Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities Funding Rules for Funding commencing in 2007
Australian Research Council Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Funding Rules for Funding commencing in 2007 Table of Contents Acronyms. 4 Key Dates. 6 Contacts. 6 Definitions for LIEF Funding Rules. 7 1 Introduction. 10 1.1 Overview.. 10 1.2 NCGP Objectives. 10 1.3 Linkage Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities. 11 1.4 Fundamental principles and requirements. 11 2 Changes from last year. 13 3 Funding. 14 3.1 Level of funding. 14 3.2 Duration of funding. 14 3.3 Types of research infrastructure, equipment and facilities supported. 14 3.3.2 Integrated facilities. 15 3.4 Areas of investigation/work not supported. 15 3.5 Restrictions on budget items. 16 3.6 Number of Proposals. 16 3.6.2 Duplication. 16 3.7 Ownership and location of infrastructure, equipment and facilities. 17 4 Organisational types, roles and eligibility. 17 4.1 Eligible Organisations. 17 4.2 Collaborating Organisations. 18 4.3 Partner Organisations. 19 5 Roles and eligibility for researchers. 19 5.1 Researcher roles and general eligibility. 19 5.2 Eligibility criteria for Chief Investigators. 19 5.3 Eligibility criteria for Partner Investigators. 20 6 Cross-scheme issues. 21 6.1 Cross-scheme funding. 21 6.2 Cross-scheme eligibility. 21 7 Application process. 21 7.1 Eligibility rulings. 21 7.2 Proposals. 21 7.3 Certification. 22 7.4 Submission of Proposals. 22 7.4.2 Format 23 7.4.3 How to complete and submit a Proposal 24 7.4.4 Number of copies. 24 7.4.5 Closing time for Proposals. 24 8 Selection and approval process. 25 8.1 Selection criteria. 25 8.2 Assessment and selection procedure. 26 8.2.1 Assessment and selection process. 26 8.2.2 Exclusion of Proposals. 26 8.2.4 Recommendations. 28 8.3 Offer of funding. 28 9 Appeals process. 28 10 Administration of funding. 29 10.1 Funding Agreement 29 10.1.4 Varying the Funding Agreement 29 10.1.5 Varying the Funding Approval 29 10.1.6 Reports. 30 11 Other matters. 30 11.1 Applicable law.. 30 11.2 Confidentiality. 30 11.3 Project description. 31 11.4 Intellectual property. 31 11.5 Incomplete or misleading information. 32 11.6 Insurance and liabilities. 32 Appendix 1: National Research Priorities and associated Priority Goals. 33 Appendix 2: Eligible Organisations. 43 Appendix 3: Cash contribution by organisations. 45 Appendix 4: Library and research information infrastructure. 46
Acronyms The following acronyms are used in ARC Funding Rules: AEST Australian Eastern Standard Time AEDT Australian Eastern Daylight Saving (Summer) Time AIF Australia-Israel Fellowship AIMS Australian Institute of Marine Science ANSTO Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation APA Australian Postgraduate Award APAI Australian Postgraduate Award (Industry) APD Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship APDC Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (CSIRO) APDI Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (Industry) APF Australian Professorial Fellowship ARC Australian Research Council ARCIF Australian Research Council International Fellowship ARF Australian Research Fellowship AVCC Australian Vice-Chancellors’ Committee CE ARC Centre of Excellence and ARC Centre CoE ARC College of Experts CI Chief Investigator CRC Cooperative Research Centre CSIRO Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation DP ARC Discovery Projects DSTO Defence Science and Technology Organisation ECR Early Career Researcher GA Geoscience Australia GAMS Grant Application Management System GST Goods and Services Tax HECS Higher Education Contribution Scheme ICI Internationally Coordinated Initiative IRF Indigenous Research Fellowship LASP ARC Learned Academies Special Projects LIEF ARC Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities LIF ARC Linkage Industry Fellowship LP ARC Linkage Projects NCGP National Competitive Grants Program NHMRC National Health and Medical Research Council NP Network Participant OI Overseas Investigator PI Partner Investigator QEII Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship RN ARC Research Network SPIRT Strategic Partnerships with Industry – Research and Training SRC ARC Special Research Centre SRI ARC Special Research Initiatives URL Universal Resource Locator
Key Dates Closing time for submission of Proposals – 5:00 pm (AEST) Friday 26 May 2006 Contacts The ARC deals with thousands of Proposals each year. Where possible, researchers should direct requests for information to the Research Office within their organisation. Enquiries about the ARC LIEF scheme may be addressed to:
Postal
OR Courier
LIEF Coordinator Australian Research Council GPO Box 2702 CANBERRA ACT 2601
LIEF Coordinator Australian Research Council 1st Floor, 8 Brindabella Circuit CANBERRA AIRPORT ACT 2609
Email: ncgp@arc.gov.au Phone: 02 6287 6600 Fax: 02 6287 6638 Web: http://www.arc.gov.au
Definitions for LIEF Funding Rules Adjunct Appointment or equivalent means that an Eligible Organisation has a formal agreement in writing with a researcher which is publicly acknowledged and which establishes an ongoing association with the Eligible Organisation, of the nature of a conjoint, emeritus, honorary, or visiting fellow or professor. It would be expected that the person’s association would be listed in an official organisational publication and/or web site. Administering Organisation means an Eligible Organisation which submits a Proposal for funding under LIEF and which will receive and be responsible for the administration of the funding if the proposed project is approved for funding. Applicant means the Administering Organisation. Funding under LIEF is provided to Administering Organisations, not to individual researchers. ARC Act means the Australian Research Council Act 2001. ARC Fellowship means a position held by a researcher where the salary is funded wholly or partly by the ARC and where the researcher has been nominated in a Proposal to hold a Fellowship. An ARC Fellowship may be awarded at a number of levels and in various ARC schemes. ARC Fellowship includes Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (APD), Australian Research Fellowship (ARF), Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship (QEII) and Australian Professorial Fellowship (APF) (under the ARC Discovery Projects scheme). The term also includes Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (Industry) (APDI) (under the ARC Linkage Projects scheme) and Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (CSIRO) (APDC) (under the former APD CSIRO scheme). ARC Centre means a research centre wholly or partly funded by the ARC and includes ARC Centres of Excellence, ARC Centres and ARC Special Research Centres. Australian Postdoctoral Fellow means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under an ARC Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (under the ARC Discovery Projects scheme). Australian Postdoctoral Fellow (CSIRO) means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under an Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (CSIRO). Australian Postdoctoral Fellow (Industry) means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under an Australian Postdoctoral Fellowship (Industry) (under the ARC Linkage Projects scheme). Australian Professorial Fellow means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under an ARC Australian Professorial Fellowship (under the ARC Discovery Projects scheme). Australian Research Fellow means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under an ARC Australian Research Fellowship (under the ARC Discovery Projects scheme). Centre Director means the person appointed to direct the programs of a Commonwealth-funded Research Centre. Chief Investigator (CI) means a researcher nominated in a Proposal who satisfies the eligibility criteria for a Chief Investigator as specified in Section 5.2. Collaborating Organisation means an Eligible Organisation identified in a Proposal as a contributor to the project but which does not take responsibility for administering the funding. Commonwealth-funded Research Centre means a research centre substantially funded from Commonwealth competitive research funding sources and includes ARC Centres, CRCs and NHMRC Program Grants. Eligible Organisation means an organisation which is eligible to apply for and receive funding under the LIEF Funding Rules as outlined in Section 4.1. Federation Fellow means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under the ARC Federation Fellowship scheme. Funding Agreement means the agreement entered into between the ARC and the Administering Organisation if the Administering Organisation’s Proposal is approved for funding. This Agreement sets out the terms and conditions under which the Commonwealth is to provide funding and the Administering Organisation is to be responsible for administration of the funding and the conduct of the project. Funding Rules means this document. Host Organisation means an organisation at which a Fellow undertakes her/his research while holding an ARC Fellowship. National Research Priority means a national research priority referred to in Section 1.2 and further detailed in Appendix 1. Partner Investigator (PI) means a researcher nominated in a Proposal who satisfies the eligibility criteria for a Partner Investigator as specified in Section 5.3. Partner Organisation means an organisation which is not an Eligible Organisation, and which is identified in a Proposal as a contributor to the project. Peak Body means an established organisation which is recognised as effectively representing a significant grouping or section of the higher education community. Proposal means a request to the ARC for the provision of financial assistance for a research project. Queen Elizabeth II Fellow means a researcher whose salary is wholly or partly funded under a Queen Elizabeth II Fellowship (under the ARC Discovery Projects scheme). Research Office means a business unit within an organisation that is responsible for administrative contact with the ARC regarding Proposals and research projects. Special Condition means a special condition specified in a Funding Agreement which governs the use of the funding provided by the ARC.
Australian Research Council Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities Funding Rules for Funding Commencing in 2007 1 Introduction
1.1 Overview
1.1.1 This document sets out the funding rules for LIEF, a scheme funded under the Australian Research Council’s National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP), which comply with the requirements of the ARC Act.
