Foreign researchers locally hunt material and gather fame
At a cursory glance, there is nothing wrong with the research. The scientific article ticks all the right boxes and should get us all atwitter. The research looks at how fire management in the Kruger National Park is promoting biodiversity. Tick. It is published in one of the world’s leading academic journals, Science. Tick. This means it has been peer-reviewed. Tick. It makes SA look good. Tick.
But this piece of research has one major, irredeemable flaw: it does not have a single South African or African author.
This is not an isolated incident, but rather the latest in what is commonplace in a country as naturally rich as SA: foreign scientists come in, use our resources to get published and build a name out of it — with no benefit accruing to local scientists, many of whom have dedicated their careers to the same subject.
A journal like Science makes careers. Along with the likes of Nature, the Lancet and Cell, if a researcher manages to get a foot in the door at one of these elite journals, it changes the trajectory of their careers. It is not uncommon for a media release to be dedicated to the fact that a researcher got into one of these journals — often the research itself is secondary to the status the publication affords.
This is because it is difficult for South Africans — and other African scientists and researchers — to make the cut. And this is often not because of the quality of their science.
I know a researcher who reviews for high-impact journals — not those in the golden club, but important journals nonetheless.
The researcher told me they judge research from African countries before they read the paper.
The paper, “Using fire to promote biodiversity”, has several authors from Spain and Australia. Off the top of my head, I can think of a handful of South African researchers who are working on that subject. One or two of them have been published in this golden club of journals, so they are not unknown in the field.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that international scientists can’t engage with South African science. But it is wrong for them to think it is okay to do that without collaborating with locals who are working on the same topic.
In a country with a small science system and small budget, this parachuting research effectively deprives local scientists of the ability to play on the international stage. Without collaboration, it is just another form of exploiting our resources and using what they have gleaned to further their own interests.
This is not a charity requirement: locals have intricate knowledge of systems and fields that international researchers do not. This knowledge is hard-won after years of slog in the trenches.
THIS PARACHUTING RESEARCH EFFECTIVELY DEPRIVES LOCAL SCIENTISTS OF THE ABILITY TO PLAY ON THE GLOBAL STAGE
It is not that South African scientists are not up to the challenge or lack the skills. According to the latest National Advisory Council on Innovation statistics, between 2010 and 2014, South Africans collaborated on more than 12,400 academic papers with North Americans and almost 19,000 with Europeans.
Yet international researchers arrogantly think it is acceptable to rock up in another country to do research without chatting to the locals. It’s just plain rude.
But perhaps the most frustrating thing about this latest piece of research is that most South Africans will either not know about it (because we don’t get to hear trumpets announcing that a South African got published in one of the golden club) or will not be able to afford it. The article is behind a paywall that charges in dollars.