Perhaps industry did not get the Universities Australia memo

The Productivity Commission reports industry investment in research and development is easing off (CMM yesterday), which alarms UA. “This slowdown is troubling for the nation’s economic growth — and that should concern all Australians … “We urge businesses to take a closer look at what our world-class university system can do to help your firm to innovate and grow.” UA chief executive Catriona Jackson says.

As did Margaret Gardner last year, “If you have a complex business challenge you haven’t been able to crack, come talk to an Australian university about how we can work together to solve it,” the  then UA chair urged industry last year (CMM February 22 2018).  The slow-down in R&D investment is part of a bigger problem of declining productivity improvements, its not  industry indifference to universities.  But the higher education community has to address it, if only to convince a not-especially friendly government that they are interested in what occurs off-campus.