SecretariatOfficeMonashUniversity

Building75,ClaytonCampusWellingtonRoad,Clayton,VIC3800,Australia

Phone+61399029614Fax+61399029729

www.emblaustralia.org

ThisprojectissupportedbytheAustralianGovernment.EMBLAustraliaalsogratefullyacknowledgesthefinancialcontributionsof:Participants Secretariat

Responsetothe2011StrategicRoadmapforAustraliaResearchInfrastructureDiscussionPaperThroughouttheworld,countrieshaverealizedthattheirfuturegrowthandprosperityreliesheavilyoninnovationarisingfromkeyareasofresearchanddevelopment.IfAustraliaistoremaininternationallycompetitive,itiscriticalthatweinvestourlimitedresourceswheretheyhavethegreatestimpactandobtainthebestpossiblereturn.Asamodelof limitedR&Dgovernmental investmentemployedeffectivelywithbroadimpact,theEuropeanMolecularBiology Laboratory – Europe’s only intergovernmental life science research institution and a world‐leader in lifesciences–bringsauniquecombinationofactivitiesandinfrastructuretosupportworld‐classresearch.EMBL is a leader and pioneer in research and technology development, combining 38 years of experience inmolecularbiologyresearch,withthedevelopmentofcomplementarysetsoftoolsandtechnologiestosupportanextraordinarilyinterdisciplinarysciencecommunity.EMBLprovidescutting‐edgeinfrastructuretotheinternationalscientificcommunity,primeexamplesbeingthe3000+structuralbiologistswhovisitEMBLSynchrotronlaboratorieseach year to make use of X‐ray facilities, and the millions of yearly users of the data resources at the EMBL‐European Bioinformatics Institute, spanning academia,medicine, environmental studies and the pharmaceutical,agriculture,foodandbiotechnologysectors.AsaresultEMBLisahotbedofinnovation,engagingboththroughpro‐activetechnologytransferactivitiesandnumerousformalandinformalcollaborationswithindustry.Througheffectivedeploymentofitsrelativelymodestresources,EMBLhelpstoproduceEurope’snextgenerationofscientificstarsandwidelyrecognizedasaninstrumentofintegrationacrossEuropeandtheworld.RecognizingtherelevanceoftheEMBLmodelforAustralianlifescienceresearch,Australia’sAssociateMembershipin EMBL was awarded in 2008, facilitated through a substantial NCRIS contribution along with the support offoundation members of EMBL Australia (Monash University, The University of Sydney, University of WesternAustralia,TheUniversityofQueensland,andtheCommonwealthScientificandIndustrialResearchOrganisation).This response addresses the issues raised in the 2011 Strategic Roadmap Discussion Paper and outlines EMBLAustralia’spositionwithrespecttoanumberofpointsraisedinthedocument.1.ItiswellrecognisedthatAustralia’sresearchinfrastructureisnowatworldclasslevelsAustralia’s research infrastructure,made possible through the Australian government’s NCRIS and Super ScienceInitiatives, allows Australian science and scientists to compete with the best in the world. In fact, Australia’smembership of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory is largely possible through the recognition thatAustralia’sprovisionofresourcestoitsscientists isnowonaparwithEurope’spre‐eminentlifesciencesresearchinstitute.ThecreationofEMBLAustraliawillinternationaliseAustralianresearchthroughlocalintegratedresearchnetworksthatconnecttoglobalpartnerships. Itwilldriveenhancedresearchqualitythroughthedevelopmentofworld‐classscientific leaders.ThecentrepieceofEMBLAustraliawillbethePartnerLaboratoryNetworkofyoungresearchgroupsthatwillserveasanewparadigmforeducation,trainingandhighlycollaborativeresearchacrossAustralia.TheobjectiveistoenhanceAustralia’sinternationalcompetitivenessthelifesciences,andstrengthenitsemergingpositionasaworldleaderinbiotechnologyresearch.Asaresultofthecurrentresearchenvironment,EMBLAustraliaisnowabletoundertakeitsobjectivesof• establishingaPartnerLaboratoryNetworkacrossAustralia;• providingfirst‐classscientifictrainingandcollaborativeopportunitiesforAustralianlifescientists;

