Biophysical Society Bulletin | July-August 2022

Public Affairs

Around theWorld Canada Announces New Innovation Agency

Norwegian Science Funding Threatened In early May, the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research announced the firing of the Norwegian Research Council board and replaced it with a temporary one. The move, designed to address a “serious financial situation,” is leaving Norwegian researchers facing dramatic cuts to their budgets. Government reports found the Council violated the rules on managing public finances—specifically noting that funds should be spent in the year allocated. Reports show the Council had combined funding streams from different govern ment ministries and spread the money across years and proj ects. It also built up a funding reserve intended for delayed projects. The research council is facing a shortfall of as much as 2.9 billion kroner ($300 million), approximately one-third of its annual budget, by the end of 2024. At a meeting of the new board, proposed funding cuts include a 20% reduction to current grants, cancellation of the council’s main basic research funding program in 2024, and the post ponement of research infrastructure projects. Additionally, these proposed cuts would also impact funding awards from the European Union’s Horizon Europe program. Council funds have been relied upon to top up Horizon grants to adjust for the higher costs in Norway. Discussions between university leaders and the research council are ongoing, but there are no current plans for the government to cancel any grants outright.

The Canadian government has announced that it will invest Can$1 billion (about US$780 million) over the next five years to create a funding agency focused on innovation in science and technology. The new agency goes against the trend of countries trying to replicate the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA); instead, it will be mod elled on innovation agencies in Finland and Israel. The initial funding level puts the agency roughly on the same scale as the United Kingdom’s new Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA), which is modelled on DARPA. Canada lags behind its peers, ranking last in the G7 group of wealthy nations in terms of business spending on research and development (R&D). Canadian businesses invest just 0.8% of the country’s gross domestic product in R&D, compared with the G7 average of 1.6%. The announcement of the new agency coincides with Canada entering the negotiations phase to join Horizon Europe. Can ada entered discussions to join the European Union funding program back in June 2021. Horizon Europe believes Canada could be associated with the program as early as 2023. If agreed, the Canadian association could provide a much-needed new source of funding to Canadian researchers.

Applications Are Open for the Biophysical Society 2022–2023 Congressional Fellowship Interested in using your science skills to inform science policy? Does spending a year working on Capitol Hill in Wash ington, DC helping to develop policy sound exciting? The Biophysical Society’s Congressional Fellowship program is your opportunity to participate directly in the process of law-making that impacts how research is funded and regulated. This year-long opportunity provides fellows a chance to use their science knowledge to inform the public policy process. Fellows will gain firsthand knowledge and experience on how Congress works, and participate in the esteemed AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellows program (www.aaas.org/program/science-technology-poli cy-fellowships) that provides ongoing training and networking opportunities during the fellowship year and beyond. Visit the website (www.biophysics.org/policy-advocacy/congressional-fellowship) for more details about the program or contact Leann Fox at fellows@biophysics.org or (240) 290-5606. The application deadline is December 13, 2022.

July-August 2022

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