News and commentary

This op-ed by Heather Munroe-Blum, chair of AUCC’s Standing Advisory Committee on University Research and principal of McGill University, was published in the Montreal Gazette.

Last fall, Prime Minister Stephen Harper put it about as directly as it could be said: “You can’t build a modern economy without investing in world-class research.”

World-class research, and the preparation of our citizens to succeed in a globally oriented and complex world, starts at Canada’s universities. It produces knowledge that transforms the ways we think, work and live. It connects us to fellow innovators near home and across the globe. It also pays tangible dividends.
 
Since 1999, more than 1,200 companies have been spun out of discoveries made at Canadian universities – and our graduates have used the knowledge gained over the course of their degrees to create thousands more. Each year, our universities conduct close to $1 billion in direct collaboration with the private sector and another billion with the not-for-profit sector. Overall, the annual economic impact of university research exceeds $60 billion. McGill University’s contribution toward the development and dissemination of knowledge in Quebec alone, for example, was estimated at $3.2 billion in 2008. And every year, more than 200,000 students graduate and go to work in Canadian organizations, large and small, helping them to prosper.
 
Over the past 10 years, and notwithstanding the clear need for real-time austerity measures, government investment in university research has increased by more than 80 per cent. In keeping pace with the growth rate of investment of other countries, the government signals a sustained national priority of achieving high-quality university research and an investment in educated, well-prepared people.
 
The longer-term perspective on research and innovation evident in Budget 2012 is encouraging. Notably, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s budget provides ongoing program funding for the federal granting agencies Genome Canada and the Canada Foundation for Innovation.
 
This funding is crucial to developing knowledge, global awareness, creativity and innovation, and will support research that is at the root of Canada’s health and successful growth, allowing our top university talent to create new ideas and breakthroughs that private and not-for-profit sectors can develop into products and services.
 
What is less known is the vital role that federal grants play in developing the highly qualified personnel at the core of our innovation society. Up to three-quarters of the budget of most grants fund salaries for graduate students and research technicians. Programs also provide students and organizations with opportunities to connect in the workplace, promoting knowledge exchange. The expansion of the Industrial Research and Development Internship program for master’s students will provide Canada’s small-and mediumsized enterprises with increased access to cutting-edge research skills and will serve to foster knowledge mobility and a stronger culture of innovation for companies that may not be able to otherwise afford this calibre of talent.
 
Through Canada’s firm commitment to research, we are bringing the energy and expertise of our universities to bear on problems that really matter – whether creating more effective biomedical devices, providing policy advice to regions transitioning to democracy or helping communities devise sustainable solutions to nutrition problems.

Research in the social sciences and humanities allows universities to provide Canadians with the tools necessary to navigate through an increasingly complex world, where intercultural fluency, understanding of the role of demographics and insight into human development are key to achieving and maintaining healthy communities and civil society.
 
Canada’s health and future growth and prosperity will depend on our ability to innovate – that much is certain. Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for Science and Technology, summed it up nicely in a speech last month: “We have what it takes to build a competitive advantage in the global economy that will result in jobs, growth and prosperity. We just have to be bold!”
 
Canada’s universities, our students and professors, are taking up that challenge and, with the sustained and growing commitment of government to high-quality research and scholarship, and Canada’s increasingly deep, international engagement, we will be bold indeed.

OTTAWA – Canada’s universities welcome the smart, strategic investments in research and innovation contained in today’s federal budget.

“In the face of tough fiscal choices, the government showed leadership by continuing its investments in research, innovation, research infrastructure and university-private sector collaborations,” says Stephen Toope, chair of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada’s board of directors and president of the University of British Columbia. “These investments will build a stronger future for our society and economy.”

In a climate where some federal government departments are seeing reductions, the federal budget provides ongoing funding for research and innovation through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council to enhance their support of industry-academic research partnership programs. These investments will preserve current levels of basic research and scholarships funding, securing Canada’s position as a global leader in research and discovery.

An additional $500 million over five years for the Canada Foundation for Innovation reflects the importance that high-quality research infrastructure plays in attracting and retaining top students and researchers from around the world. In addition, the budget includes measures to give graduate students valuable research experience in the private sector – an initiative called for by AUCC.

Other strategic investments in research and higher education include:

• $60 million for Genome Canada to launch a new applied research competition in the area of human health, and to sustain the Science and Technology Centres until 2014–15,
• $40 million over two years to support CANARIE’s operation of Canada’s ultra-high speed research network,
• $6.5 million over three years for a research project at McMaster University to evaluate team-based approaches to health care delivery,
• $17 million over two years to further advance the development of alternatives to existing isotope production technologies, and
•  $10 million over two years to the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research to link Canadians to global research networks.

“The budget provides new opportunities for talented graduate students to gain research experiences in companies across Canada,” says AUCC president Paul Davidson. “We’re also pleased the budget recognizes the importance of deepening international education and research linkages.”

The government is also investing in knowledge transfer and commercialization with $24 million over two years and $12 million per year thereafter to make the Business-Led Networks of Centres of Excellence program permanent. This initiative supports research on business priorities by teams of private-sector researchers and academics.

