Globalisation makes international competitiveness the only important benchmark for universities, according to the University of Queensland's incoming Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), Professor Paul Greenfield.
'Universities should be comparing themselves with the best rather than the nearest,' he said.
Formerly the University's Executive Dean (Engineering, Physical Sciences and Architecture), he succeeds Professor Peter Sheehan, recently appointed Vice-Chancellor of the Australian Catholic University.
Professor Greenfield said one of the keys to international competitiveness was high quality collaborative research.
'Universities have to be outwardly oriented, forming links with high-calibre researchers throughout Australia and the rest of the world. It is difficult, expensive and, indeed, unlikely for one institution to have access to the best staff and infrastructure for every project,' he said.
He identified four driving forces behind the move to more co-operative research among the world's leading universities
'A key driver for future economic development is intellectual capital, the capturing of the economic and social benefits of knowledge. Secondly, there is a world-wide move to come back to the things you are good at and outsource the rest. This creates tremendous opportunities for specialists in particular areas including research,' he said.
'Thirdly, international competitiveness is now a major driving force in all sectors of the economy - comparing your university with the institution down the road is irrelevant if it can't match it with the best in the world in at least some areas of research.
'Finally, internationally competitive research involves a critical mass of people and increasingly expensive infrastructure. It makes sense to join forces with other institutions with strengths in particular areas.'
He predicted future university research would increasingly be completed by multi-disciplinary teams crossing national borders.
'Most of the successful University of Queensland research groups already have strong, ongoing collaborations with the best overseas groups. We have to build and expand on these,' Professor Greenfield said.
He said the key to such expansion was increasing the number of nodes of excellence at the University, whether these be separate research centres or groups of people within departments.
'To do this, we must identify what embryonic strengths we have, what future opportunities are emerging and how we should develop such strengths,' he said.
Professor Greenfield joined the University as a lecturer in chemical engineering in 1975. He became head of the Chemical Engineering Department in 1986 and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Physical Sciences and Engineering) from 1993 to 1996.
He gained a bachelor of engineering with first-class honours in chemical engineering from the University of New South Wales in 1969. He completed his PhD in food technology and chemical engineering from the same university in 1973 and gained an economics degree from the University of Queensland in 1981.
He worked as a technical services engineer for Union Carbide Chemicals in Sydney and as a physics section experimental officer with the CSIRO's Division of Food Research before moving to the United States as a CSIRO postdoctoral fellow with the University of Massachusetts and Searle Biochemics in 1973.
A consultant for many national and international companies and government bodies in the areas of biotechnology, wastewater treatment, waste and environmental management and economic evaluation of projects, Professor Greenfield has also been a member and chair of major committees including the National Greenhouse Advisory Panel (1994-present).
He is currently chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee overseeing the $5.2 million Brisbane River and Moreton Bay Wastewater Management Study. Funded by local, State and Federal Governments, the study will lead to the development of a water quality strategy by mid-1998 for use by the Queensland State Department of Environment to formulate wastewater licensing conditions.
Professor Greenfield's current research interests include large scale virus production, biological wastewater treatment and management of R&D.
In 1992, Professor Greenfield initiated a $2.77 million research project into the improved operation of wastewater treatment plants funded through the Co-operative Research Centre for Waste Management and Pollution Control Ltd.
For more information, contact Professor Greenfield (telephone 07 3365 3329 or mobile 041 8733866).
