LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO YOU TODAY ON THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE.
THE DEVELOPMENT REALISATION OF A GSDI PRESENTS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A SIGNIFICANT OPPORTUNITY CONTRIBUTION FOR THE GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION COMMUNITY TO COMBINE ITS RESOURCES AND DEVELOP ITS CAPABILITIES GLOBALLYGLOBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIAL WELL-BEING.
THE PARTICIPANTS AT THIS CONFERENCE WOULD BE WELL AWARE THAT TODAY, MORE THAN EVER BEFORE, IT IS IMPORTANT TO LOOK BEYOND OUR OWN NATIONAL BOUNDARIES.
THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT IS CHANGING. ECONOMIES WORLD WIDE ARE UNDERGOING A PROCESS OF PROFOUND AND CONTINUING STRUCTURAL CHANGE.
THIS CHANGE HAS BEEN DRIVEN BY REDUCTIONS IN TRADE BARRIERS AND BY THE INCREASING GLOBALISATION OF INDUSTRY. IT HAS BEEN FACILITATED BY SIGNIFICANT ADVANCES IN INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES.
OUR FUTURE AS A GLOBAL PLAYERS WILL DEPEND ON HOW WELL WE ADJUST TO THESE CHANGES AND HOW INNOVATIVE WE ARE IN SEEKING NEW SOLUTIONS TO OLD PROBLEMS. A GSDI PROVIDES A GREAT EXAMPLE OF THE RANGE OF ISSUES MANY WILL NEED TO CONFRONT.
THE GSDI POLICY AND ORGANISATION ISSUES YOU WILL BE CONSIDERING LATER IN THE CONFERENCE WILL NEED TO TAKE ACCOUNT OF THESE CHANGES IN THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT.
TODAY THERE ARE THREE KEY AREAS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO TALK ABOUT.
FIRSTLY, I WOULD LIKE TO PAINT A PICTURE OF THE CHANGING WORLD ECONOMY, OFTEN DESCRIBED AS THE "GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY".
I WOULD THEN LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THE APPROPRIATE ROLE FOR GOVERNMENT AND FOR INDUSTRY POLICY IN HELPING BUSINESS COME TO TERMS WITH THIS CHANGING ENVIRONMENT.
AND FINALLY, I WOULD LIKE TO CONCLUDE WITH SOME BRIEF REMARKS ABOUT THE IMPLICATIONS OF ALL THIS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A GSDI.
LET ME START BY NOTING THAT, IN MANY WAYS, A KNOWLEDGE-BASED ECONOMY IS NOTHING NEW: KNOWLEDGE HAS ALWAYS BEEN CENTRAL TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
WHAT IS NEW IS THE SPEED WITH WHICH KNOWLEDGE CAN NOW BE TRANSFERRED,HOW KNOWLEDGE CAN NOW BE ACCESSED FROM ALMOST ANYWHERE, AT ANY TIME, AT SPEEDS AND COSTS NOT CONTEMPLATED ONLY A FEW YEARS AGO.
THESE CHANGES HAVE BEEN DRIVEN BY THANKS TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES, AND THE INTRODUCTION OF COMPETITION WORLDWIDE.
THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF KNOWLEDGE IS ALSO NEW. THE GLOBALISATION OF PRODUCTION HAS MADE IT INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT FOR FIRMS TO DEVELOP NEW AND INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS AND PROCESSES WHICH WILL SET THEM APART FROM THEIR COMPETITORS. THE MASTERING OF INFORMATION AND THE INTRODUCTION OF KNOWLEDGE-INTENSIVE MEANS OF PRODUCTION HAVE BECOME KEY ELEMENTS OF COMPETITIVENESS.
FOR NATIONS TOO, KNOWLEDGE IS BECOMING MORE IMPORTANT FOR GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT.