1.1.2 All parties involved in Proposals should read and understand the Funding Rules and the ARC’s standard Funding Agreement (which is available at http://www.arc.gov.au) before submitting a Proposal to the ARC. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their Proposals are complete and accurate.
1.1.3 These Funding Rules are current as at February 2006 and have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the ARC Act in force at that time. These Funding Rules are subject to change at any time, for reasons including any subsequent amendment, replacement or supplementation of the ARC Act.
1.1.4 Funding under LIEF is provided to Administering Organisations, not to researchers. That is, the ARC will accept a Proposal only from an Eligible Organisation and not from any individual researcher or researchers.
1.1.5 However, if, in the opinion of the ARC, any researcher nominated in a Proposal as a CI or PI has caused or has significantly contributed to the failure of an organisation to meet its obligations under any current or previous funding agreement with the ARC, the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend for approval any or all Proposals involving that researcher.
1.2 NCGP Objectives
1.2.1 The ARC is an Australian Government statutory authority established under the ARC Act. The primary functions of the ARC, as specified by the ARC Act, are to make recommendations regarding the funding of research programs, to administer funding to support research programs, and to provide policy advice related to research.
1.2.2 The ARC has established a range of competitive funding schemes for the support of research and research training under the framework of the NCGP. A list of current NCGP funding schemes is available on the ARC web site at http://www.arc.gov.au.
1.2.3 By the operation of a range of funding schemes under the NCGP, the ARC aims to:
a. maintain and build on existing research and research training; b. build the scale and focus of research and research training; c. encourage cross-disciplinary approaches to research and research training; d. facilitate collaborative approaches to research and research training; and e. support research and research training in the following National Research Priorities: i. An Environmentally Sustainable Australia; ii. Promoting and Maintaining Good Health; iii. Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries; and iv. Safeguarding Australia.
1.2.4 Descriptions of these National Research Priorities and their associated Priority Goals can be found in Appendix 1, and on the ARC web site (http://www.arc.gov.au). Assessment of the degree to which a proposed project would contribute to National Research Priorities and Priority Goals may be used as part of the selection process in NCGP schemes.
1.3 Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities
1.3.1 LIEF provides funding to Eligible Organisations for research infrastructure, equipment and facilities that will be used to support high-quality research projects.
1.3.2 The objectives of LIEF are to:
a. encourage Eligible Organisations to develop collaborative arrangements in the higher education sector and with other organisations outside the sector in order to develop research infrastructure; b. support large-scale cooperative initiatives thereby allowing expensive infrastructure, equipment and facilities to be shared; c. enhance support for areas of research strength; and d. ensure that researchers in fields of recognised research potential have access to the support necessary to carry out high-quality research.
1.3.3 LIEF supports access to resources essential for mounting high-quality research projects, including some associated indirect costs.
1.4 Fundamental principles and requirements
1.4.1 Ethics and Research Practices
1.4.1.1 The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) web site, http://www.nhmrc.gov.au, provides a series of publications which outline principles of ethical conduct in research. All Proposals and ARC-funded research projects should conform to the principles outlined in the following and their successor documents:
a. the Joint NHMRC/AVCC Statement and Guidelines on Research Practice (1997); b. as applicable, the NHMRC’s National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Research Involving Humans; and c. as applicable, the NHMRC’s other codes on animal research. 1.4.2 Non-Duplication
1.4.2.1 The ARC will not provide financial assistance to meet the costs of a project to the extent that those costs have been, or are likely to be, met by Commonwealth funding obtained from another source (including other ARC funding). The ARC reserves the right to determine if a Proposal includes such costs and to deem a notional amount for such costs.
1.4.2.2 Where a significant portion of the costs for a proposed project has been, or is likely to be, funded by the Commonwealth from other sources (including other ARC sources), the ARC may decide to recommend that the Proposal not be funded at all. In other cases, the ARC may decide to recommend a reduced amount of funding for the proposed project.
1.4.3 Conflict of Interest
1.4.3.1 All parties involved in or associated with Proposals and ARC-funded research projects are required to disclose to the ARC affiliations with or financial involvement in any organisation which has, or is likely to have, a direct interest in the subject matter or outputs of the project. Such parties are required to disclose at the time of submission of Proposals, or reporting on ARC-funded research projects, any conflict of interest which has the potential to influence, or appear to influence, their research and activities, publications and media reports, or requests for funding.
1.4.4 Acknowledging ARC support
1.4.4.1 The Funding Agreement requires that any ARC contribution to research and other activities funded by the ARC be appropriately acknowledged. When, at any time during or after completion of a project, the researcher or any other party publishes or produces material such as books, articles, newsletters or other literary or artistic works which relate to the research project, the Administering Organisation must ensure (wherever possible) that the ARC’s contribution and support of the project is acknowledged in a prominent place and in an appropriate form. This acknowledgement should include the mention of the ARC as a funding body. Similar efforts should be made to acknowledge ARC support when participating in television and radio programs, and when interviewed by the print media.
1.4.4.2 Advice on acceptable forms of acknowledgement and use of the ARC logo is provided on the ARC web site at http://www.arc.gov.au.
2 Changes from last year
2.1.1 A number of clarifications and revisions have been made in these Funding Rules for funding commencing in 2007 (the 2007 LIEF Funding Rules). Significant changes from the 2006 LIEF Funding Rules include:
a. A definitions section has been added to the 2007 LIEF Funding Rules (pages 7-9). b. The Introduction Section (page 10) alerts Applicants and other parties involved in Proposals that a Proposal may be not recommended for approval if any person nominated as a CI or PI on the Proposal has caused or significantly contributed to the failure of an Administering Organisation to meet its obligations under a current or prior funding agreement. c. Subsection 3.3.1 stipulates the types of research facilities and equipment that are supported under LIEF. d. Section 3.4 outlines the areas of investigation/work not supported under LIEF. e. Section 5 is re-written and defines the roles of investigators as CIs and PIs. Section 5.2 specifies the eligibility criteria for CIs and Section 5.3 for PIs. f. Subsection 5.1.6 generally requires researchers nominated in a Proposal as a CI or PI to take significant intellectual responsibility for the proposed project, its conception, and any strategic decisions called for in its pursuit and the communication of results. The researchers must have the capacity to make a serious commitment to the project and cannot assume the role of a supplier of resources for work that will largely be placed in the hands of others. The ARC reserves the right to determine whether a person has the requisite capacity to perform the role. g. Section 8 introduces revised selection criteria and assigns percentage weightings for each selection criterion. h. The cash contribution requirements for organisations has been moved to an Appendix (Appendix 3). i. Appendix 3 requires the cash contributions from Collaborating Organisations and Partner Organisations to be paid to the Administering Organisation by 31 October 2007, unless otherwise approved by the ARC. The list of changes above is not comprehensive – a number of minor formatting, style and other changes have also been made. Applicants and other parties involved in Proposals should read and understand the entire Funding Rules and draft Funding Agreement before a Proposal is submitted to the ARC. 3 Funding
3.1 Level of funding
3.1.1 All amounts referred to in these Funding Rules are to be read as exclusive of Goods and Services Tax (if any), unless expressly stated otherwise.
3.1.2 The minimum level of funding which will be provided by the ARC for a project is $100,000 per annum. The ARC reserves the right to recommend the levels of funding allocated to a project.
3.2 Duration of funding
3.2.1 Funding is normally for 1 year only. However, Proposals for up to 5 years of funding, subject to parliamentary appropriation and the provisions of the ARC Act, may be considered in the case of subscriptions to or other payments in respect of major international research facilities. Normally this would occur only under an international agreement approved by the ARC. The ARC will approve such agreements only if there are significant benefits to Australia by way of access to a facility not otherwise available to Australian researchers. If funding is required for more than 5 years, a review of the project may be conducted early in the fourth year, before any request for further funding is considered.
3.2.2 The ARC may recommend funding for a project for a duration different from that requested in the Proposal.
3.3 Types of research infrastructure, equipment and facilities supported
3.3.1 Subject to Section 3.5, LIEF supports the purchase, upgrading, construction, transportation and installation of and/or access to major research infrastructure, facilities and equipment, including:
a. infrastructure, equipment and facility purchase, construction and installation; b. major computing/data facilities, animal houses, herbaria, experimental farms; c. salaries if these are directly associated with creating and installing the infrastructure, equipment or facility; d. consortium membership costs, travel to the facility, and secretariat costs in the case of Australia’s participation in the use of significant international-scale research facilities; and e. library and research information infrastructure (non-capital aspects only to support specific research projects). Administering Organisations should refer to the advice at Appendix 4. 3.3.2 Integrated facilities
3.3.2.1 LIEF supports major facilities and equipment. Minor items of equipment are the responsibility of Eligible Organisations. However, there may be special circumstances in which a case can be made for an integrated facility consisting of a number of small items. Such Proposals will be considered only where justification to the satisfaction of the ARC has been provided that an integrated facility is necessary to support research activities.
