The proposal, "Bilateral Dialogue on Symmetrical Access to Precompetitive Research in the U.S. and Japan," requests funding for a two-day bilateral working group meeting in Honolulu, HI between researchers sponsored by the National Research Council and the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science. Requested funds would cover preparation for the meeting, the costs of travel, per diem and organizational expenses of the meeting for the NRC group only. The purpose of the meeting and its preparatory research is to compare and contrast the nature of precompetitive research in Japan and the United States in the specific fields of biotechnology and optoelectr- onics. It is further designed to assess the conditions of foreign access to researchers and facilities involved in these fields in the two countries and to evaluate whether access in the two countries is "comparable." SIGNIFICANCE: The Deputy Director, NSF and the Director, International Programs Division, have reviewed and recommended funding of this proposal for its timeliness and direct relevance to the suggestion of the Task Force on Access (a standing body under the U.S.-Japan S&T Agreement) that U.S. study teams be funded by the U.S. government to evaluate conditions of access by U.S. researchers to Japanese S&T in those fields enumerated in the U.S.-Japan S&T Agreement. The government-furnished portion of the project costs will be cost- shared with the National Institutes of Health.
