22 February 2011

New Zealand must globalize its science to strengthen its economy and protect its social and environmental development, says the Prime Minister's Chief Science Adviser, Sir Peter Gluckman.

Speaking at the 2011 conference of the New Zealand Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre in Palmerston North today, Sir Peter said that New Zealand has scientific collaborations with nearly 100 countries, and that such connections build bonds, create opportunities for other sectors of the economy and in turn create employment and wellbeing. The example of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Emissions, of which the Centre is a founder member, shows how a small country can make a difference.

As a nation with a particularly high proportion of its emissions associated with agriculture, New Zealand's participation in the Alliance both pre-empts potential barriers from our major trading partners and will bring commercial advantage from the new technologies being developed in pastoral and forage agriculture. Science links are also valuable in diplomacy, said Sir Peter, helping to build relationships that protect New Zealand's interests and maintain our presence on the world stage.

The question of what should drive our international science priorities is complex, said Sir Peter, but a key priority is to use science to create truly innovative partnerships that build opportunities for value-added exports. It is also important to ensure that we are partners in programmes that can benefit New Zealand through access to funding and infrastructure. We should also ensure that science is used to address the challenges that confront the Asia-Pacific region, such as food and water security, climate change and non-communicable disease.

The full speech is available here on our website.

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