RECENT OECD STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT MEMBER ECONOMIES ARE INCREASINGLY MOVING TOWARDS "KNOWLEDGE INTENSIVE ECONOMIES" - THAT IS, THOSE WHICH ARE BASED DIRECTLY ON THE PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION AND USE OF KNOWLEDGE AND INFORMATION.
THIS SHIFT TOWARDS KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMIES MEANS THAT PHYSICAL RESOURCE BASED INDUSTRIES ARE BECOMING RELATIVELY LESS IMPORTANT, WHILE HIGH TECH, HIGH VALUE ADDED INDUSTRIES AND SERVICES ARE EXPANDING RAPIDLY.
A FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION THEN IS "WHAT DOES A KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY LOOK LIKE?"
AN ESSENTIAL ELEMENT OF THE KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY IS THE POSSESSION OF A WORLD CLASS TELECOMMUNICATION SYSTEM THAT IS ACCESSIBLE TO ALL AT COMPETITIVE PRICES.
A KNOWLEDGE-BASED ECONOMY IS IDENTIFIABLE BY
THERE ARE FOUR DIFFERENT KINDS OF KNOWLEDGE WHICH ARE GENERALLY RECOGNISED AS BEING IMPORTANT IN A KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY.
THE FIRST, "KNOW-WHAT", IS KNOWLEDGE ABOUT FACTS - ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE NORMALLY REFER TO AS INFORMATION.
THE SECOND, "KNOW-WHY" REFERS TO SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING. IT UNDERPINS TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCT AND PROCESS ADVANCES.
THE THIRD TYPE OF KNOWLEDGE, "KNOW-HOW", REFERS TO SKILLS OR CAPABILITIES. IT IS THE KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED TO TRANSFORM INFORMATION. SOME EXAMPLES MIGHT INCLUDE THE ABILITY TO USE A PARTICULAR GEODETIC INSTRUMENT OR TO DETERMINE THE MOST APPROPRIATE SOLUTION TO A LOGISTICAL PROBLEM.
THE FINAL COMPONENT, "KNOW-WHO", INVOLVES INFORMATION ABOUT WHO KNOWS WHAT AND WHO KNOWS HOW TO DO WHAT. IT INVOLVES THE FORMATION OF RELATIONSHIPS WHICH MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO GET ACCESS TO EXPERTS AND TO USE THEIR KNOWLEDGE EFFICIENTLY. "KNOW-WHO" IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT IN THE GLOBALISED ECONOMY.
FOR POLICY MAKERS, THE IMPORTANT QUESTION IS "HOW DO WE MAKE OUR ECONOMY MORE KNOWLEDGE INTENSIVE?"
"KNOW-WHAT" AND "KNOW-WHY" ARE PERHAPS THE EASIER FORMS OF KNOWLEDGE TO BUILD.
GENERALLY, THE BASIC SKILLS CAN BE LEARNED - THROUGH EDUCATION, BOOKS, LECTURES AND DATABASES.
HOWEVER, THE MORE ADVANCED AND TECHNICAL OF THE "KNOW-WHY" SKILLS ARE OFTEN CONCENTRATED IN SPECIALISED ORGANISATIONS, LIKE RESEARCH LABORATORIES OR UNIVERSITIES. TO ACCESS THIS TYPE OF KNOWLEDGE, FIRMS NEED TO EITHER COLLABORATE WITH RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS OR TO RECRUIT SPECIFICALLY TRAINED INDIVIDUALS.
"KNOW-HOW" AND "KNOW-WHO" ARE MORE DIFFICULT SKILLS TO TRANSFER BECAUSE THEY ARE BASED ON PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE.
"KNOW-HOW" IS TYPICALLY LEARNED IN APPRENTICESHIP SITUATIONS - IT INVOLVES LEARNING BY OBSERVING AND BY DOING - AND TO A LARGE EXTENT IT IS CONCENTRATED WITHIN INDIVIDUAL FIRMS. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT REASONS FOR THE FORMATION OF INDUSTRIAL NETWORKS HAS BEEN TO ALLOW FIRMS TO EXCHANGE AND SHARE KNOW-HOW.
