NE——SELLE LL Strategy for the Research Council of Norway The Research Council of Norway P.O. Box 2700 St.
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Oslo, September 2004 ISBN 82-12-01995-0 ISBN 82-12-01996-9 The primary aim of the Research Council of Norway is to promote topquality research in response to the needs of society. This strategy document focuses primarily on areas in which a need to chart out a new course is seen in relation to the existing situation.
This strategy is designed to extend from the present to 2010. It will be operationalised organisationally through long-term budget planning, actions plans and annual working programmes.
A detailed presentation of the current status in relation to the established performance targets is available in an electronic attachment to the strategy document published on the Research Council's website. Performance information will be updated regularly, and performance targets will be further defined during the course of 2004.
This strategy document describes the actions that the Research Council will take to fulfil the objectives set out in the Norwegian Government's existing research policy. The Research Council also serves as an advisory body in the formulation of national research policy. In this context, the strategy will be supplemented by the Council's annual budget proposal as well as the submission of various types of input, e.g. in connection with the preparation of a new government white paper on research policy, recommendations for Norwegian views on the EU Seventh Framework Programme for research, and specific proposals in relation to government innovation policy.
The Research Council strategy will be implemented in cooperation with the various participants in the research system, all of whom have participated in its development and design. The Research Council would like to extend its thanks for the many valuable perspectives and viewpoints that have emerged during these efforts.
Geir Stene-Larsen Christian Hambro Chairman of the Programme Committee Director General Preface: SE GS GSE NG es GE SE SG ER KE KG 0453 ERAN 3 Vision Statement... 5 Mission Statement. same EE EA AGE 6 The roles of the Research Council... eee 7 Strategic proteser 9 Goal: Enhanced quality in research... 10 Goal: Increased research for innovation... 12 Goal: Expanded dialogue between research and society... 14 Goal: Increased internationalisation of Norwegian research... 16 Goal: Do more to foster talent... 18 Internal goal: An improved Research Council... 20 Key Figures moms 22 Abbreviations.......
Research is intended to expand the boundaries of what we know, understand and can achieve. Research adds cultural resonance to society and creates a viable framework for sustainable development, welfare and wealth creation. At the same time, Norway as a prosperous country is morally obligated to contribute to the global pool of knowledge.
Research is part of Norwegian culture. It is enriching in and of itself, and it is vital to promoting scientific and knowledge-related development. Research may also be motivated by the need for practical applications and justified by expectations relating to concrete results. The Research Council seeks to incorporate the widest possible range of motivations for research activity into its efforts, and to adapt its objectives, instruments and working methods accordingly.
International society is faced with enormous challenges, and the nations of the world are growing increasingly dependent on one another. Research has a crucial role to play in fulfilling global tasks as well as in creating value in Norway. Research shall contribute to enlarging the framework for new opportunities and lead to new solutions that may, in turn, enhance the pace of innovation and increase productivity.
To fully realise the vision of the future, the quality of Norwegian research must be enhanced and the overall investment in research activity must be increased.
» The Research Council will work to increase the value of society'
The Research Council will work within a strategic framework to promote top-quality research in all disciplines, and will in particular strive to support research that is beneficial to industry, to the public sector and to society at large.
The Research Council will encourage constructive interaction and seek to introduce an appropriate organisational framework within the research and innovation system. The establishment of research priorities that focus on activities across traditional disciplinary and sectoral dividing lines as well as activities to enhance the internationalisation of Norwegian research both comprise important tasks for the Council.
The Research Council has a comprehensive, three-tiered system of boards with representation from all components of Norwegian society. This provides the Council with unique insight into emerging research needs, enables it to place research activities in a broad perspective, and makes it possible to assess many different issues in relation to one another when drawing up research strategies.
This broad representation, combined with open channels of external communication, will ensure that the Research Council is able to effectively balance all the important considerations in its decision-making processes The Research Council has three principal tasks:
= To create meeting places and networking opportunities for relevant players from research, trade and industry and the public sector.
The Research Council serves as a driving force in launching initiatives in areas that are essential to knowledge development and value creation. The Council's input is designed to enhance cooperation and task-sharing within the research and innovation system.
The Research Council's funding efforts are directed towards enhancing the quality of research, increasing the utilisation of research results, and ensuring that research leads to innovation within the industrial and public sectors alike. For the most part, funding is awarded on the basis of national, merit-based competition. Some of the instruments employed have been devised as a means of promoting disciplinary and scientific development and strengthening research institutions. Other instruments comprise targetbased initiatives to boost competence and augment the knowledge base in specifically defined areas that have a direct bearing on industrial development, policy formulation or improved public administration. In addition to these traditional funding instruments, the Research Council is also responsible for administering SkatteFUNN, the tax deduction scheme for trade and industry.
