Higher priority

The importance of science in São Paulo State and the mechanisms offered by FAPESP to attract researchers from Argentina and other countries.

By Heitor Shimizu, in Buenos Aires

Agência FAPESP – “We want to develop more opportunities for research collaboration with Argentina, which is a very important partner for São Paulo State,” said Carlos Henrique de Brito Cruz, FAPESP’s Scientific Director, in his opening address to FAPESP Week Buenos Aires on April 8.

The first day of the symposium, which lasted until Friday, April 10, brought together Brazilian and Argentinian researchers as well as officials and other representatives of FAPESP and Argentina’s National Scientific & Technological Research Council (CONICET), joint organizers of the event in Buenos Aires.

“FAPESP intensely pursues a strategy of international collaboration,” Brito Cruz said. “We have important collaborations with Argentina, such as the LLAMA project, which will be discussed during a session at this event. We know that scientific interactions between Argentina and Brazil are intense, but we want more. And we also want more structured and better organized interactions in connection with long-term projects.”

Brito Cruz also underscored the mechanisms offered by FAPESP to support research exchanges, such as grants and fellowships to fund research by scientists from other countries in Brazil.

Among the examples he mentioned were the Young Investigators Grants, Visiting Researcher Grants, the São Paulo Excellence Chair, and the São Paulo School of Advanced Science.

“Another important example is post-doctoral fellowship, which are offered to scientists from any country. Argentina is one of the countries that most use this facility offered by FAPESP,” he said.

Brito Cruz also provided an overview of science in São Paulo State, which accounts for about 45% of the science produced in Brazil and where 40% of each year’s new crop of Brazilian PhDs are earned.

He highlighted three key features of São Paulo State’s science and technology system. First, total investment in research and development (R&D) corresponds to 1.6% of the state’s gross domestic product, compared with only 0.9% for the rest of Brazil.

The second point he stressed was that business organizations account for 60% of investment in R&D in São Paulo, compared with about 25% in other states. Third, sources within the state contribute 67% of public investment in science and technology in São Paulo, whereas in the rest of Brazil federal sources contribute 81%.

“São Paulo invests far more than any other Brazilian state in science and technology. Rio de Janeiro ranks second but invests only about a tenth as much, followed by Paraná and Minas Gerais. In the latter case, state investment in the sector is 24 times less than in São Paulo,” Brito Cruz said.

“But São Paulo isn’t ten times richer than Rio de Janeiro or 24 times richer than Minas Gerais. The reason is that São Paulo prioritizes investment in science and technology much more than other states.”

According to Brito Cruz, one of the consequences of this higher priority is that in São Paulo investment in R&D with funds raised from private enterprise in the state’s three public universities (USP, UNICAMP and UNESP) is comparable to investment by business in R&D done at universities in the United States.

The first day of FAPESP Week Buenos Aires continued with sessions on public perceptions and diffusion of science, history, Latin American integration, and the challenges of higher education.

For more information, go to: www.fapesp.br/week2015/buenosaires.