Science & Research

Science is a critical element underpinning biosecurity. It can have an enormous input to managing risks and uncertainties, and ultimately the effectiveness of any decision. It can provide key information for many questions and can help determine which questions should be asked.

Biosecurity Science Strategy

Biosecurity New Zealand and the Ministry of Research, Science and Technology (MoRST) are jointly leading the development of a Biosecurity Science Strategy.

The crucial importance of science in underpinning policy formulation and decision making in Biosecurity is emphasised in four expectations listed in the Biosecurity Strategy for New Zealand .

A Biosecurity Science Strategy is required to assist with identification and prioritisation of science initiatives. This will help to ensure that investment in science for biosecurity leads to the best possible outcomes in improving the performance of the system.

Timeline

The timeline for development of the Biosecurity Science Strategy :

Biosecurity New Zealand and the Ministry of Research, Science and Technology (MoRST) held a series of workshops in July 2005 with stakeholders as an early and critical step in the formulation of a Biosecurity Science Strategy for informing biosecurity science direction and priority setting within the New Zealand Biosecurity System (including central and regional government, research providers, Maori, industry and NGO's).

The reports from the workshops provide a summary of the information and opinions communicated by workshop participants. It is intended that the recorded information from all the workshops will now form the basis of a draft biosecurity science strategy. The draft strategy will be the subject of further public consultations.

Current Draft Summary report all workshops

Internal workshops summaries

Other research programmes

The SST is also involved in coordinating and advising other biosecurity research programmes some of which are summarized below.

In 2004/05 the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST) made investment decisions up to 12 years in the form of Outcome-based investments (OBIs) where research organisations are contracted to meet "intermediate outcomes", which are direct, measurable results of successful implementation or uptake of research outputs. End-user groups often need to be involved to meet these outcomes.

Outcome-based investments (OBIs)

Biosecurity research funded through the OBI process includes:

• Better Border Biosecurity - Crop & Food
• Possum bio-control
• Beating Weeds, Multiple Pest Dynamics, Multi-species pest controls & Pests in L Landscapes - Landcare.
• Biodiversity & Biosecurity - NIWA
  

  FRST provides further details on the research undertaken

  The Cross Departmental Research Pool (CDRP)

  The Cross Departmental Research Pool (CDRP) managed by the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology (FRST) supports policy-related research in government departments. Departments are able to bid for funding (transferred from Vote RS&T to their Vote) to carry out research of critical cross portfolio interest

  Funders of science

  Foundation for Research, Science & Technology (FRST)

  Royal Society of New Zealand

Page last updated: 19 June 2008