The Research Council is to serve as a hub for the various actors in the research system. This provides a good basis both for identifying potential areas of priority and for planning the implementation of existing initiatives. It also establishes the Research Council as an arena for discussions both within the research system and with the users and the public at large with regard to choices of direction as well as important ethical challenges in the world of research.
The EU comprises an important platform for the development of new, largescale research initiatives, and is assuming an increasingly important function in the debate on the role of research in society and industrial development.
In keeping with the principles set out in the most recent government white paper on research, the Research Council gives priority to basic research in all disciplines as well as to the four stipulated target areas: marine research, medicine and public health, ICT, and research in the interface between environmental and energy issues. Additional priority areas include petroleum, materials and biotechnology research.
In response to the priorities outlined in the current government report on research policy, the Research Council has launched a variety of initiatives. These include the establishment of 13 Centres of Excellence and seven large-scale research programmes that encompass basic research, industryoriented research and research for policy development and public administration in priority areas. The Research Council funds independent initiatives in social science and humanities research, which also comprise an important element of several of the large-scale programmes.
As part of the effort to realise the stated research policy objectives for the period leading up to 2010, the Research Council has defined six strategic goals for its activities. The associated performance targets indicate what the Research Council hopes to achieve, and the actions listed under each goal specify how the Research Council plans to ensure a successful outcome.
The Research Council shall seek to ensure that Norwegian research activity meets the same quality standards as the other Nordic countries.
Long-term, basic research constitutes the foundation for the development of knowledge within society. In some areas, such as marine biology and petroleum geology, the Norwegian research community possesses cutting-edge expertise that helps to set the standards for international research activity.
Various evaluations carried out in recent years have concluded that highquality groups of researchers are found within virtually all fields of Norwegian research. However, despite the many outstanding individuals, the research communities within many of the science and technology disciplines remain weak in an international perspective because they are so small. The overall impression gives cause for concern. Compared to their Nordic counterparts, Norwegian researchers on average publish fewer articles and their articles are cited somewhat less frequently. Successfully bringing the standard of Norwegian research activity up to the level of the other Nordic countries will require increased investment, the design and implementation of effective instruments for developing the research sector, greater focus on quality aspects of research and better research management.
Industry-based research and much of the activity in applied research are not primarily aimed at scientific publication. In these areas, the crucial factor is the degree to which research leads to innovation or is useful in some other manner. In certain fields, for example petroleum technology, aquaculture and aluminium production, Norway is considered to be a leading knowledge nation. Methods for documenting quality and achievement in this sphere of national research activity need to be further developed.
Promote cooperation with international research groups and R&D institutions The Research Council shall seek to promote research that strengthens Norway'
Societies based on a knowledge-driven economy are dependent on innovation to maintain a high level of social goods and benefits. Although innovation encompasses far more than research, research is an absolutely crucial component of innovation — directly as well as indirectly. Research spawns new knowledge and unique forms of competence. This lays the foundation for new products, services and processes that have a high knowledge content, that are difficult to duplicate and that may create a framework for permanently enhanced competitiveness. Norwegian industry is in the forefront in terms of knowledge in a number of areas. Nonetheless, Norway's scores are low in relation to countries it cooperates and competes with, both with regard to industrial investment in R&D and with regard to innovation-related indicators. Therefore, it is important to enhance the volume, quality and relevance of industry-oriented research — within enterprises and research institutions alike.
The various challenges relating to innovation must be viewed in conjunction with one another: there is a need for more research and innovation in existing industry; for growth in new knowledge-intensive industries; for increased commercialisation of research results; and for a strengthened public sector as a source of — and an environment for — innovation. Largerscale, targeted research initiatives will be needed as a platform for tomorrow's industry if Norway is to enhance its innovative capacity. This must be predicated upon a better flow of knowledge and greater interaction between industry, knowledge institutions and the public authorities. Increased cooperation between industry and research institutions is especially important in this context. Studies show that more risk capital is needed to realise the potential of the research being performed.
Further develop *user-directed"
An open dialogue between the research community and the public is necessary in order to ensure responsible research in keeping with the ethical norms of society. It is also required to ensure development of research activity in areas of significance to society at large. As a result of the broadbased representation of user interests and research communities within the Research Council, the organisation is uniquely equipped to identify and follow up research initiatives in areas that are critical in a social development perspective.
Norway is committed to participating in research that fosters sustainable global development, and every effort should be made to support research activities seeking to cultivate economic, political and social development in less affluent countries. Research generates the knowledge base needed to assess the ramifications of the different choices faced by policy-makers and public administrators. The practical value of research becomes clearly evident in the emergence of new policies and changes in government administration practices. Norwegian researchers are already making important contributions in these areas, affording Norway a national advantage that should be given further focus.