3.4 Areas of investigation/work not supported
3.4.1 LIEF does not support the following work:
a. clinical medical and dental research and training. These areas of research are generally covered by other Commonwealth Government funding agencies, such as the NHMRC; b. activities leading solely to the creation or performance of a work of art, including visual art, musical compositions, drama, dance, designs and literary works. These areas are generally covered by other Commonwealth Government agencies, such as the Australia Council for the Arts; c. scholarly investigations that, while important in themselves, do not lead to conceptual advances or discoveries, or to novel practical outcomes or applications. Projects such as uncritical biographical compilations and purely descriptive catalogues or editions that do not involve original research are not funded; d. production of teaching materials, even though some research may be involved in their production; e. compilation of data, unless this is an integral part of a project, in which case the Proposal must include a statement indicating the research objectives to which the data would contribute; and/or f. development of research aids and tools (including computer programs), unless they form an integral part of the Proposal, in which case the Proposal must include a statement indicating the research objectives to which these activities would contribute.
3.4.2 If the ARC considers that a Proposal seeks funding for a project that involves any of the items listed in subsection 3.4.1, then to that extent part or all of the Proposal will not be recommended or approved for funding. However, if the ARC considers other parts of the proposed project remain worthy of support, the ARC may recommend that a reduced amount of funding be approved for the Proposal.
3.5 Restrictions on budget items
3.5.1 Subject to subsection 3.5.2, the following items are not eligible for support under LIEF:
a. construction or refurbishment of general purpose buildings; b. rental of accommodation; c. operational costs, including salaries of staff engaged in teaching and research, outreach, community relations, and in research only (including the cost of ‘buying time’ to free such staff to do more research) except, at the ARC’s discretion, where subscriptions for major international facilities may cover such costs; d. salaries of staff supporting research at the organisational level (for example, Deputy or Pro Vice-Chancellor Research, Research Grants Officer); e. stipends of postgraduate research students; f. travel costs directly associated with individual projects (with the exception of travel costs to allow participation in international consortia); and g. minor equipment that should be normally funded by Eligible Organisations (such as personal computers), unless otherwise approved by the ARC.
3.5.2 Proposals that seek non-capital works aspects of library or research information infrastructure may include salaries and minor pieces of equipment to build an integrated facility if the entire Proposal is a cohesive attempt to provide infrastructure support for research. Please refer to Appendix 4 for further details.
3.6 Number of Proposals
3.6.1 A researcher may not be nominated in a Proposal as a CI on more than two LIEF Proposals in the same funding round. For the purposes of applying this limit, the number of Proposals on which the researcher is nominated is evaluated as at the closing time for the submission of Proposals regardless of any subsequent change in, or withdrawal of, Proposals. Submitting Proposals that exceed this limit may result in all Proposals involving the relevant researcher(s) not being recommended or approved for funding.
3.6.2 Duplication
3.6.2.1 Only one Proposal may be submitted to LIEF in respect of a particular project in the same funding round, regardless of any variation in the listed researchers and/or Administering Organisation. If the ARC considers that the project described in a Proposal is the same as or similar (in whole or in part) to a project described in another Proposal that is submitted in the same funding round, the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend for approval any or all of those Proposals, or recommend that a reduced amount of funding be provided for that or any similar Proposal. The ARC reserves the right to determine whether Proposals are duplicates or sufficiently similar to warrant one or more Proposals’ being not recommended for approval.
3.7 Ownership and location of infrastructure, equipment and facilities
3.7.1 Except with the written approval of the ARC, ownership of shared infrastructure, facilities and equipment funded under LIEF is to be vested in the Administering Organisation, listed in its assets register and located on campus. All the organisations involved in a Proposal must reach agreement on time-sharing and access to infrastructure, equipment and facilities before the Proposal is submitted. Details of time-sharing and access arrangements must be included in the Proposal.
3.7.2 In exceptional circumstances, the ARC may permit the location of infrastructure, equipment and major facilities outside an Administering Organisation’s premises, when access is provided to an Administering Organisation and one or more Collaborating Organisations and/or Partner Organisations to better utilise its research potential. In these circumstances, unless otherwise approved by the ARC, the terms of access must be guaranteed and agreed to by the parties in a contract prior to the submission of the Proposal. The costs of managing the infrastructure, equipment and facilities should then be reasonably distributed across the users of the infrastructure, equipment or facility and agreed to prior to the submission of the Proposal. A copy of the signed agreement specifying location, access and sharing of recurrent expenditure must be attached to the Proposal. The copy of the signed agreement will not be counted towards the page limit (Section 7.4).
4 Organisational types, roles and eligibility
4.1 Eligible Organisations
4.1.1 A Proposal may be submitted only by an Eligible Organisation. Appendix 2 specifies Eligible Organisations for LIEF.
4.1.2 Each Proposal must identify an Administering Organisation. A Proposal must involve two or more Eligible Organisations unless it demonstrates that:
a. collaborative use of the new infrastructure, equipment and facility by other Eligible Organisations is not practicable; and b. the project does not duplicate infrastructure, equipment or a similar facility at an Eligible Organisation where collaborative arrangements would be practicable. If a similar facility is available at an Eligible Organisation, the Proposal must provide justification to the satisfaction of the ARC why the collaborative use of its facility is not practicable.
4.1.3 A Proposal may be submitted by a Peak Body if the Proposal is for international subscriptions or other payments in respect of participation in and use of international research facilities (including international facilities located within Australia). A Proposal submitted by a Peak Body must include one of the Eligible Organisations listed in Appendix 2, item 1 as a Collaborating Organisation.
4.1.4 Proposals in which two or more organisations are involved must identify the mechanism for accountability and achievement of the research program outcomes between the organisations involved.
4.2 Collaborating Organisations
4.2.1 If a Proposal identifies one or more Collaborating Organisations to be involved in the proposed project, the Proposal must indicate agreed contributions from the Administering Organisation and Collaborating Organisation(s). These contributions must meet the requirements specified in Appendix 3. Administering Organisations determine, in collaboration with the Collaborating Organisation(s), which type of resources are appropriate and necessary for the project they wish to undertake. Contributions from the Collaborating Organisation(s) must be specific to the project and must not be part of a broader contribution to an Eligible Organisation. Projects must relate to high-quality research activity and must be broadly in line with the research directions of the organisation(s) involved.
4.2.2 Collaboration will typically involve the shared use of infrastructure, equipment and facilities on different projects and/or collaborative projects. Where the infrastructure, equipment and facilities required will be located in more than one Eligible Organisation, the Proposal must demonstrate clearly that:
a. the facility is genuinely integrated and collaborative; b. the items of infrastructure, equipment and facilities are complementary; and c. overall research outcomes will be enhanced.
4.3 Partner Organisations
4.3.1 Proposals involving one or more Partner Organisation(s), such as government research organisations and businesses, must demonstrate a significant contribution of cash, in-kind or other material resources from the Partner Organisation(s) (having regard to the total cost of the project and the relative contribution of each PI).
5 Roles and eligibility for researchers
5.1 Researcher roles and general eligibility
5.1.1 Roles that may be undertaken by researchers under LIEF are:
5.1.2 Chief Investigator (CI); or
5.1.3 Partner Investigator (PI).
5.1.4 A Proposal must nominate at least one researcher as a CI. A nominated CI must satisfy the eligibility criteria for that role as specified in Section 5.2 of these Funding Rules.
5.1.5 The first-named CI on a Proposal will be considered the ‘Project Leader’ of the project.
5.1.6 A person nominated in a Proposal as a CI or PI must take significant intellectual responsibility for the proposed project, its conception, and any strategic decisions called for in its pursuit and the communication of results. The person must have the capacity to make a serious commitment to the project and cannot assume the role of a supplier of resources for work that will largely be placed in the hands of others. The ARC reserves the right to determine whether a person has the requisite capacity to perform the role.
5.1.7 If the ARC considers that a person nominated in the Proposal as a CI or PI does not meet the eligibility criteria in this Section 5 for the role which that person is to perform, the Proposal will not be recommended or approved for funding.
5.2 Eligibility criteria for Chief Investigators
5.2.1 To be eligible to be a CI, a person must meet the following criteria:
a. He/she must meet at least one of the following four criteria by 1 January 2007, and for the full term of the funding: i. be an employee of an Eligible Organisation listed in Appendix 2 and derive at least 50 per cent of her/his salary from that Eligible Organisation; or ii. be a holder of an Adjunct Appointment or equivalent at an Eligible Organisation listed in Appendix 2; or iii. be a Federation Fellow; or iv. if a Peak Body is the Administering Organisation, meet one of the above criteria in subsection 5.2.1.a or be a member or officeholder of the Peak Body; and b. He/she must reside predominantly in Australia for the duration of her/his participation in the project. If the person does not have permanent resident status he/she must obtain temporary or permanent resident status from the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs.
5.2.2 Notwithstanding a researcher’s eligibility under the criteria above, a researcher may not be a CI if he/she is an undergraduate student or postgraduate student (unless eligible to be a CI because of employment and then only for research which lies outside the scope of the postgraduate studies). Researchers who derive more than 50 per cent of their salary from organisations outside the higher education sector that are funded primarily for research from State/Territory or Commonwealth Government sources are also not eligible to participate as a CI. Such organisations include, but are not limited to, AIMS, ANSTO, CSIRO, DSTO, GA, and State/Territory Research and Development organisations.
5.2.3 A CI nominated in a Proposal must be involved in the use and management of the infrastructure, equipment and facilities.
