Articles
RSS SubscribeTuesday 20th October 2009
Wireless Success to Rejuvenate Endowment Fund for Australian Science
by DIISRTE
A scientific breakthrough which benefits many millions of people around the world will help fund future science in Australia.
CSIRO will invest $150 million from the proceeds from its Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technology licensing program in the Science and Industry Endowment Fund being launched today by the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr.
“The fund is a step toward an Australian culture of endowment of scientific research,” Senator Carr said.
“Created in 1926, the fund has been active in a quiet way until CSIRO’s rejuvenating gift of $150 million from the proceeds of its WLAN technology licensing program.
“The fund we launch today has been made possible by CSIRO’s remarkable success in licensing WLAN to industry.
“It is the start of something significant and long term — reinvesting the fruits of successful adoption of Australian know-how back into our innovation system.”
There will be three initial grants from the fund:
- $2 million will fund the endowment of a Professorial Chair in Wireless Research as a joint appointment between Macquarie University and CSIRO.
- $7.5 million (over 2–3 years) will be used to establish scholarships and fellowships across all scientific disciplines but with a primary focus in ICT, Mathematics and Engineering. These will be named to recognise their WLAN origins and may include offers of employment with CSIRO.
- Up to $10 million to expand research in Wireless Technology at CSIRO.
“The fund will be a vehicle for others to contribute gifts and bequests to support research that meets the aims and principles of the fund,” Senator Carr said.
CSIRO Chief Executive Dr Megan Clark said:
“The Science and Industry Endowment Fund will support fundamental scientific research with potential to benefit Australia, as well as research aimed at solving major challenges facing us today and in future.
“The fund will support projects in new and emerging areas of science, the creation or development of significant national research facilities, and research scholarships and fellowships,” she said.
In deciding uses for the fund, Dr Clark will be supported by an expert advisory committee comprising:
- Professor Alan Robson, Vice Chancellor, the University of Western Australia;
- Professor Tom Spurling, CSIRO Board Member
- Professor Margaret Sheil, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Research Council
- Mr Nigel Poole, Executive Director, Commercial, CSIRO, and
- Dr Ezio Rizzardo, Research Scientist, CSIRO Molecular and Health Technologies and recipient of the CSIRO Medal for Lifetime Achievement.
CSIRO Chairman Dr John Stocker paid tribute to the scientific and commercial team that delivered the success on which the fund is being reactivated.
“The WLAN invention grew out of nearly fifty years of radio astronomy and radar research and has transformed modern computing and communications,” Dr Stocker said.