"KNOW-WHO" IS DEVELOPED THROUGH NETWORKING AT THE INDIVIDUAL AND FIRM LEVEL AND ALSO TENDS TO BE CONCENTRATED WITHIN FIRMS. HOWEVER, IT HAS BEEN SUGGESTED THAT ONE REASON WHY FIRMS INVEST IN BASIC RESEARCH MIGHT BE TO DEVELOP LINKS WITH ACADEMIC EXPERTS. TAPPING INTO OTHERS’ CREATIVE AND INNOVATIVE CAPABILITIES AND CONTACTS WOULD ALLOW FIRMS TO FURTHER DEVELOP THEIR OWN "KNOW-HOW".
THE SHARING OF INFORMATION IS PIVOTAL TO ADVANCING BOTH "KNOW-HOW" AND "KNOW-WHO".
THE EXIGENCIES OF GLOBALISATION AND RAPID ADVANCES IN INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES ARE CONTINUING TO BREAK DOWN BARRIERS TO THE TRANSFER OF INFORMATION BETWEEN BOTH FIRMS AND ECONOMIES.
ONE OF THESE BARRIERS, FOR EXAMPLE, IS THAT DIFFERENT COUNTRIES HAVE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF "KNOWLEDGE RELATED" INFRASTRUCTURE. ONE OF THE AIMS BEHIND A GSDI IS TO BREAK DOWN THIS BARRIER BY STANDARDISING THE GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE IN ALL ECONOMIES. SIMILAR INITIATIVES ARE ALSO BEING PURSUED IN OTHER AREAS.
IN MOST CASES THE STANDARDISATION OF INFRASTRUCTURE IS WELCOMED BY INDUSTRY BECAUSE IT IMPROVES EFFICIENCY BY REMOVING BARRIERS TO INFORMATION TRANSFER. THE QUESTION IS NOT USUALLY WHETHER STANDARDISATION OF INFRASTRUCTURE IS DESIRABLE, BUT WHICH IS THE MOST APPROPRIATE STANDARD.
IT ALSO NEEDS TO BE KEPT IN MIND THAT EVEN IN COUNTRIES WITH A WELL DEVELOPED KNOWLEDGE BASE, REAL TECHNICAL PROGRESS WILL BE DETERMINED BY THE RATE AT WHICH NEW TECHNOLOGIES ARE DIFFUSED AND EXPLOITED.
FOR BOTH FIRMS AND NATIONS THEN, THE KEY ISSUES ARE TO ENCOURAGE THE GROWTH OF KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMIES AND TO DEVELOP STRONG NETWORKING ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE EXCHANGE AND DIFFUSION OF INFORMATION. THESE ARE ALSO THE PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING A GSDI.
CLEARLY THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ACHIEVING KNOWLEDGE BASED GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IS SHARED BETWEEN INDUSTRY AND GOVERNMENT.
GOVERNMENTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING THAT THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN PLACE WILL DELIVER A QUALITY WORKFORCE, FOR ENSURING THAT A BASIC LEVEL OF RESEARCH IS BEING UNDERTAKEN, AND FOR ESTABLISHING AN APPROPRIATE LEGAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE APPLICATION OF STANDARDS.
INDUSTRY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR DEVELOPING THE WORKFORCE THROUGH ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, FOR DEVELOPING NETWORKING ARRANGEMENTS, AND FOR UNDERTAKING INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC RESEARCH. SOME WOULD ARGUE, HOWEVER, THAT GOVERNMENTS SHOULD ALSO HAVE A ROLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE QUESTION OF THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT BRINGS ME TO THE SECOND PART OF MY TALK.
ONE OF THE CHALLENGES FACED BY GOVERNMENTS IN DEVELOPING AN APPROPRIATE INDUSTRY POLICY IS TO COME TO TERMS WITH THE INCREASINGLY CHALLENGING ENVIRONMENT FACED BY BUSINESS.
