The website of the Government of the Russian Federation published information about Mikhail Mishustin‘s meeting with Vladimir Bespalov, Director General of the Russian Science Foundation. The priorities of the foundation‘s work and tasks for the near future were discussed, including issues of grant support for scientific research in new regions and the popularization of science among young people.

From the transcript:

M.Mishustin: Dear Vladimir Alexandrovich, you recently became the head of the Russian Science Foundation, which provides grant support to our scientists and conducts a comprehensive examination of their projects.

You yourself are a person who is no stranger to science and deep research. They were professionally engaged in electronics. I am well aware of a number of your works. And I am sure that such versatile skills will help you in implementing the functions of the Russian Science Foundation. And, most importantly, in solving the main task – achieving industrial, financial, and technological sovereignty – which was set by our President. There is nowhere without modern science here. In the message, the President said this so that we could bring it to 2% of GDP is our investment in research and development. This will also help to form an order for science, for research, which will then need to be integrated into existing enterprises, into the Russian industry.

Tell us about the priorities of the fund and how you plan its further development.

V. Bespalov: Last year, the Russian Science Foundation summed up the results of its 10–year activity. The Foundation has become a leading tool for grant financing of basic exploratory research. The Foundation has not only achieved impressive results in the form of a large number of applications reviewed, projects supported, and sums awarded, but also, most importantly, it has been trusted by the scientific community and by the state to distribute grant support.

The foundation has built a system of expertise, which is currently recognized as a benchmark. And this has been repeatedly confirmed on many public platforms. More than 7 thousand scientists in 81 regions of our country are constantly in touch with the foundation as experts, members of expert commissions, scientific and technological council. With the support of the Russian Science Foundation, scientists are achieving significant scientific results, which are published in leading highly rated journals.

Against the background of a general decrease in publication activity, the fund‘s grantees maintain the quality and volume of publications. Over the past 10 years, we have observed an increased role of the foundation in such areas as the logistics of research, the development of research competencies of scientists, the competitiveness of research teams, and career growth. Thanks to the Government‘s decisions on the amount of the property contribution to The Russian Science Foundation in 2023, the foundation continued to increase the volume of support for science in Of Russia.

The number of funded projects amounted to 11 thousand. These are competitive projects aimed at gaining new knowledge. And of course, the basis for their further practical use.

In December 2022, the President of the Russian Federation made a decision to improve the system of grant support for applied works. And already in 2023, the fund financed 60 projects, having previously prepared the tender documentation, creating a new scientific and technological council. All projects are aimed at creating scientific and technological foundations that ensure the development of new products. The result of these projects is new technologies, samples, layouts of new products. This type of support has aroused great interest not only from the scientific community, but also from enterprises in the real sector of the economy. 200 technological proposals from 122 organizations took part in the technology partner competition, most of which are enterprises of the real sector of the economy. The Fund supported 56 technological proposals from 36 enterprises. Their participation is an essential element of the implementation of these projects and a guarantee that the stated results will be achieved. The Russian Science Foundation‘s plans for the coming year are to maintain a high level of grant support for basic research. This is the basic element of science and the future of our applied research. And of course, we will increase the volume of research.

M.Mishustin: The Government pays great attention to supporting scientific research. In particular, new installations of the megascience class are being built so that research teams can work there. We have created more than a hundred youth laboratories and centers for the collective use of equipment. And we have updated more than half of the instrument base of leading scientific organizations. We have a lot of talent in the country. And of course, places for the application of forces must exist somewhere nearby. This also applies to our new regions, where there is also great scientific potential and I am sure that scientists and specialists could work effectively there using all the tools provided, including by the Russian Science Foundation. How does the foundation interact with scientists and developers who work in different parts of the country and who may have brilliant ideas?

V. Bespalov: In 2023, grants were received by teams of scientific organizations from 81 subjects of the Russian Federation, including from new regions. The distribution of projects generally corresponds to the distribution of scientific potential across the country. Each project is a separate team, including doctors of sciences – about 15% of them, candidates of sciences – 40% and researchers without a degree. This is a very balanced composition of research teams, which allows us to ensure the high quality of scientific research. From the very beginning, the Foundation has focused on supporting young researchers. And since 2017, the RNF has launched separate competitions for young researchers. In 2023, more than 45 thousand young researchers under the age of 39 worked as part of the teams. This is 70% of all performers. The figure is, of course, impressive. Among them are 10,000 graduate students and 8,000 students. All of them have published their results in leading scientific journals. For the spatial development of Russia, the effective use of the potential of the regions on a priority basis, the Russian Science Foundation organized regional competitions with the leadership of the regions. Their main focus is, of course, the needs of the regions themselves, the social development of the regions. 61 regions participate in these contests. Plus the federal territory of Sirius. The total amount of funding for these contests is more than 8 billion rubles. The foundation is currently working with the Ministry of Education and Science on the possibility of new regions participating in these competitions.

M.Mishustin: It is very important that people, especially our children and young people, know more about the achievements of Russian science. Vladimir Alexandrovich, have you read the Kvant magazine?

V. Bespalov: Sure. It was my desk magazine.

M.Mishustin: And mine, too. And I know that a huge number of people who came to science in one way or another were brought up on popular science literature. And do you remember the program “Obvious – incredible“?

V. Bespalov: Very good.

M.Mishustin: Sergei Kapitsa led it. And in a completely unique way, he formed an interest in a number of areas of science. Why am I talking about this? Scientists are now making a very large number of discoveries, and they are significant and systematic. But somehow they began to talk less about it. But it is very important to talk about it, to popularize science. As an opportunity, including the realization of the ambitions of young people, in order for them to want to come there. And this is impossible without leaders, without people who convincingly show certain scientific achievements and how they are then used in practice, integrated into our industry. I would like to know what the foundation is doing in this direction.

V. Bespalov: Popularization of scientific achievements is one of the priority areas of the foundation‘s activities, fixed by the President of Russia in the Development strategies of the Russian Science Foundation. The Foundation has always paid attention not only to supporting projects, but also to informing a wide audience about scientific results, prospects, social significance and the researchers themselves through its information resources and through interaction with the media. We issue quarterly reports on the best projects supported by us, an annual report, and thematic reports.

M.Mishustin: Vladimir Alexandrovich, do you think young people read your reports?

V. Bespalov: No. It’s a different story with young people.

M.Mishustin: And my question was about that, too. How to popularize it? I want us to think together about how to reach out to schoolchildren and young people. Maybe we should work with the Ministry of Education, with colleagues. We need to think together about how to do this

. V. Bespalov: I must say that universities already have quantoriums and technology parks. Through this tool, scientists have the opportunity to communicate with schoolchildren.

M.Mishustin: Vladimir Alexandrovich, promise me to think about what the Russian Science Foundation can do to popularize science and scientific achievements among schoolchildren and young people. It is necessary to use all the tools that the state has for this. The Russian Scientific Foundation is a carrier of knowledge. After all, you are proud of your expertise, which you can do. It is important that expertise helps researchers create products and technologies that will be primarily in demand by our enterprises and needed by people.

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