Science, technology and innovation systems: approaching the roles and challenges of state research support agencies in Brazil

Abstract

This article addresses some key institutional aspects of the history of state research support foundations in Brazil (FAPs, in the national acronym). It also assesses relevant possibilities linked to their subnational system – a structure that emerged in the previous three decades –, considering the current dilemmas that result from the lack of a more proactive strategy in the field. This is an exploratory research based on a triangulation-methodology that combines field literature, a review of official documents, data production and institutional experience. This contribution is not focused on the current aspects and challenges of science and research in the country – a field undergoing an acute funding crisis and facing the threat of serious disruptions. Instead, it examines the trends and societal changes pointed out by the recent literature. It is a reflection on the country’s responses to these challenges in recent years and a discussion of perceptions of what may take place in the near future, based on interviews with representatives of key subnational actors from the field. This is an effort to conceive an agenda which, nonetheless, will only be feasible with a change in the country’s current political context.