IT IS PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT FOR GOVERNMENTS TO UNDERSTAND THE EMERGING DRIVERS OF GROWTH AND TO SET IN PLACE POLICIES WHICH WILL ALLOW INDUSTRY TO MAXIMISE ITS CAPABILITIES.
WITH THIS IN MIND, GOVERNMENTS WORLD-WIDE HAVE BEEN RE-EXAMINING THE APPROACHES THEY HAVE TRADITIONALLY TAKEN TO INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT. THEY TOO HAVE HAD TO LOOK FOR MORE INNOVATIVE AND PRODUCTIVE WAYS OF MAKING SURE THEIR INDUSTRIES ARE WORLD CLASS AND ABLE TO MEET THE CHALLENGE OF STRONG INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION.
IN AUSTRALIA, FOR EXAMPLE, INDUSTRY POLICY HAS BEEN MOVING AWAY FROM INDUSTRY SPECIFIC ASSISTANCE, LIKE TARIFFS AND SUBSIDIES, AND TOWARDS MORE FLEXIBLE AND FORWARD LOOKING MEASURES WHICH WILL IMPROVE THE COMPETITIVENESS OF BUSINESS GENERALLY.
IN PARTICULAR, GOVERNMENT HAS MOVED AWAY FROM INITIATIVES WHICH INVOLVE DIRECT INTERVENTION IN MARKETS AND TOWARDS POLICIES WHICH ENCOURAGE INDUSTRY TO BE MORE INNOVATIVE, FLEXIBLE AND ADAPTABLE.
OUR EFFORTS HAVE FOCUSED ON A NUMBER OF BROAD OBJECTIVES, NAMELY:
AT THE NEXT LEVEL, THE CHALLENGE IS HOW BEST TO CAPITALISE ON AREAS OF COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGE IN EACH SECTOR OF THE ECONOMY.
THE NEWLY CREATED PORTFOLIO OF INDUSTRY, SCIENCE AND RESOURCES IS A GOOD ILLUSTRATION OF THESE CHALLENGES.
TRADITIONALLY, AUSTRALIA’S ADVANTAGE HAS BEEN IN INDUSTRIES THAT HAVE DEPENDED HEAVILY ON NATURAL RESOURCES, LIKE AGRICULTURE AND MINERALS.
HOWEVER, THERE IS ALREADY EVIDENCE THAT OUR COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGE IS SHIFTING: THE COMPOSITION OF EXPORTS IS CHANGING AND HIGHER VALUE ADDED EXPORTS ARE INCREASING.
IT APPEARS THAT, IN LINE WITH OTHER OECD ECONOMIES, AUSTRALIA’S COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGE IS INCREASINGLY MOVING TOWARDS INDUSTRIES THAT RELY ON THE ACCUMULATION AND APPLICATION OF SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE.
IF WE ARE TO CONTINUE TO REAP THE BENEFITS OF OUR EXISTING ADVANTAGES, AND TO MAXIMISE OUR OPPORTUNITIES IN NEW AREAS, WE WILL NEED TO DEVELOP GOOD AND FLEXIBLE POLICIES THAT WILL BE RELEVANT ACROSS ALL SECTORS - RESOURCES, MANUFACTURING AND SERVICES.
WE MUST PAY INCREASING ATTENTION TO ISSUES SUCH AS PRODUCT AND PROCESS INNOVATION AND CUSTOMISATION. WE WILL ALSO NEED TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT TO ENSURE THAT IT IS CONDUCIVE TO GROWTH, AND TO ENCOURAGE INCREASED FLEXIBILITY AND SKILLS IN THE LABOUR MARKET.
WE ARE ALSO IN THE PROCESS OF RE-EVALUATING THE ADEQUACY OF OUR RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND TRAINING INFRASTRUCTURE IN LIGHT OF THE DEMANDS BEING PLACED ON BUSINESS BY THE SHIFT TOWARDS A KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY.
