Chemistry-Related Transnational Mobility and Global Talent Innovation

Chapter 2

Downloaded by CORNELL UNIV on October 15, 2016 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date (Web): August 17, 2016 | doi: 10.1021/bk-2016-1219.ch002

Global Landscape: Chemistry-Related Transnational Mobility and Global Talent Innovation Judith L. Benham* 3M Company (Retired), 3773 Village Court, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55125-9365, United States *E-mail: [email protected].

The U.S. has been a global leader in the fields of chemistry and chemical engineering due to its commitment to and strength in research and innovation. Today, global economics are driving changes in chemical enterprises. We see expanded outsourcing of chemical manufacturing overseas, increased competition from abroad, and declines in research and infrastructure funding domestically. These combined forces challenge our ability to generate new opportunities to sustain our global competitive advantage. In many other countries, scholars have long viewed international experience as essential to professional success. This not the case in the U.S. ACS member chemists and chemical engineers are increasingly engaging in transnational collaboration in their professional activities, and we need to promote this trend to strengthen and sustain U.S. competitiveness. An internationally engaged U.S. scientific community is critical to building the collaborative teams and networks that are needed to tackle the scientific and societal challenges of our time.

Trends in Global Research and Development The global chemistry enterprise has been changing in the past 20 years. Whereas the U.S. has been a global leader in chemistry and chemical engineering in the past, many other countries are now investing heavily in natural sciences, © 2016 American Chemical Society Cheng et al.; Chemistry without Borders: Careers, Research, and Entrepreneurship ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2016.


and their efforts are making an impact. An illustration is provided in Figure 1 for the R&D expenditures for several regions of the world in science and engineering (1). Globally, research and development expenditures totaled roughly $1.435 trillion. U.S. and European Union (EU) are still spending a lot of money in R&D. However, East and Southeast Asia have notably increased their R&D investment.

Figure 1. R&D expenditures for United States, EU and 10 Asian economies in 1996-2009. Source: National Science Foundation (1).

In view of the changing pattern of R&D expenditure, perhaps it is not surprising that changes are found in the growth of the number of science and engineering researchers in various countries. Figure 2 provides the average annual growth rate in the number of researchers in selected countries or regions (1). The growth in China and South Korea is particularly notable. Citation data (2) suggest that the influence of U.S.-authored articles remains quite high, but has dropped over the past 10 years. In 2012, articles with U.S. authors were among the top 1% most-cited articles about 74% more often than expected, based on the U.S. share of all articles, compared with 85% in 2002. Between 2002 and 2012, EU-authored articles, on average, became more influential. In 2002, they were cited 21% less often than expected among the top 1% most-cited articles; in 2012, the EU improved to 6% less often. In 2012, China’s share of highly cited articles was 37% less than expected. 18 Cheng et al.; Chemistry without Borders: Careers, Research, and Entrepreneurship ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2016.


Figure 2. Average annual growth in number of science and engineering researchers. Source: National Science Foundation (1).

As the world continues to become more globalized, the number of international research collaborations has increased across the globe (2). Internationally coauthored articles grew from 16% to 25% from 1977 to 2012. Between 2002 and 2012, the number of research articles with international coauthors has increased across the globe. In the United States, 35% of its articles were coauthored with institutions in other countries in 2012, compared with 25% in 2002 (Figure 3).

Figure 3. Share of science and engineering articles internationally co-authred, by selected country: 2002 and 2012. Source: National Science Foundation (2). 19 Cheng et al.; Chemistry without Borders: Careers, Research, and Entrepreneurship ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2016.

International collaboration has a strong, positive influence on journal placement and citation performance in most disciplines (2, 3). As the number of countries represented in an author’s list increases, articles are more likely to be published in journals with higher impact factor (3). Though the impact international collaboration has on the individual discipline was different, the overall positive trend was clear. The role of journal placement has a disproportionate effect on citations accrued. Citation performance, however, draws on the scientific community as a whole and can be viewed as a more democratic means of assessing impact.