5.2.4 At the time of submission of a Proposal all obligations under any past or current funding agreement entered into with the ARC regarding previously funded projects involving the nominated CIs on the Proposal must have been fulfilled to the satisfaction of the ARC. Such obligations include the provision of satisfactory progress and final reports.
5.3 Eligibility criteria for Partner Investigators
5.3.1 To be eligible as a Partner Investigator (PI), a researcher must:
a. not meet the eligibility criteria for a CI; b. demonstrate a significant contribution of cash, in-kind or other material resources from her/his organisation for the proposed project (having regard to the total cost of the project and the relative contribution of each CI and PI); and c. take significant intellectual responsibility as outlined in subsection 5.1.6.
6 Cross-scheme issues
6.1 Cross-scheme funding
6.1.1 The ARC will not duplicate financial assistance for research already funded by the Commonwealth. The ARC reserves the right to determine if a Proposal duplicates or is likely to duplicate research already being funded by another Commonwealth source. In such circumstances the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend the Proposal for approval. However, if the ARC considers parts of the proposed project remain worthy of support, the ARC may assess the Proposal in the usual way and the ARC may instead recommend that a reduced amount of funding be approved for the Proposal.
6.2 Cross-scheme eligibility
6.2.1 If a funding request for any proposed infrastructure, equipment or facility has been or is being submitted to another ARC scheme or to any other Commonwealth funding body, each Proposal must be cross-referenced and summary details of all other funding must be included in the Proposal. Proposals must indicate the level of funding obtained, or being sought, from all other Commonwealth funding sources and must list all existing research funding from all Commonwealth sources. If these processes are not observed, or the ARC determines that incomplete, misleading or inaccurate details were included in the Proposal, the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend the LIEF Proposal for approval.
6.2.2 The ARC may liaise with other funding agencies to discuss any overlap between proposed or existing research projects in order to avoid duplication of funding. The ARC may for this purpose disclose to that agency any information in a Proposal.
7 Application process
7.1 Eligibility rulings
7.1.1 This item is not relevant to LIEF as formal eligibility or exemption request processes do not operate in this scheme.
7.2 Proposals
7.2.1 A Proposal should be submitted as a mature research plan ready for implementation. The Proposal must contain all the information necessary for its assessment without the need for further written or oral explanation, or reference to additional documentation, unless requested by the ARC or its College of Experts.
7.2.2 All details in the Proposal must be current at the time of submission.
7.2.3 All parties involved in a Proposal are required to consent to the Proposal’s being assessed under the ARC peer assessment procedures and to the release of the Proposal to third parties for assessment purposes.
7.3 Certification
7.3.1 The Administering Organisation must obtain signatures of all participants named in the Proposal. These signatures are to be retained by the Administering Organisation which must provide them if requested by the ARC. A form is available for this purpose on the ARC web site (http://www.arc.gov.au).
7.3.2 If a Proposal has not been submitted through the appropriate Research Office/Chief Executive Officer for certification, the Proposal will not be recommended or approved for funding.
7.4 Submission of Proposals
7.4.1 Proposals under LIEF consist of three parts:
a. On-line form which must be completed and submitted in the ARC on-line grants application management system accessible via the ARC web site at http://www.arc.gov.au; b. Additional text which must be submitted as part of the paper version of the Proposal and must address the Selection Criteria (subsection 8.1.1.) and include: i. a detailed budget justification that states the amount required for each item and the priority afforded each item (A, B or C in descending order). Each budget item and its priority must be justified; ii. details of staff, students and resources involved in the proposed research activities; iii. the arrangements proposed for the purchase of, construction of or access to the infrastructure, equipment and facility, its location, installation, day-to-day management and operation, maintenance, access by users to the facility, and the sharing of time and resources to maximise their use; and iv. in the case of library or research information infrastructure Proposals, the additional information specified in Appendix 4; c. Curricula vitae and supporting documentation which are to be submitted as part of the paper version of the Proposal. All the documents listed below are mandatory except for the agreement on access. These documents are not included in the quota of ten pages for the additional text. i. a curriculum vitae (CV) for each Chief Investigator, each no more than one A4 page in length (including publication details). CVs longer than one A4 page may be removed from the Proposal before assessment. CVs must include: - name; - qualifications and current appointment; - relevant employment history; - a list of the ten most significant relevant publications for the last five years and the total number of peer-reviewed research publications over the last five years; - brief details of all competitive grant funding for the last five years; ii. summary of quotes for items to be purchased, each no more than one A4 page in length, to be included in the Proposal after the additional text and CVs: - quotes must include all discounts to be provided by suppliers; - quotes for items in foreign currency must include the exchange rate at the time of applying; and iii. if the infrastructure, equipment or facility is to be located outside an Eligible Organisation, a copy of an agreement on access, use and maintenance between the organisations involved must be attached. 7.4.2 Format
7.4.2.1 All documents must be written in English and must comply strictly with the format and submission requirements. If a Proposal fails to meet any format and content requirements, the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend the Proposal for approval.
7.4.2.2 The additional text, including additional information for library or research information infrastructure Proposals, is to be no longer than ten A4 pages. It should, within the required format, address the items listed in subsection 7.4.1.b. All pages of additional text should be in black type, use a single column and 12-point font size on white A4 paper, be printed on one side only and unbound, with at least 2 cm margins on each side. As Proposals are scanned electronically, a highly legible font type must be used, such as Arial, Courier, Palatino, Times New Roman and Helvetica. Variants such as mathematical typesetting languages may also be used. References may be reproduced in 10-point font size. Colour graphs or colour photographs may be included but they will be reproduced in black and white and the reproduction quality may be degraded. Finely detailed graphics and grey scale may also not be precisely reproduced.
7.4.2.3 The pages of the Proposal, including additional text, curricula vitae and supporting documentation, should be numbered consecutively starting from page one.
7.4.3 How to complete and submit a Proposal
7.4.3.1 Administering Organisations must use the form within the ARC’s on-line grants application management system accessible via the ARC web site (http://www.arc.gov.au).
7.4.3.2 A separate document, Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities Instructions to Applicants for Funding commencing in 2007, will be available from http://www.arc.gov.au to assist in preparing Proposals.
7.4.3.3 Administering Organisations may have internal closing dates for Proposal preparation which precede ARC closing dates. Researchers should comply with the various requirements of their relevant Administering Organisations.
7.4.3.4 Research Offices have access to the ARC on-line grants application management system and will allocate User IDs and passwords to enable researchers at their organisations to access the system and prepare Proposals. If a researcher has previously been allocated access, her/his User ID and password should still be current. If researchers do not have a Research Office or equivalent unit, they should email gamsids@arc.gov.au at the ARC for assistance.
7.4.3.5 Research Offices should submit forms in the ARC’s on-line grants application management system and forward the Proposal and a copy which must, as far as possible, identically match the contents of the submitted on-line application form. Proposals should be sent:
By mail to: or
by courier to:
LIEF Coordinator Australian Research Council GPO Box 2702 CANBERRA ACT 2601
LIEF Coordinator Australian Research Council 1st Floor, 8 Brindabella Circuit CANBERRA AIRPORT ACT 2609
7.4.4 Number of copies
7.4.4.1 In addition to the on-line form, a paper version of the Proposal must be submitted in duplicate (one original and one identical copy). The paper version must be clipped, not stapled. The paper version of the Proposal must be submitted with the additional text, including supporting documentation, interleaved appropriately (see LIEF Instructions to Applicants for Funding commencing in 2007).
7.4.5 Closing time for Proposals
7.4.5.1 The paper versions of the Proposal must be received by the ARC, and the on-line form completed using the ARC’s on-line grants application management system must be submitted to the ARC, by 5.00 pm (AEST) Friday 26 May 2006. Proposals may be withdrawn but additions, deletions and modifications will not be accepted after submission, unless invited by and at the sole discretion of the ARC. Subject to this subsection, Proposals received after 5.00 pm (AEST) Friday 26 May 2006 will not be accepted. The ARC may, in its absolute discretion, and only in exceptional circumstances, accept late Proposals.
8 Selection and approval process
8.1 Selection criteria
8.1.1 All LIEF Proposals which meet the eligibility criteria will be assessed and merit ranked using the following criteria:
a. Investigators and significance of research to be undertaken with the proposed infrastructure, equipment and facilities: (40%) · track record relative to opportunity; · nature of the research, including aims and significance; · relevance of the proposed infrastructure, equipment or facility to research needs; · capacity to use and manage the proposed infrastructure, equipment and facilities for the proposed research; · enhancement of support for areas of existing or potential research strength. b. Need for excellent Australian researchers to access the proposed infrastructure, equipment or facility: (30%) · availability of and access to similar infrastructure, equipment or facility at organisational or national level; · national benefit of the research infrastructure, equipment or facility; · value for money and budget justification, including where appropriate any cash or in-kind financial contributions to be made from non-ARC sources, and the expected rate of use; c. Strength and benefits of collaboration between researchers and/or across Eligible Organisations and/or other organisations: (30%) · commitment of each participating organisation. The Proposal must provide clear evidence of the extent of financial and other support from the Administering Organisation and, where applicable, Collaborating Organisations and Partner Organisations, and must be consistent with the organisations’ research management plans; · effectiveness of cooperative arrangements between researchers and/or organisations, including access and resource sharing; · past collaborative performance. If the Proposal is a single-organisation Proposal, justification must be provided why broader collaboration is not appropriate.