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT OUR INDUSTRIES ARE NOT ONLY INNOVATIVE IN THEIR OWN RIGHT, BUT ALSO ABLE TO ACCESS, ADOPT AND ADAPT TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPED ELSEWHERE.
THE ISSUES THAT I HAVE RAISED - THE CHALLENGES PRESENTED BY GLOBALISATION, THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES, THE CONCEPT OF KNOWLEDGE AND ITS DIFFUSION AS DRIVERS OF GROWTH, AND THE APPROPRIATE ROLES OF INDUSTRY AND GOVERNMENT - ARE ENCAPSULATED IN A GSDI.
SOME OF THE ISSUES I HAVE RAISED IN MY TALK THIS MORNING HAVE PARTICULAR RELEVANCE TO THE DECISIONS YOU WILL TAKE LATER IN THE CONFERENCE ON GSDI IMPLEMENTATION.
FIRSTLY, IN TERMS OF FACILITATING DEVELOPMENT OF KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMIES, THE GSDI SHOULD AIM TO:
SECONDLY, IN TERMS OF BREAKING DOWN THE BARRIERS CAUSED BY DIFFERENT COUNTRIES HAVING DIFFERENT LEVELS OF "KNOWLEDGE RELATED" INFRASTRUCTURE, THE GSDI SHOULD AIM TO FACILITATE IMPROVED INFORMATION TRANSFER THROUGH ADOPTION OF APPROPRIATE GLOBAL STANDARDS.
THIRDLY, THE GSDI SHOULD AIM TO INCREASE RATES OF DIFFUSION AND EXPLOITATION OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES. THIS MIGHT INVOLVE, FOR EXAMPLE, GREATER USE OF SPATIAL KNOWLEDGE IN PRODUCTS AND SERVICES.
FOURTHLY, THE GSDI SHOULD AIM TO ASSIST GOVERNMENTS IN THEIR EFFORTS TO DEVELOP WORLD CLASS INDUSTRIES AND COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGES IN DIFFERENT SECTORS OF THEIR ECONOMIES.
THE GLOBAL SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURE IS STRIVING TO MEET AN IDEAL THAT WILL, IF SUCCESFUL CONTRIBUTE TO THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY AND THEREFORE TO GROWTH IN THIS AREA.
IT APPEARS AS IF THE ENABLING TECHNOLOGY REQUIRED FOR THE GSDI IS, BY AND LARGE, AVAILABLE NOW OR UNDER DEVELOPMENT. FOR EXAMPLE, MR AL GORE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, IN HIS A RECENT PAPER ENTITLED "THE DIGITAL EARTH: UNDERSTANDING OUR PLANET IN THE 21ST CENTURY", REFERS TO:
THERE ARE CHALLENGES RELATING TO INTERNATIONAL POLICY ISSUES THAT GOVERNMENTS MUST ADDRESS TO FREE UP THE ACCESS TO GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION. POLICIES ADDRESSING THE ISSUE OF DATA SHARING NEED TO BE DEVELOPED.
IMPEDIMENTS TO SHARING OF INFORMATION WILL OBVIOUSLY SLOW GROWTH OF KNOWLEDGE BASED INDUSTRIES THAT ARE VALUE ADDING TO SPATIAL INFORMATION. AS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED INDUSTRY WILL WELCOME A HIGH DEGREE OF STANDARDISATION IN INFRASTRUCTURES. THE GSDI WOULD PROVIDE A GREATER BENEFIT TO INDUSTRY AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IF THIS STANDARDISATION CAN BE ACHIEVED.
THE GREATER CHALLENGE LIES IN USING THESE ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES IN WAYS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO GLOBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIAL WELL-BEING. THE GSDI CAN PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN ACHIEVING THIS OUTCOME IF IT IS IMPLEMENTED IN A WAY THAT FACILITATES THE MOVE TO A GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY.
I WOULD LIKE TO FINISH ON THIS NOTE AND THROUGH YOU, MR CHAIRMAN, ASK WHETHER THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS.