Fostering bottom-up collaborative connections in science, technology and innovation: the case of Brazil-Australia cooperation

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the development of the cooperation between Brazil and Australia in science, technology and innovation (ST&I), as a unique collaboration resulting from a bottom-up strategy. Different from the cooperation approaches with other countries, with whom historical and cultural relations exist, it was built upon people-to-people linkages. Substantial partnerships between universities were fundamental to those linkages, fostering exchange programs and collaborative projects. They contributed to consolidate a critical mass among researchers, a condition expected by both countries’ governments to move forward signing an international high-level political agreement, which is currently implementing its first Joint Committee. The paper describes both countries’ institutional architecture, policy documents, agreements and exchange data, providing inputs for an exploratory analysis of their agenda and policy objectives for ST&I cooperation. It also demonstrates how people-to-people linkages can be fruitful when established in areas of common interest, such as water resources management, agriculture and tropical diseases, leading to an inevitable thickening of the ST&I cooperation. This analysis confirms the success of a bottom-up approach to ST&I cooperation in the pursuit of joint solutions for common challenges. When political will meets a strong scientific knitting and bilateral technical awareness, forthcoming results are expected to enhance strategic projects in areas of emerging importance. The expectation is to help policy makers comprehend the value of already existing partnerships, therefore stimulating innovative projects under the Brazil-Australia ST&I Agreement.