Academic “studies” fields have emerged because complex problems exceed traditional disciplinary boundaries. They create intellectual trading zones that integrate economics, engineering, sociology, and policy. The Insight explains how this shift reflects Boyer’s scholarship framework and why universities and governments must rethink siloed structures.

RMIT University’s Enabling Impact Platforms (EIPs) connect researchers, industry, and government to accelerate research translation and deliver outcomes that matter. Covering advanced manufacturing, health, sustainability, and more, the EIPs act as system integrators—breaking down silos, seeding collaborations, and aligning research with national and global priorities.

University–industry ties are rising, but mainly with foreign firms. The real barrier is domestic absorptive capacity: many Australian SMEs lack R&D talent, systems to use outside knowledge, and resources to scale. Multinationals adopt our research, while local work stalls at TRL 6–7. Stop blaming universities. Industry must invest in skills, universities must back implementation, and government must support transfer agents. Without this, R&D returns will stay weak.

Australia’s innovation system is world-class in research inputs,but falters when it comes to commercial outcomes. This is our long-standing "innovation paradox." What if we could finally solve it? Drawing on the case of Kaiserslautern, a small German city transformed into a global tech hub through the establishment of Fraunhofer Institutes, this Insight makes the case for introducing Fraunhofer-style applied research institutes in Australia.

Australia’s productivity woes stem from more than tax or regulatory inertia. As Emeritus Professor Roy Green argues, decades of industrial decline, underinvestment in research, and a failure to embrace strategic transformation have left the economy exposed to global shocks and wage stagnation. Green outlines a pragmatic agenda for industrial renewal—joining up policy, innovation, and workforce development—to secure Australia’s economic future.

Australia’s economic future depends on lifting productivity through deliberate, coordinated innovation efforts. This demands more than tax breaks or start-up hype. We need systemic clarity about innovation; mature ecosystems that enable diffusion, PMI-oriented public intervention, regional governance, and outcome-based metrics. Only then can Australia boost competitiveness, inclusivity, and resilience beyond legacy sectors and cyclical growth.

Australia's innovation policy faces a blind spot: the systematic neglect of common knowledge that enables breakthrough innovations to scale and endure. While current frameworks excel at measuring patents and R&D expenditures, they overlook the tacit expertise, institutional practices, and professional networks that serve as innovation's connective tissue. This Insight reveals how integrating common knowledge with proprietary systems can transform Australia's innovation perfor

I've been analysing Australia's innovation policy and discovered something striking: the Administrative Arrangements Order (which allocates government responsibilities) doesn't mention "innovation" anywhere. Departments are assigned responsibility for research, science, and technology, but no department is given responsibility for innovation itself. This helps explain why we keep cycling through reviews, Ministerial statements, and "renewed" strategies without delivering tran

Ministerial speeches at the start of a new tenure rarely change the course of history, but they do set the tone and expectations. When Senator Tim Ayres addressed the CRA Collaborate Innovate Conference on 20 May, he stepped into a familiar ritual in the ebb and flow of policy leadership: the scene-setting speech. For a minister with just a week on the job, the question is not “Did he deliver a new vision?” but “How well did he manage the balancing act between expectation and

With 30 Ministers and a growing cohort of Assistant Ministers, the Second Albanese Ministry is structured for delivery. But is that enough? This new Insight explores how administrative consolidation may be masking a retreat from bold reform, especially in research, innovation, and productivity

Innovation has shaped prosperity and progress, yet its virtues are increasingly threatened by political opportunism and corporate betrayal. How can governments, firms, and individuals protect innovation’s role as a force for good? This Insight from Professor Mark Dodgson shows the way

How can innovation policy become both empirically rigorous and open to wisdom that cannot easily be measured? This new Innovation Insight examines the strengths of evidence-based policymaking in building accountability and transparency, while also questioning whether excessive reliance on measurable outcomes risks excluding critical interdisciplinary perspectives. As research and innovation challenges become more complex, the need for richer, integrative policymaking grows.

John H. Howard, 15 April 2025 This Insight explores the growing significance of innovation ecosystems in driving economic transformation...

What does the NSW Innovation Blueprint 2035 actually commit to? This analysis examines the strengths and gaps in the state's innovation stra

Rajesh Gopalakrishnan Nair 'What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.' - Romeo and Juliet,...

This is the first of a series on what makes good public policy. Further Insights will be published weekly on Tuesdays. Other Innovation...

Australia has research excellence—now it's time to strengthen innovation ecosystems, financing, and pathways to adoption, application & use.

Gavin Keeley and Dalene Wray*, 6 February 2025 The Regional Development Australia (RDA) Moreton Bay-Sunshine Coast region presents one of...

The Universities Accord Report pushed for 'root and branch' reform of the R&D system. But could strategic patience be more transformative?

The history of reviews of research and innovation in Australia follows a predictable and disheartening cycle