8.2 Assessment and selection procedure
8.2.1 Assessment and selection process
8.2.1.1 Assessment of Proposals is undertaken by the ARC, which has the right to make decisions and recommendations solely on the basis of its expertise, and which may:
a. determine if a Proposal satisfies the eligibility criteria set out in these Funding Rules; b. identify and determine any other matters that these Funding Rules state may result in the ARC’s not recommending a Proposal for approval; c. assign assessors to review Proposals; d. seek comments on assessors’ reports from the parties involved in the Proposal; e. rank each Proposal relative to the others on the basis of the Proposal, any assessors’ reports, and any response to those assessment reports; f. assess and recommend the amount of funding to be made available for a Proposal; and/or g. prepare funding recommendations for the Minister.
8.2.1.2 The ARC College of Experts assists with the assessment of Proposals. The ARC has procedures for managing organisational and personal conflicts of interest experienced by members of the College of Experts, members of other ARC Committees, ARC members, and other assessors, and for enabling individuals to withdraw from the assessment process for particular Proposals where any actual or perceived conflict may exist.
8.2.2 Exclusion of Proposals
8.2.2.1 The ARC will not recommend for approval, and the Minister will not approve for funding, any Proposal that fails to satisfy the “eligibility criteria” set out in these Funding Rules, including:
a. if the ARC considers that the Proposal seeks funding for any of the items listed in subsection 3.4.1 and the ARC considers no other part of the proposed project remains worthy of support (subsection 3.4.2); b. if the Proposal was not submitted by an Eligible Organisation (Section 4.1); c. if the Proposal does not meet the requirement for contributions from the Administering Organisation, Collaborating Organisation(s) and/or Partner Organisation(s) (Sections 4.2, 4.3 and Appendix 3); d. if the ARC considers that a person nominated in the Proposal as CI or PI does not meet the eligibility criteria as specified in Section 5 for the role which that person is to perform (subsection 5.1.7); and/or e. if the Proposal has not been submitted through the appropriate Research Office/Chief Executive Officer for certification (subsection 7.3.2).
8.2.2.2 The ARC may in its absolute discretion decide not to recommend for approval a Proposal if:
a. in the opinion of the ARC, any researcher nominated in the Proposal as a CI or PI has caused or has significantly contributed to the failure of an organisation to meet its obligations under any current or previous funding agreement with the ARC (subsection 1.1.5); b. the limits on the number of Proposals and projects permissible are exceeded (subsection 3.6.1); c. the ARC considers that the project described in the Proposal is the same as or similar (in whole or in part) to a project described in another Proposal that is submitted in the same funding round (subsection 3.6.2.1); d. in the opinion of the ARC, a Proposal duplicates or is likely to duplicate research already being funded by the Commonwealth (subsection 6.1.1); e. where required the Proposal does not include details of other funding or funding requests (subsection 6.2.1); f. the ARC considers that inaccurate, false, or misleading material has been provided in relation to the Proposal or if the Administering Organisation and/or researchers nominated in the Proposal as a CI or PI have provided the ARC with incomplete, inaccurate or misleading information in relation to the reporting of progress of a funded project (subsections 6.2.1 and 11.5.2); g. the Proposal is submitted after the closing time (subsection 7.4.5); and/or h. the Proposal fails to meet any format and other submission requirements (Section 7.4). 8.2.3 Assessment
8.2.3.1 In addition to assessment by the ARC, a Proposal may at the ARC’s absolute discretion be assessed by external assessors. Assessors may be drawn from a range of organisations to reduce the potential for conflicts of interest. Proposals will be assessed against the selection criteria set out in these Funding Rules.
8.2.3.2 The ARC reserves the right to make recommendations for funding to the Minister based on any number of assessments or solely on the assessment of the ARC.
8.2.3.3 Administering Organisations may name any person or persons whom they do not wish to assess a Proposal. Detailed written justification must be submitted through the Administering Organisation’s Research Office in a separate letter which must not accompany the Proposal. The letter must be received by the ARC by the closing time for submission of Proposals and be sent to:
LIEF Coordinator Australian Research Council GPO Box 2702 CANBERRA ACT 2601
8.2.3.4 The ARC will consider the justification put forward to exclude any person as an assessor, but may choose not to give effect to such a request.
8.2.4 Recommendations
8.2.4.1 The ARC’s recommendations will be submitted to the Minister for Education, Science and Training (the Minister) for consideration. The Minister determines which Proposals will be approved and the amount and timing of financial assistance to be paid to Administering Organisations for approved projects.
8.2.4.2 Under the ARC Act, the Minister may not approve for funding any Proposal that fails to meet the eligibility criteria set out in these Funding Rules.
8.3 Offer of funding
8.3.1 An Administering Organisation which has Proposal(s) approved will be:
a. notified in a letter of offer that will indicate the financial assistance to be offered; and b. provided with a copy of the draft Funding Agreement for signing. 9 Appeals process
9.1.1 Appeals will be considered only against administrative process issues and not, for example, against committee recommendations or assessor ratings and comments.
9.1.2 Appeals must be made on the appeals form available on the ARC web site (http://www.arc.gov.au). The form must be lodged by the Administering Organisation and must be authorised by a Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research)/Chief Executive Officer or equivalent. Appeals must be received within 28 days of the date on the letter notifying the outcome of Proposals.
9.1.3 Appeals must be addressed to:
The Appeals Officer Australian Research Council GPO Box 2702 CANBERRA ACT 2601 10 Administration of funding
10.1 Funding Agreement
10.1.1 All parties involved in a Proposal should familiarise themselves with the draft Funding Agreement, but only the Administering Organisation and the ARC will be parties to this agreement. All parties involved in a funded project must accept the terms of the Funding Agreement and the Administering Organisation must sign the Funding Agreement before the ARC will commence payments.
10.1.2 Projects must commence as required by the Funding Agreement. Failure to do so may result in termination of the Funding Agreement.
10.1.3 Administering Organisations should note that the Funding Agreement covers the post-award management, including reporting requirements and financial management. The draft Funding Agreement can be viewed on the ARC website (http://www.arc.gov.au).
10.1.4 Varying the Funding Agreement
10.1.4.1 Requests to vary the Funding Agreement must be forwarded in writing by the Administering Organisation’s Research Office to the ARC. Forms are available on the ARC web site (http://www.arc.gov.au). Amendment of any clauses of the draft Funding Agreement is at the ARC’s absolute discretion.
10.1.5 Varying the Funding Approval
10.1.5.1 Requests to vary the Funding Approval must be forwarded in writing by the Administering Organisation’s Research Office to the ARC.
10.1.5.2 The Funding Approval may be varied by varying the amount of financial assistance, the duration of financial assistance, the name of the person leading the research project, the description of the research project and/or the name of the organisation receiving financial assistance.
10.1.5.3 The Minister may vary the Funding Approval where:
a. any of the organisations involved in the project end, or substantially change, their involvement with the project; b. the research project changes so that it is no longer consistent with the description in the Funding Approval; c. the person nominated in the Funding Approval as the person leading the research project ceases to lead the project; or d. the ARC considers and recommends that the particular circumstances of the project warrant variation of the Funding Approval, providing such variation is reasonably justified upon the facts of the case and any variation or change to the project accords with the LIEF objectives. 10.1.6 Reports
10.1.6.1 Administering Organisations are required to submit reports to the ARC concerning funded projects, in the format and by the due dates detailed in the Funding Agreement.
11 Other matters
11.1 Applicable law
11.1.1 The ARC is required to comply with the requirements of the Privacy Act 1988 and the Freedom of Information Act 1982.
11.2 Confidentiality
11.2.1 The ARC will treat information contained in a Proposal as confidential. However, the ARC may disclose information contained in a Proposal, or otherwise provided to the ARC, to the extent that the information:
a. is disclosed by the ARC to its advisers (including external assessors), officers, employees or other third parties in order to assess, evaluate or verify the accuracy or completeness of a Proposal; b. is disclosed to the ARC’s personnel to enable effective management or auditing of LIEF or any Funding Agreement; c. is disclosed by the ARC to the Minister; d. is shared by the ARC within the ARC’s organisation, or with another Commonwealth Department or agency, where this serves the Commonwealth’s legitimate interests; e. is authorised or required by law to be disclosed; f. is disclosed in accordance with any other provision of these Funding Rules or the Funding Agreement; or g. is in the public domain otherwise than due to a breach by the ARC of any obligation of confidence.
11.2.2 Where information contained in a Proposal is made available to third parties for evaluation or assessment purposes the ARC will require the third parties to maintain the confidentiality of the material.