One of the challenges facing the Research Council is how to involve policymakers, other stakeholders and the general public in the discussion regarding the role of research in society. Information about research and researcher participation in the public debate can help to bolster understanding of, interest in and support for research activity. This will in turn lead to greater knowledge and creativity within society.
Researchers are growing more and more dependent on cooperation with leading circles in their own and related fields across national borders. Such cooperation has become crucial to the development of the research community. At the same time, international research cooperation adds to society's cumulative knowledge pool.
Research policy has become more internationally oriented, and is increasingly influenced by worldwide networks of researchers, companies and policy-makers. This has been prompted not least by the establishment of the European Research Area (ERA) under the auspices of the EU. If Norwegian researchers are to help set the international agenda for research, they need to participate at the international level. Cooperation with research groups in other countries is also essential for keeping pace with developments on the research front, for bringing new insights home to Norwegian enterprises and knowledge communities, and for helping to enhance the overall quality of Norwegian research activities.
Norwegian research must be of superior quality if research groups are to be perceived as attractive partners in an international context. Thus, Norwegian research activities must incorporate and utilise findings from other countries and, at the same time, help to expand global knowledge. It is critical to stimulate increased foreign investment in Norwegian research and to encourage a greater number of foreign researchers to come to Norway to work.
Work to enhance Norway'
Enhance the Nordic Research and Innovation Area (NORIA)
The Storting (Norwegian national assembly) has approved a considerable rise in the number of researcher recruitment positions — primarily through direct funding of researcher training programmes at institutions of higher education. However, a big challenge lies in ensuring that a greater proportion of candidates exhibiting outstanding research skills decide to become researchers.
The Research Council will work to make research more accessible and interesting to children and young people. The Council will also work to encourage a greater number of candidates who complete researcher training programmes to pursue careers in research. The proportion of women candidates who choose to continue in research is currently too low. It is important in this context to create a better framework for the transition from researcher training to an employment platform. Improvements in research management will also be vital to fostering and retaining talent. Greater researcher mobility between companies, research institutes and institutions of higher education would enhance the versatility of research activities and create better opportunities for outstanding candidates than is currently the case.
In Norway, the resources underlying each R&D full-time equivalent are small compared with other countries. This implies that researchers here have to spend more of their time on tasks not related to research than their counterparts abroad. Less than optimal working conditions may diminish the appeal of a career in research, and pose an obstacle to recruitment.
Launch activities and measures for children and young people to demonstrate that research represents a challenging, exciting career path The strategic priorities listed above indicate what the Research Council plans to do to increase the value of research in society. The Research Council cannot succeed in these efforts without the implicit confidence of all the relevant parties. Everyone involved in the research establishment is best served by a Research Council that not only documents and achieves good results, but that also works in a manner to which its users can relate.
to realise the other targets outlined in this strategy. In addition, they will contribute to the development of the organisation as a whole, including those aspects that are not directly related to the funding of research.
According to its organisational objectives, the Research Council shall be:
Accessible:
Integrated:
Service-minded:
An important arena:
industry and public administration within and across disciplines, sectors and type of research activity the short term, highest priority will be given to:
> Establishing the profile and direction of the restructured Research Council by devising a new strategy and action plans, by carrying out long-term budget planning and by providing detailed input to the new government white paper on research.
> Simplifying and standardising application procedures by introducing fully electronic application submission and processing, harmonising administrative routines and providing standardised, easily accessible information to all applicants well in advance of grant application deadlines. Other important efforts include activities to ensure open channels of communication vis-a-vis applicants, streamlined application processing, and impartiality in decision-making and funding awards.
> Promoting greater interaction with the public authorities, research institutions, trade and industrial organisations and Innovation Norway, and establishing constructive forums for forward-looking dialogues in relation to strategy development, budgetary processes and the identification and launching of research programmes.
organisational development within the Research Council, making us even better equipped to achieve our goals towards the year 2010.
Total R&D expenditure (NOK billion) 25.5 Increase in R&D expenditure 1999 - 2002 (NOK billion) 52 Percentage of R&D expenditure funded by industry 52 R&D personnel 46.000 R&D full-time equivalent (FTE) 27.000 Percentage of R&D FTE in industry 46 R&D expenditure as a percentage of GDP 1.67 OECD average:
Source: Statistics Norway/The Norwegian Institute for Studies in Research and Higher Education (NIFU)
Total budget (NOK billion, 2003) 43 Funding to research institutes (NOK billion, 2003) 1.5 Funding to institutions of higher education (NOK billion. 2003) 1.7 Funding to private enterprises (NOK billion, 2003) 0.5 Funding to others (NOK billion, 2003) 0.6 Percentage of overall R&D funding (2002) 15 Percentage of public funding for research (2004) 30 Number of project proposals (2003) 5.518 Grant approval percentage (2003) 34 Total number of employees (2003)