Big science sector shake up coming into force next week
Just six months ago the Prime Minister announced a major shake up of Crown Research Institutes, such as Niwa, the natural hazard experts GNS Science and AgResearch. The Crown entity Callaghan Innovation has been scrapped. The plan was for the seven CRI's to be merged to create three new public research organisations - an Institute for Bioeconomy Science, an Institute for Earth Science and an Institute for Public Health and Forensic Science. Next week, these changes kick in. Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Dr Shane Reti, said the new organisations would have a strong commercial focus - this was about "turning research into results for New Zealand's economy." The changes have resulted in a number of scientists losing their jobs and the sector has pointed to reduced funding in the budget. So what is ahead? Kathryn is joined by the co-president of the New Zealand Association of Scientists, Lucy Stewart and Rod Badcock, who is professor at the Robinson Research Institute at Victoria University, but spends most of his time at Open Star - a nuclear fusion start up aiming to create near limitless clean energy.
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