businesses. Australian business investment in research as a percentage of GDP has declined from
a peak of 1.37 per cent in 2008–2009 to just 0.88 per cent in 2021–2022.</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">“To create the economy we need, businesses must boost their R&D, and government needs to set the right incentive, procurement and regulatory structures to
encourage and facilitate business investment.”</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">“That highlights the urgency of the upcoming strategic review of R&D announced earlier this year by Minister for Industry and Science Ed Husic.”</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">“We encourage the government to swiftly set out the terms of reference for that review, so that the work can start for building the conditions business needs
to have the confidence to invest in R&D.”</span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><em><b><u><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black">About Science & Technology Australia</span></u></b></em><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><em><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black">Science & Technology Australia is the nation’s peak body representing more than 225,000 scientists and technologists.
We’re the leading policy voice on science and technology. Our flagship programs include
</span></em><em><span style="font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/lAMHCp81lrtQWOvKXuPf7CGGjvg?domain=email.streem.com.au"><span style="font-size:10.5pt">Science Meets Parliament</span></a></span></em><em><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black">,
</span></em><em><span style="font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/rN__Cq71mwfL3kzlmCXh8CEvJce?domain=email.streem.com.au"><span style="font-size:10.5pt">Superstars of STEM</span></a></span></em><em><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black">,
and </span></em><em><span style="font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/dVOvCr81nytwYn1oLu4ioC4UvQO?domain=email.streem.com.au"><span style="font-size:10.5pt">STA STEM Ambassadors</span></a></span></em><em><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif;color:black">.</span></em><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><strong><span style="font-size:10.5pt;color:black">Media contact: Martyn Pearce, STA: 0432 606 828</span></strong><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;background:white"><span style="font-size:11.5pt;color:black"></span><span style="font-size:11.5pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<table class="MsoNormalTable" border="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" style="width:100.0%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Lucida Grande",sans-serif"><img border="0" width="600" style="width:6.25in" id="_x0000_i1026" src="https://streem-attachments.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/V4r7pa4e0RlRDNmP.png" alt="outreach footer image"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding:.75pt .75pt .75pt .75pt">
<div style="margin-top:11.25pt;margin-bottom:11.25pt">
<div style="border:none;border-top:solid #DDDDDD 1.0pt;padding:15.0pt 0cm 0cm 0cm">
<p><span style="font-size:9.0pt;color:#999999">You are receiving this email because you were included on Science & Technology Australia's media release. To unsubscribe and stop receiving emails from this organisation
<a href="https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/H0mfCvl1rKiO5L2KMuAs8CQnC7f?domain=email.streem.com.au">
click here</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><img border="0" id="_x0000_i1025" src="https://email.streem.com.au/o/eJwUyVFuwyAMANDTlD8igm2wPzjLZDBZ0eikhaTnn_r9rKDKYa6XPUeiHSShexasR6gkEAhq5yzUEh8aUM3EAoAbJSUTDGaiwPlrb7mniBw5ojwwrGH9Z_z5l47Zz-VJJKNQk-xxfmPbPuDOsi79HWvqe1tPrTr1geG-dG3d7k1vt66z95cfVthiY0D2CQ7wqBm9hKg-UWpVkLhVcO8S_wMAAP__r8g9MQ"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<p style="font-size:10pt; line-height:10pt; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"><br>
<br>
This email is confidential, and is for the intended recipient only. Access, disclosure, copying, distribution, or reliance on any of it by anyone outside the intended recipient organisation is prohibited and may be a criminal offence. Please delete if obtained
in error and email confirmation to the sender. The views expressed in this email are not necessarily the views of the University of Tasmania, unless clearly intended otherwise.</p>
</body>
</html>