Global Skills in Demand In order to better understand the supply/demand picture of global business, Oxford Economics carried out a detailed survey of 352 human resources professionals around the world in 2012 (4). Among the skills being surveyed were digital, agile thinking, interpersonal and communication, and global operating skills. With respect to global operating skills, five competencies were found to be desirable: 1) ability to manage diverse employees (49.1%), 2) understanding international markets (45.7%), 3) ability to work in multiple overseas locations (45.7%), 4) foreign language skills (37.5%), and 5) cultural sensitivity (36.1%) (4). As noted earlier, in science and engineering it is useful to collaborate with international scientists, and these five competencies are consistent with this understanding. Reflecting the need of businesses to expand worldwide, the three competencies with the highest ranking are the facility to manage diverse employees, the understanding of international market, and the ability to work in multiple overseas locations.

ACS International Center In view of the increasingly globalization of the chemistry enterprise and the desirability of international research and exchange experience, ACS launched the ACS International CenterTM in December 2012 (5). It was designed to provide curated information on global research, education, and exchange funding programs. It encourages, engages, and supports international exchange of chemists at all levels (i.e. undergraduate, graduate, faculty, post-doctoral, and professional levels) by building strategic alliances and partnerships between ACS and chemical institutions abroad. The ACS International Center is designed to be virtual (with place-based activities), providing coordination and direction upon four foundational “pillars” (Figure 4). It aims to create an information clearinghouse for chemical sciences and engineering research collaboration and exchange. It develops and disseminates persuasive evidence of the value of international collaboration. It collects and disseminates best practices to catalyze innovation in the global chemical enterprise. Lastly, it develops and implements best practices for science-based input to domestic and international policy. 20 Cheng et al.; Chemistry without Borders: Careers, Research, and Entrepreneurship ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2016.


Figure 4. Design and long-term view of the ACS International Center. Four pillars will be implemented as resources are available.

The ACS International Center features listings of over 600 scientific collaboration and research opportunities between hundreds of funding organizations across 17 regions worldwide. Live events and archived webinars from international organizations, with tips on when and how to apply for programs and funding, are available on the site. The International Center offers tips on places where you can meet experts to help guide your international career, along with networking opportunities for connecting with peers, research mentors and program officers. The website hosts a plethora of information on scholarships, travel awards, internships, and other programs with the mission of providing this information to students and postdocs seeking an international career. It also issues a periodic newsletter containing updates on international programs, events and resources. The ACS International Center is blessed with the participation of a large number of Affiliates. They include The American Friends of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), The Sao Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Fulbright New Zealand, the NL Agency, EURAXESS, the German Research Foundation (DFG), Inserm, the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI), the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), the Embassy of the Republic of Singapore, the Luso-American Development Foundation, the Boren Awards, the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), ConRuhr USA, The Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES), Contact Singapore, the London International Youth Science Forum (LIYSF), Partners of the Americas, the Embassy of Italy in the US, the Embassy of 21 Cheng et al.; Chemistry without Borders: Careers, Research, and Entrepreneurship ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2016.

France in the US, the China Environment Forum (CEF), the United State – India Educational Foundation (USIEF), the Inter-American Foundation, The American Association of University Women (AAUW), The Global Language Network (GLN), and NAFSA, the association of international educators. A major redesign of the ACS International Center site was completed in October 2015. Usage remains high. The International Center seems to provide an excellent service to scientists and students interested in international education and exchange.


Conclusions As the chemistry enterprise continues to change, it is increasingly important for scientists and engineers to think global, to understand the international market, to manage diverse workforce, and to seek collaborations. The ACS Internatioal Center is very useful resource for anyone interested in collaborative research with international colleagues. It is also an excellent way to search for international exchange and educational opportunities.

References 1. 2. 3.

4.

5.

National Science Foundation. Science and Engineering Indicators; 2012. National Science Foundation, 2014. http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind14/ index.cfm/chapter-5/c5s4.htm (accessed March 23, 2016). Smith, M. J.; Weinberger, C.; Bruna, E. M.; Allesina, S. The Scientific Impact of Nations: Journal Placement and Citation Performance. PLoS One 2014, 9 (10), e109195 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0109195. Oxford Economics, Global Talent 2021; https://www.oxfordeconomics.com/ Media/Default/Thought%20Leadership/global-talent-2021.pdf (accessed March 23, 2016). ACS International CenterTM. www.acs.org/ic (accessed March 23, 2016).

22 Cheng et al.; Chemistry without Borders: Careers, Research, and Entrepreneurship ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2016.

Chemistry-Related Transnational Mobility and Global Talent Innovation

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