The Government bill on research and innovation is the Swedish Government's long-term plan for making priorities in research and innovation, including what financial resources come with each investment. The Government presses that the focus of the bill is excellence, internationalisation and innovation.
Hans Adolfsson, Vice-Chancellor
Photo: Mattias Pettersson
Before 31 October, Umeå University will submit its proposal for what investments Sweden should do over the next five years. Beside research policy priorities, the Government also wants to learn what research priorities universities undertake and how universities handle profile areas.
It's important that Umeå University takes this opportunity to emphasise research and innovation fields in which we see that we want to, must and can make a difference. And we will take that opportunity. Many rewarding discussions have taken place in strategic councils and management dialogs regarding what priorities the University will submit to the Government. Some proposal have been raised before, and others are new.
On a general scale, Umeå University wants to highlight the importance of strengthening academic freedom and institutional autonomy. This is crucial, not least given the events as of late with rapid political decisions affecting higher education institutions' boards and the withdrawal of research funding with short notice in important fields. More dialogue and less micromanagement are needed.
The University also wants to see changes that allow us to really work with internationalisation. We understand that the current geopolitical situation requires careful considerations, but Sweden and its higher education institutions need migration legislation and permit processing that facilitate rather than hinder the recruitment of international students and staff with necessary expertise.
To improve the University's autonomy in making its own strategic prioritisations, we'll propose that the Government increases the proportion of direct government funding in the overall funding for research. The imbalance between direct government funding and external grants sought in competition, combined with requirements for co-funding from certain funding bodies that tie up large parts of the direct government funding, leads to strategic decisions landing in the hands of others than the universities themselves.
Universities also want to see changes in the funding process and priorities of national research infrastructure that result in improved opportunities to make long-term plans for both funding bodies and universities. We also believe that large-scale research infrastructure, such as MAX IV, should be funded directly from the state budget so it doesn't affect investments in other important research infrastructure.
With reference to our geographical position in the centre of the ongoing societal transformation of the north of Sweden, we also wish to remind the Government that investments in research and higher education also need to take place in other locations than the Stockholm-Mälardalen Region, the West Coast and the South of Sweden. Thanks to its breadth, Umeå University can constructively contribute with adding both knowledge and talent in this context.
At the end of October, the University will submit its proposal for priorities to the Ministry of Education. But this isn't the only opportunity universities have to highlight research priorities we find important to us, society and the individual. The University Management works continuously with emphasising these issues whenever the opportunity arises. Just like I'm aware that many of you do too in various forums. Together we can make a difference.