11.2.3 Notwithstanding the above, and in addition to the exemptions listed at subsection 11.2.1, the ARC may publicise and report offers or awards of funding, including information about the proposed research; the name of nominated CIs or PIs and their organisations; the name of the Administering Organisation and any other parties involved in or associated with the project; the title and summary descriptions of the project and its intended outcomes; and the level and nature of financial assistance from the ARC. Administering Organisations should ensure that information contained in the project title and summaries would not, if released, compromise their own requirements for confidentiality (such as future protection of intellectual property).
11.3 Project description
11.3.1 In making public information about a Proposal which has been approved for funding, the ARC may use a project description, including title and summary, which may differ from that provided in the Proposal.
11.4 Intellectual property
11.4.1 The ARC does not claim ownership of any intellectual property in a Proposal or which is created or developed from the conduct of a project funded under LIEF.
11.4.2 However, all Proposals become the property of the ARC on submission. Administering Organisations submit their Proposals on the basis that the ARC may copy, modify and otherwise deal with information contained in a Proposal (and allow any external assessor or other third party to do the same) for any purpose related to:
a. the evaluation and assessment of Proposals; b. verifying the accuracy, consistency and adequacy of information contained in a Proposal, or otherwise provided to the ARC; c. the preparation and management of any Funding Agreement; or d. the administration or management of the NCGP.
11.4.3 If a Proposal contains information belonging to a third party, the Administering Organisation must ensure that it has in place all necessary consents to allow the ARC to deal with that information in accordance with these Funding Rules, prior to the Administering Organisation’s submitting its Proposal.
11.4.4 Except with written approval from the ARC, all Proposals and ARC-funded research projects must comply with the National Principles of Intellectual Property Management for Publicly Funded Research (available at http://www.arc.gov.au) and accord with any intellectual property policies of the researchers’ organisations.
11.5 Incomplete or misleading information
11.5.1 It is a serious offence to provide false or misleading information to the Commonwealth.
11.5.2 If the ARC considers that a Proposal is incomplete, inaccurate or contains false or misleading information, the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend the Proposal for approval. If an Administering Organisation and/or researcher nominated in a Proposal as a CI or PI provides the ARC with incomplete, inaccurate or misleading information in relation to either the Proposal for, or when reporting on progress of, a project the ARC may in its absolute discretion decide to not recommend the Proposal for approval or terminate the project if funded and require the Administering Organisation to repay some or all of the funding.
11.5.3 If the ARC considers that omissions, or inclusion of misleading information, are intentional, or if there is evidence of malpractice, the ARC may refer the matter for investigation with a view to prosecution under Commonwealth criminal law. The Commonwealth is committed to protecting its revenue, expenditure and property from any attempt, by members of the public, contractors, sub-contractors, agents, intermediaries or its own employees, to gain financial or other benefits by deceit.
11.5.4 Examples of malpractice include, but are not restricted to:
a. providing fictitious track records; or b. making false claims in publications records (such as describing a paper as accepted for publication when it has only been submitted).
11.6 Insurance and liabilities
11.6.1 Administering Organisations are subject to the liability, indemnity and insurance provisions of the Funding Agreement. The draft Funding Agreement can be viewed on the ARC website (http://www.arc.gov.au).
Appendix 1: National Research Priorities and associated Priority Goals Research Priority 1: An Environmentally Sustainable Australia Transforming the way we utilise our land, water, mineral and energy resources through a better understanding of human and environmental systems and the use of new technologies Natural resources have traditionally fuelled our national and regional economies. They have the potential to generate further wealth and employment opportunities in the future. But our natural resources and biodiversity must be used on a sustainable basis so that the benefits continue to be enjoyed by future generations. Australia faces significant environmental challenges: · Efficient and sustainable water use is a critically important issue for our economic and social development; · Significant land degradation issues, such as salinity, need to be arrested to underpin our agricultural production systems; · Climate change can be expected to have complex, long-term consequences for the environment, for our agricultural and marine production systems and for communities; and · The cleanliness and efficiency of our energy production systems should be enhanced. There is substantial effort underway to develop more efficient water utilisation practices, to protect our rivers and groundwater resources, and to protect and remediate our fragile soils. Our agricultural and mining industries are being transformed through the adoption of new technologies, and the development of new types of foods. This will help to revitalise our regional communities and generate substantial export earnings for the nation over the coming decades. The Government is committed to meeting the greenhouse gas emissions target set for Australia at Kyoto. Australia is well placed to take an international lead in developing new and improved energy technologies and in capturing and ‘sequestering’ carbon dioxide. Other opportunities lie in managing and using our unique, rich land- and marine-based biodiversity, and in developing our deep earth resources. Australia has a strong record of achievement in research in fields in the natural sciences, such as agriculture, natural resource management, climate change, horticulture, forestry, mining, energy, and marine sciences, as well as in the social sciences and humanities. We must build on these strengths to improve our competitive advantages while enhancing our understanding of natural systems and the interplay of human activities. In particular, there needs to be an increased understanding of the contributions of human behaviour to environmental and climate change, and on appropriate adaptive responses and strategies. To understand and manage these complex interactions better will require significant collaboration within the research community and with other stakeholders. Priority goals for research fall in the seven areas of water utilisation, transforming resource-based industries, overcoming land degradation, developing cleaner, more efficient fuels and energy sources, managing biodiversity, deep earth resources and responding to climate change and variability. Priority Goals · Water – a critical resource Sustainable ways of improving water productivity, using less water in agriculture and other industries, providing increased protection of rivers and groundwater and the re-use of urban and industrial waste waters. Australia is one of the driest continents and is dependent upon access to freshwater supplies for economic and social development. It has a complex geological structure, a highly variable climate, unique ecosystems, flora and fauna and a distinctive indigenous and settler history. Enhancing our understanding of the links between these factors and water availability will result in a better understanding of sustainable water management practices. · Transforming existing industries New technologies for resource-based industries to deliver substantial increases in national wealth while minimising environmental impacts on land and sea. Resource-based industries underpin much of Australia’s prosperity and have the potential to do so in the future. For example, Australia remains highly prospective for minerals discoveries and highly attractive for the development of new era foods from agricultural and marine sources. Our competitive advantage and national well being will depend on research and on the development and adoption of new technologies. · Overcoming soil loss, salinity and acidity Identifying causes and solutions to land degradation using a multidisciplinary approach to restore land surfaces. The Australian landscape is fragile: soil salinity, acidity, and nutrient levels pose significant, long term challenges for agriculture and the environment. Research is helping to find solutions to these problems. For example, the National Land and Water Resources Audit shows the extent of salinity, soil erosion and soil acidification in the Australian environment and illustrates Australia’s leading edge in national mapping of critical resource data. Further multidisciplinary effort is required to develop sustainable land management practices that are appropriate for Australian conditions and mitigate major land degradation processes and increase biodiversity. · Reducing and capturing emissions in transport and energy generation Alternative transport technologies and clean combustion and efficient new power generation systems and capture and sequestration of carbon dioxide. Australia is well positioned to produce world class solutions to reduce and capture greenhouse gas emissions and the Government is committed to meeting the emissions target set for Australia at Kyoto. We are also well placed to develop alternative energy technologies and ecologically sustainable transport and power generation systems. · Sustainable use of Australia’s biodiversity Managing and protecting Australia’s terrestrial and marine biodiversity both for its own value and to develop long term use of ecosystem goods and services ranging from fisheries to ecotourism. Australia has a unique and rich flora and fauna. Many of our complex ecosystems – on which our agricultural, fisheries and tourism industries depend - have adapted to events such as drought and fire, and have been shaped by indigenous and settler management practices. There is a need for a more comprehensive understanding of these natural systems and the interplay with human activities, and the effects of management and protection measures. · Developing deep earth resources Smart high-technology exploration methodologies, including imaging and mapping the deep earth and ocean floors, and novel efficient ways of commodity extraction and processing (examples include minerals, oil and gas) while minimising negative ecological and social impacts. Many of Australia’s known mineral assets may be nearly exhausted within the next decade. New land-based deposits are believed to be buried deeper in the crust and the deep marine areas surrounding Australia are also largely unexplored. New technologies, such as remote sensing, indicate scientists are on the brink of being able to ‘see’ inside the earth and identify deeply buried deposits. · Responding to climate change and variability Increasing our understanding of the impact of climate change and variability at the regional level across Australia, and addressing the consequences of these factors on the environment and on communities. Australia already has a highly variable climate, and climate change can be expected to have further significant impacts. It is important to enhance our understanding of the consequences of climate change and variability at the regional level across Australia, and the implications for the environment and for communities. It is also important to explore beneficial adaptation strategies to climate change and variability to ensure ongoing social, economic and environmental well being. Research Priority 2: Promoting and Maintaining Good Health Promoting good health and well being for all Australians Average life expectancies have increased markedly in recent decades. Australians also expect to lead longer and healthier lives in the future, and to remain productive and independent over an extended period. Enabling individuals and families to make choices that lead to healthy, productive and fulfilling lives will yield economic and social benefits and add materially to national well being. Australians expect that their children and grandchildren should have a healthy start to life. Developing strategies to promote the healthy development of young Australians, and addressing the causes and reducing the impact of the genetic, social and environmental factors which diminish their life potential will be critical. A revolution is also underway at the other end of the life cycle. Australia, like many other developed nations, is undergoing a major demographic shift involving significant growth in the aged population. To meet this challenge, it will be important to promote healthy ageing by developing better social and