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• pursuingnewopportunitiesininternationalco‐fundingforresearch;and• exchangingexpertise,resources,services,andinnovationbetweenEuropeandAustralia.Through an active partnership with Europe’s premier research institute, the EMBL Australia Partner LaboratoryNetwork will seed a dynamic, highly collaborative culture across Australia, conducting research of the highestinternational standing and establishing collaborations,mentored and reviewed by theworld’s leading bioscienceresearchers. The nationally distributed Partner Laboratory Network will support early career research groups atNodesinMelbourneBrisbane,Sydney,andPerthmodeledalongtheEMBLresearchphilosophythatscientistshaveaccess and contribute to sharedworld‐class research infrastructure.Group Leaderswill be selected based on aninternationalsearchforscientificexcellenceandpromise,toensurethatonlythebestintheworldareappointed.The Partner Laboratory Network will attract state‐of‐the‐art infrastructure, developing andmaintaining nationalcore facilities operating at the leading edge of technology development, with direct links to expertise andinnovationacrossEurope.EMBLhasapprovedtheestablishmentofPartnerLaboratorygroupsatsitesthatareabletoprovideanappropriateenvironment for researchers,withmajorcapital investment instate‐of‐the‐art facilitiesand equipment. Host Universities and States have already committed $millions to the operational costs of thePartner Laboratory Network. As in Europe, where EMBL groups are funded through Federal Governmentagreements,supportissoughtfromtheAustralianGovernmentforthefullcostsofthenationalPartnerLaboratoryresearchgroups.2. Australian eResearch capacity and capability will be critical to maintaining international relevance anddevelopingaleadershippositionininternationalscientificresearchAlthough Australia boasts strong bioinformatics expertise, the community lacks a sustainable infrastructure forbiological information to support Australian life science research and its translation to medicine and theenvironment, the bio‐industries and society. The current NCRIS funded initiatives in computational biology(includingAustralianNationalDataService,BioplatformsAustraliaandtheAustraliaResearchCollaborativeService)have significantly enhanced Australia’s standing and international reputation in biology databases andbioinformatics.AkeyobjectiveofEMBLAustraliaistofurtherthispositionthroughjointprojectswiththeEMBL‐EBI,aworld centre forbiocomputinganddatabasedevelopment.TheEBI serves researchersbybuilding,maintainingand making available databases and information services relevant to molecular biology, bioinformatics andcomputational biology. EBI also coordinates the European Life Sciences Infrastructure For Biological Information(ELIXIR), a network of nodes distributed throughout Europe. Direct access to these major bioscience datainfrastructureresourceswillbeofgreatbenefittothedevelopmentofacoherenteResearchplatforminAustralia.Specifically, establishment of the EMBL Australia EBIMirror Facility at theUniversity of Queenslandwill providelocalaccesstoabroadselectionofEBIdatabases,analyticalworkflows&softwaretools,insomecasescustomisingthemtocomplementareasnotoptimallyaddressedbyEBIitself(e.g.agriculturalbiotechnology).ThemanybenefitstoAustraliaoftheEBImirrorfacilityinclude:• Establishinginternationalbestpracticeinbiosciencedataservice• Consolidating,extendingandleveraginginvestmentofNCRISfunding• ProvidingcompetitiveedgeforAustraliancompaniesinlifesciences,biotechnology&ICT• Attractingoverseasinvestmentinlifesciences,biotechnology&ICT• Enablinglocaldatacaptureandintegration,facilitatinguptakeofnewtechnologies• PromotingAustraliancollaborationin largeinternationaldata‐intensiveprojects,e.g. incancergenomics,with

high‐valuecomponenthereinAustralia• Facilitatingtransferofspecialistknowledgeandexposuretonewtools• OpportunitytocustomiseEBIresourcestospecialistrequirements,e.g.cropscience• DisseminatingAustralianbiosciencedatasetsandinfluenceonglobaldataresourcesthroughEBI• Providingworld‐classresourceforadvancedtrainingnationally&regionally• Providingspringboardforadvanced/specialisttrainingatEBI• Providingnewcapabilitiesenablingsystemsbiology• Enrichingandprovidingnewcareerpathsinlifesciences,biotechnologyandICT• IncreasingvisibilityofAustralianscienceviaintegrationofAustraliandata&tools• EnhancingreputationofAustralianscienceinregionandinternationally

