Two thousand two hundred twenty-nine researchers affiliated with the Basic Science Society Council urged the Lee Jae-myung government to restore the research ecosystem. The Basic Science Society Council released a statement to this effect in front of the National Assembly’s main building in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, on this day.
The Basic Science Society Council is composed of major basic science societies, including the Korean Mathematical Society, the Korean Physical Society, the Korean Chemical Society, the Korea Geoscience Union, the Korean Association of Biological Sciences, and the Korean Statistical Society.
The Basic Science Society Council argued that to restore the basic science ecosystem, the number of research projects must be restored. According to the Basic Science Society Council, the number of personnel willing to conduct research increased from about 27,000 in 2021 to over 56,000 this year, more than doubling. However, the number of projects decreased from 15,183 to 11,829 during the same period.
The Basic Science Society Council pointed out, “In fact, many laboratories that need to conduct basic research are facing extinction due to the mass exodus of graduate students and postdoctoral researchers.” They argue that a minimum of 30,000 projects is necessary to restore this.
The Basic Science Society Council stated, “Starting next year, the number of supported projects should be increased by more than 6,000 each year, so that by 2028, at least more than 30,000 research projects can be supported,” and urged that measures be taken to actively restore the basic science research ecosystem.