medical strategies to ensure that older Australians enjoy healthy and productive lives. Informed insights into the causes of disease and of mental and physical degeneration will contribute to the achievement of this goal. All Australians stand to benefit from preventive healthcare through the adoption of healthier attitudes, habits and lifestyles. Evidence-based preventive interventions may help reduce the incidence and severity of many diseases, including major health problems such as cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases, mental ill-health, obesity, diabetes, asthma and chronic inflammatory conditions. These could include interventions that reduce exposure to contamination of the physical environment (eg air pollution). Improvements in the health and well being of the young, of older Australians and in preventive healthcare will be underpinned by research. However, while Australia has an enviable record in health and medical research, the research effort is spread across the many universities, hospitals and health and medical research institutes, resulting in critical mass only in limited areas of research. There is also a need to draw on multidisciplinary approaches that include research contributions from the social sciences and humanities. This priority is designed to promote health and prevent disease through a more focused and collaborative effort. Priority goals for research fall in the four areas of a healthy start to life, ageing well, ageing productively, preventive healthcare and strengthening Australia’s social and economic fabric. Priority Goals · A healthy start to life Counteracting the impact of genetic, social and environmental factors which predispose infants and children to ill health and reduce their well being and life potential. Human health in the developing foetus and in early childhood is critical to the future well being of the adult. Research shows that health and well being in early childhood is predictive of later positive outcomes, and that health in middle and late childhood is also crucial. This goal supports the Government’s National Agenda for Early Childhood initiative. · Ageing well, ageing productively Developing better social, medical and population health strategies to improve the mental and physical capacities of ageing people. Australia’s population is ageing, with a significant projected increase in the number of people aged over 65 and over 85. While Australia is relatively well placed compared with many OECD nations, major shifts in cultural expectations and attitudes about ageing are necessary to respond constructively, at both an individual and population level. A healthy aged population will contribute actively to the life of the nation through participation in the labour market or through voluntary work. This goal supports the Government’s National Strategy for an Ageing Australia. · Preventive healthcare New ethical, evidence-based strategies to promote health and prevent disease through the adoption of healthier lifestyles and diet, and the development of health-promoting products. Preventive healthcare research will improve the prediction and prevention of disease and injury for all Australians through the adoption of healthier behaviours, lifestyles and environments. Research will generate an improvement in the design, delivery and uptake of programmes such as exercise-based rehabilitation. There are several major disease targets amenable to immediate study, such as cardiovascular health, neurodegenerative diseases, mental ill-health, obesity, diabetes, asthma and chronic inflammatory conditions. Research on prevention will emphasise interdisciplinary approaches, including research on ethics, drawing on contributions from the social sciences and humanities, as well as from the health and medical sciences. It will also focus on developing new health promoting foods and nutraceuticals. This goal supports the Government’s Focus on Prevention initiative. · Strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric Understanding and strengthening key elements of Australia's social and economic fabric to help families and individuals live healthy, productive, and fulfilling lives. Living in today's society involves a complex web of choices, yet many of the traditional support structures are weaker than they have been in the past. Enabling people to make choices that lead to positive pathways to self reliance and supportive family structures is more important than ever. The interactions between the social safety net, social and economic participation, financial incentives and community and private sources of support are critical in helping people maximise their potential and achieve good, healthy, lifetime outcomes. In the decade ahead, it will be vital to understand and support the drivers for workforce participation and the broader social and economic trends influencing Australian families and communities. This goal supports the Government's welfare reform and participation agendas. Research in this area will emphasise interdisciplinary approaches, drawing on contributions from the economic, behavioural and social sciences Research Priority 3: Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries Stimulating the growth of world-class Australian industries using innovative
technologies developed from cutting-edge research Progress and wealth often derive from the unforeseen Proposal of new discoveries. Australia must be at the leading edge if it is to stay abreast of international developments and take advantage of opportunities. Our national capabilities in emerging sciences and their underpinning disciplines determine our capacity to develop and implement new technologies. Australia has a strong base of expertise, skills and technological capacities in the fundamental sciences and key technologies. Our strengths are in a wide range of areas such as biotechnology, material sciences, information and communications technology (ICT), photonics, nanotechnology and sensor technology. ICT is currently the critical enabling technology and is a major contributor to national productivity and growth. But breakthrough science underpins technological advancements in many areas and Australia needs to foster an environment that stimulates creativity and innovation. Proposals for frontier technologies are potentially very large. Australia has the capacity to exploit niche markets for new products and services. Australia also has an enviable track record as an innovator and developer of advanced materials and must grasp the opportunity to stay ahead. Smart information use involving improved data management, intelligent transport systems and digital media to develop creative Proposals for digital technologies provides huge opportunities to improve the performance of key Australian industries. Australia needs to invest in this research area as it is fundamental to our future competitiveness and well being. This priority will help to strengthen the capacity of Australian researchers to participate in new areas of research, enhance Australia’s international scientific reputation, stimulate local expertise, and help create vibrant new industries. A better understanding of the conditions that are conducive to innovation will ensure that Australia’s investment in research will maximise the benefits for Australia. Enhanced research effort will also be achieved through initiatives that develop a critical mass of researchers in key areas. Priority goals for research fall in the five areas of breakthrough science, frontier technologies, advanced materials, smart information use, and promoting an innovation culture and economy. Priority Goals · Breakthrough science Better understanding of the fundamental processes that will advance knowledge and facilitate the development of technological innovations. Breakthrough science underpins technological innovation across a range of industries critical to maintaining Australia’s position as a developed country. Some examples include bio-, cultural- and geo-informatics, nano-assembly and quantum computing. Technological advances are often unexpected and a strong foundation in mathematics and the fundamental sciences will provide an environment that fosters creativity and innovation. Early participation in leading edge areas of research will enable Australian researchers to benefit more fully from international developments. · Frontier technologies Enhanced capacity in frontier technologies to power world-class industries of the future and build on Australia’s strengths in research and innovation (examples include nanotechnology, biotechnology, ICT, photonics, genomics/phenomics, and complex systems). The potential Proposals of frontier technologies across a range of industries in Australia are vast. Australia has significant capacity to exploit niche markets for new products and services emerging from frontier technologies. Australia has world-class research expertise in many such areas. Some examples include nanotechnology, biotechnology, ICT, photonics, genomics and phenomics. Also important are advanced frameworks such as complex systems in which these technologies are applied. Future directions in this priority area need to target the cutting-edge science critical for each emerging technology. · Advanced materials Advanced materials for Proposals in construction, communications, transport, agriculture and medicine (examples include ceramics, organics, biomaterials, smart material and fabrics, composites, polymers and light metals). The development of advanced materials will underpin growth in many areas of industrial and economic activity in Australia. Australia has substantial infrastructure in this area and an enviable track record as an innovator and developer of advanced materials. The era of advanced materials is just beginning, in spite of the tremendous progress in recent years. Substantial scientific and technological challenges remain ahead, including the development of more sophisticated and specialised materials. Some examples include ceramics, organics, biomaterials, smart materials and fabrics, composites, polymers, and light metals. · Smart information use Improved data management for existing and new business Proposals and creative Proposals for digital technologies (examples include e-finance, interactive systems, multi-platform media, creative industries, digital media creative design, content generation and imaging). ICT Proposals are providing huge opportunities to deliver new systems, products, business solutions, and to make more efficient use of infrastructure. Examples include e-finance, multi-media, content generation and imaging. Improved data management is central to the future competitiveness of key industries such as agriculture, biotechnology, finance, banking, education, transport, government, and health and ‘info-tainment’. The ability of organisations to operate virtually and collaborate across huge distances in Australia and internationally hinges on our capabilities in this area. The media and creative industries are among the fastest growing sectors of the new economy. Research is needed to exploit the huge potential in the digital media industry. · Promoting an innovation culture and economy Maximising Australia’s creative and technological capability by understanding the factors conducive to innovation and its acceptance. Understanding the factors that lead to highly creative and innovative ideas and concepts, and the conditions that lead to their introduction, transfer and uptake is critical for any nation that aspires to lead the world in breakthrough science, frontier technologies, and in other forms of innovation. Promoting an innovation culture and economy requires research with a focus on developing and fostering human talent, societal and cultural values favourable to creativity and innovation, and structures and processes for encouraging and managing innovation. Research Priority 4: Safeguarding Australia Safeguarding Australia from terrorism, crime, invasive diseases and pests, strengthening our understanding of Australia’s place in the region and the world, and securing our infrastructure, particularly with respect to our digital systems. The importance of security and safety to Australia has been underscored by recent events. Australia has to be capable of anticipating and tackling critical threats to society, strategic areas of the national economy and the environment. The threats can potentially come from within and outside Australia. The world is now characterised by the widespread and rapid movements of people, digitally coded data, goods and services, and exotic biological agents. Critical infrastructure in Australia is increasingly dependent on digital technology for its management and integration. Information protection and the integrity of security systems are now more important than ever before. It is also necessary to protect the status of Australia as a nation free of many of the diseases affecting primary production around the world. Terrorism has emerged as a very real global threat and crime is taking a significant toll on Australian society and economy. Maintaining the operational advantage of Australia’s