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To support the Facility and to integrate the national bioinformatics capability, EMBL Australia is building theAustralianBioinformaticsNetwork,undertakeninconjunctionwithBioplatformsAustralia,CSIROandthenationalbioinformaticscommunity.Inthiscontext,bioinformaticsis interpretedbroadlytoincludegeneticsandgenomics,molecularbiology,computationalbiology,molecularimaging,biostatisticsandbiometry.The Australian Bioinformatics Network aims to foster a world class Bioinformatics capability for Australianresearchers by linking and supporting locally embedded bioinformatics practitioners and strategic bioinformaticssitesatuniversitiesandresearchorganizationsacrossAustralia.TheNetworkwillforgestronglinksbetweentheEBIMirror Facility and complementary national facilities, including the Centre for Comparative Genomics (MurdochUniversity), Systems Biology Initiative (UNSW) and promote the initiation of new national and internationalcollaborative research projects. In this way, the Network will act as a unifying agent to promote a nationalbioinformatics and biostatistics response to the increasing scientific challenges in computational and systemsbiology.TheAustralian BioinformaticsNetwork consists of critical hardware, various software applications and tools and,most importantly, people skills, all considered essential components of the eResearch infrastructure (DiscussionPaperpage53).WeareparticularlypleasedthatrecognitionofthepeoplecomponenthasbeenacknowledgedasintegraltotheeResearchinfrastructureandencouragethiscomponenttobereflectedinfuturefundingallocations.3.CurrentresearchinvestmentsandfundingshouldbemorecompetitivewithinternationalprogramsAustraliawasextendedEMBLAssociateMembership in recognitionof its strengths incellbiology, stemcellsandregenerative medicine, chemical biology, genetic epidemiology and clinical research. As our scientific progressincreasinglyrequiresinternationalcollaborationandislimitedbyarestrictedlocalfundingenvelope,EMBLAustraliaagreesthatthereisaneedtobetteraccessinternationalfundingsuchasFP8Scheme(DiscussionPaperpage32).As a bridge to the EuropeanMolecular Biology Laboratory, Europe’s pre‐eminent life sciences research institute,EMBLAustralia isuniquelyplacedto facilitateaccess to international funding, throughagreater involvementandexchangewithkeyEuropeanresearchorganisations. With laboratories inGermany, Italy,FranceandtheUK,andkey leadership in major initiatives within the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures, EMBL willprovideaccesstothecollaborationandfundinglinkagesrequiredintoday’sresearchenvironment.To this end, EMBL Australia is actively promoting exchangewith European science and research expertise. TheestablishmentoftheEBIMirrorFacility(above)isbutoneexamplebutotherinitiativesinclude• theEMBLAustraliainternationalPhDprogram,facilitatingopportunitiesforstudenttrainingattheEMBL• recent exchange visits by internationally recognised bioinformaticians from the EBI Dr Ewan Birney (policy

development)andRodrigoLopez(specialisedtraining)• multiplevisitsbyAustralianscientiststoEMBLfacilitiesinEurope.Australia currentlyhasawindowofopportunity to tap into thebestandbrightestmindsaround theglobe.Asacoordinating body, EMBL Australia will provide Australian life scientists access to state‐of‐the‐art core facilities,technologies, andexpertise inEurope. Itwill opennewopportunities forAustralians to forge collaborationswithEuropeanresearchnetworksand institutions,andtoaccessEuropeanfundingsources.EMBLAustraliaalsobringsthecapacitytodevelopthenextgenerationofAustralianleadersinbioscienceresearchthroughtheestablishmentof an EMBL Australia Partner Laboratory Network, which in turn will deliver on the promise of nationalinfrastructural innovation.ContinuedsupportforAustralia’sresearchinfrastructurethroughexpandedsupportforEMBLAustraliawillbecrucialtomaintainingthemomentumthathasbeendevelopedinAustraliabytheNCRISandSuperSciencefundingprograms.OnBehalfoftheEMBLAustraliaCouncil

ProfRichardLarkinsChairman

ProfNadiaRosenthalScientificHead