defence forces through superior capabilities is also fundamental to our national security. Enhancing our nation’s understanding of social, political and cultural issues will help Australia to engage with our neighbours and the wider global community and to respond to emerging issues. Leading edge research in Australia is already yielding high dividends and as a national research priority will improve the effectiveness of that contribution. Stronger research capabilities will ensure that solutions are tailored to Australia’s unique circumstances, reflecting its geographic features and small population. Greater collaboration within the research community and with other stakeholders will allow us to better understand and manage potential threats to Australia. Harnessing the knowledge and capabilities across Australia offers us the best chance of developing innovative and rapid solutions to serious threats. Australia’s international relations and its regional influence will be strengthened through new collaborative approaches and new science and technologies that enhance security and safety. The heightened interest in personal and electronic security across the world also provides opportunities for Australian solutions. Priority goals for research fall in the five areas of critical infrastructure, understanding our region and the world, protecting Australia from invasive diseases and pests, protecting Australia from terrorism and crime, and transformational defence technologies. Priority goals · Critical infrastructure Protecting Australia’s critical infrastructure including our financial, energy, communications, and transport systems. Protecting our critical infrastructure is important to national security and to the social and economic well being of Australia. An important aspect of this priority goal is e-security which is an enabler of e-commerce. Maintaining a critical mass of research in e-security will be essential in providing Australia with the tools to protect our way of life. · Understanding our region and the world Enhancing Australia’s capacity to interpret and engage with its regional and global environment through a greater understanding of languages, societies, politics and cultures. Social, cultural and religious issues are of growing significance due to the insecurities of globalisation and the increasing role of non-state players in the security environment. Australia’s capacity to interpret and engage with its regional and global environment will be substantially improved by enhancing its research base in apposite languages, societies and cultures. An approach that enhances Australia’s capacity to interpret itself to the rest of the world is also needed. · Protecting Australia from invasive diseases and pests Counteract the impact of invasive species through the Proposal of new technologies and by integrating approaches across agencies and jurisdictions. Australia is free of many of the pests and diseases affecting primary production around the world. This status needs to be protected as the introduction of exotic species has the potential to adversely affect our exports and the environment. Australia already has strong skills and expertise in this area of research and further work will offer immediate benefits to the community. A greater level of coordination of our research effort will mean that Australia can more effectively develop innovative and rapid solutions to serious threats. · Protecting Australia from terrorism and crime By promoting a healthy and diverse research and development system that anticipates threats and supports core competencies in modern and rapid identification techniques. Protecting Australia from terrorism is now more important than ever before in light of recent events and our involvement in the ‘war on terror’. The new threat requires a more sophisticated response which should harness Australia’s research capabilities, and which will focus on all phases of counter-terrorism; prevention, preparedness, detection, response and recovery. Crime takes a significant toll on Australian society and economy. The June 2000 report from the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council estimated that crime costs Australia at least $18 billion per annum. Personal identification, information protection and the integrity of security systems are fundamental towards ensuring the national security of Australia. An effective solution will include building on Australia’s existing strengths in rapid detection using new analytical technologies and managing significant data collections. · Transformational defence technologies Transform military operations for the defence of Australia by providing superior technologies, better information and improved ways of operation. Australia has a small defence force to protect a large continent and a substantial maritime region of responsibility. Its operational advantage has been maintained through a superior capability which is dependent on leveraging innovative technologies. Although some benefits can be gained from overseas research, Australia has to conduct its own research to address uniquely Australian demands. A systems approach which harnesses the research capabilities of all stakeholders is essential to the successful development and introduction of innovative technologies.
Appendix 2: Eligible Organisations Item 1. Organisations eligible to submit Proposals for the full range of funding available in LIEF New South Wales Charles Sturt University Macquarie University Southern Cross University The University of New England The University of New South Wales The University of Newcastle The University of Sydney University of Technology, Sydney University of Western Sydney University of Wollongong Victoria Deakin University La Trobe University Melbourne College of Divinity Monash University RMIT University Swinburne University of Technology The University of Melbourne University of Ballarat Victoria University Queensland Bond University Central Queensland University Griffith University James Cook University Queensland University of Technology The University of Queensland The University of the Sunshine Coast University of Southern Queensland Western Australia Curtin University of Technology Edith Cowan University Murdoch University The University of Notre Dame Australia The University of Western Australia South Australia The Flinders University of South Australia The University of Adelaide University of South Australia Tasmania Australian Maritime College University of Tasmania Northern Territory Charles Darwin University Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education Australian Capital Territory The Australian National University University of Canberra Multi-State Australian Catholic University Item 2. Organisations which may submit Proposals requesting funding only for international subscriptions or other payments in respect of participation in and use of international research facilities (including international facilities located within Australia) In addition to those organisations listed in Item 1, a Peak Body may submit a Proposal containing a request for funding only for international subscriptions or other payments in respect of participation in and use of international research facilities (including international facilities located within Australia). If a Peak Body submits such a Proposal, the Proposal must identify at least one of the Eligible Organisations listed in Appendix 2, Item 1 as a Collaborating Organisation.
Appendix 3: Cash contribution by organisations 1. LIEF may fund up to 75 per cent of the direct cost of purchasing and/or accessing the infrastructure, equipment or creating the facility. The cost of acquiring and/or accessing infrastructure, equipment or facilities must be itemised in the Proposal and specify cash and in-kind contributions by the Administering Organisation and, where such other organisations are nominated in a Proposal, by the Collaborating Organisation(s) and Partner Organisation(s). Other than with the approval of the ARC in the circumstances specified in paragraph 4 of this Appendix, each participating Eligible Organisation (whether it is an Administering Organisation or a Collaborating Organisation), other than a Peak Body, must contribute a cash contribution of at least 20% of the highest cash contribution of the Administering Organisation and Collaborating Organisations. 2. Cash contributions from Collaborating Organisations and Partner Organisations must be paid to the Administering Organisation by 31 October 2007, unless otherwise approved by the ARC. 3. Salaries of support or academic staff and the cost of buildings or other infrastructure may not be counted as cash contributions towards the purchase of a new item of infrastructure, equipment or facility. Such items may be included only as in-kind contributions. Supplier discounts on infrastructure items must be included in the Proposal but may not be identified as cash or in-kind contributions. In cases where a vendor or supplier of an item of equipment, infrastructure or facility which is the subject of a proposal for funding is also listed as a Partner Organisation in the Proposal, the cash contribution of that Partner Organisation will be considered as a discount towards the infrastructure, equipment or facility, unless otherwise approved by the ARC upon the provision of sufficient justification. 4. The Minister may approve a lesser amount of funding than that sought by an Administering Organisation. In such cases, unless otherwise approved by the ARC upon the provision of sufficient justification, the Administering Organisation and each Collaborating Organisation are nonetheless required to contribute at least pro rata to the funded items at the rate identified in the funding Proposal, irrespective of where those items are to be located. If the Administering Organisation or any Collaborating Organisation fails to make its required contribution, the ARC may recover all or part of the funding provided to the Administering Organisation.
Appendix 4: Library and research information infrastructure Proposals for library and research information infrastructure must address the matters raised here in addition to the requirements specified in the body of these Funding Rules. LIEF may fund the development of library and research information infrastructure that enhances high-quality research projects. Proposals in this category must demonstrate that they will enhance specific high-quality research projects, and that they will benefit researchers and scholars nationally. Such Proposals must be collaborative in nature. All Proposals for library and research information infrastructure should demonstrate: a. how the infrastructure enhances/will enhance the ability of Australian researchers to access or use information resources effectively and efficiently; b. that the project will not duplicate existing library and research information infrastructure, but will link to existing or proposed infrastructure in Australia and/or overseas; c. that the project has the capacity for future development and enhancements; d. that the outcomes are sustainable; and e. that current developments in the information sciences, including international standards and protocols, systems and software to further library and information network inter-operability, are understood and applied. All Proposals for library and research information infrastructure should address one or more of the following elements of the national library and research information infrastructure: a. the development of improvements in access to information resources that can be made available nationally. This may include: i. developing services that provide access to integrated print and electronic information resources, and/or ii. improving the level and quality of access through developing significant new directory, cataloguing or indexing services; b. the testing, development and implementation of innovative and sustainable models that will lead to improved access to distributed information and research library resources; and c. the purchase or development of information resources of national significance, whether in electronic form or otherwise, that can be made available nationally. This will include: i. the development of information resources to meet Australian research priorities, and/or ii. proposals that will fill significant gaps in the research resources available to the nation. Proposals for library and information infrastructure must outline: a. how access to the resource(s) will be managed (e.g. through subscription to a data service); and b. how the resource will be sustained following the period of LIEF funding. When addressing this point, Administering Organisations should note that in general it is desirable that publicly funded databases should be made available to members of the public, unless there are specific reasons for this not to be the case (e.g. copyright, privacy). Where the possibility of inaccessibility of the whole or part of the proposed research infrastructure is likely to arise, the Proposal must justify why Commonwealth money should be spent on such a facility or infrastructure.