In addition, the budget contains funding to improve educational outcomes for Canada’s Aboriginal people, including $275 million to support First Nations education on reserve. This is a shared priority, and Canada’s universities will continue to work with Aboriginal organizations, the Government of Canada and private sector partners to ensure that our growing population of Aboriginal youth has access to high quality postsecondary experiences.

AUCC is the national voice of Canada’s universities, representing 95 Canadian public and private not-for-profit universities.

Watch the video of Paul Davidson’s response to budget 2012 »

-30-

For interviews and information, please contact:

Helen Murphy
Manager, Communications
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
613.563.1236, ext. 238
Cell: 613.608.8749
hmurphy@aucc.ca

Mélanie Béchard
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
Tel: 613.563.3961, ext. 306
Cell: 613.884.8401
mbechard@aucc.ca

OTTAWA – Canada’s universities are preparing to welcome thousands of new Brazilian students through the Canadian component of Brazil’s ambitious Science Without Borders scholarship program. Through these scholarships, more than 100,000 Brazilians will study, undertake internships and conduct research in selected countries around the world over a four-year period.

The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada is collaborating with the Canadian Bureau for International Education to bring Brazilian university students to Canada. Through the CBIE/AUCC program and other agreements between Canadian institutions and the Brazilian government, an estimated 12,000 Science without Borders scholars are expected to come to Canada between now and 2016.

“Canadian universities will be welcoming scholarship recipients to an exceptional learning experience that is research-enriched and globally engaged,” said Paul Davidson, president of AUCC. “Attracting students and researchers to Canada through the Science Without Borders program is a key element of Canada’s efforts to build strong educational and research partnerships with Brazil now and in the future.”

In 2011, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff announced the plan to provide 75,000 scholarships for Brazilian undergraduate and graduate students to study abroad. Brazil’s private sector then stepped in to fund another 26,000 scholarships. The Canadian component of this program will offer a flexible combination of language training, academic study, research internships and off-campus work placements.

“AUCC plays a key role in building the Canadian brand of higher education excellence in Brazil, a vital element in attracting Science Without Borders students to Canada,” notes Mr. Davidson. “This spring’s mission of more than 30 Canadian university presidents to Brazil will generate high visibility for Canadian universities and help build a robust two-way exchange of students and faculty between our two countries.” The AUCC Brazil mission, led by Governor General David Johnston, takes place April 25-May 2, 2012.

AUCC is the national voice of Canada’s universities, representing 95 Canadian public and private not-for-profit universities.

-30-

Media Contact:
Mélanie Béchard
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
mbechard@aucc.ca
613-563-1236 ext. 306

This op-ed  by Paul Davidson was published in the Toronto Star.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science is one of the world’s premiere science conferences. Between February 16 and 20,  8,000 people will meet in Vancouver to learn more about some of the world’s newest scientific discoveries and will introduce new areas of inquiry that will shape science for decades to come. It is only the second time in its 164 year history that this conference has met outside of the United States – the first time was in Toronto in 1981.

Back then, I was a high school student in Toronto with a motivated science teacher who encouraged us to attend the conference. To be blunt, Canada was not on the map of leading research, and we were encouraged to attend so that we might set our sights on joining the big leagues elsewhere – the United States or the United Kingdom. Sure we had studied about the discovery of insulin – some 60 years earlier, but the underlying message was “real science happens elsewhere.”

Today, students at that same high school are doing stem cell research during co-op placements at the Hospital for Sick Children working with global leaders in state-of-the art labs. Today, more than 1 million Canadians are pursuing an undergraduate degree, and over 190,000 are pursuing graduate studies – part of a drive towards opportunity and excellence taking place right across the country.

In 1981 there was only one university in Canada conducting more than $50 million in research annually.  Today there are 26 doing that level of research, and 12 of them conduct more than $300 million in research each year. The largest of them (University of Toronto) conducts close to $1 billion in research annually. Through sustained investments, Canada has become a leader in science, technology and innovation.

Back in 1981 there were fewer than 10,000 people pursuing PhDs in Canada. Today, there are about 45,000 full time doctoral students in Canada, and they are conducting research that will shape the 21^st century. This increased opportunity has helped ensure Canada has the highly talented people we need in the global economy.

Our universities today are much more global in their outlook and in their make-up. In 1981 there were just 28,000 international students in Canada, and today there are more than 100,000 from more than 200 countries. Universities are global gateways that strengthen the connections among and between nations and people.  

Consider Canada’s linkages with China. In 1981 there were only 250 Chinese students studying here – and now there are about 20,000. As Prime Minister Harper noted last week in Beijing, these global linkages are becoming increasingly important, particularly with new and emerging global superpowers.

These are all accomplishments about which we should be very proud. Looking ahead, Canada needs to continue its investments in research and innovation, and find new and better ways to collaborate in international research to harness the best minds on the world’s toughest problems.

In 1981, Toronto was a nice place to hold a conference just beyond the U.S. border. This week, when delegates come to Vancouver, they will see how dramatically Canada has changed. They will see what Canada has done to put us on the map as an international destination, partner and peer in doing ground-breaking research.

In preparing to attend the conference in Vancouver, I am delighted to see that there will be several hundred high school students attending, and I wonder what they will achieve in the next 30 years.

OTTAWA – Emerging economies around the world are transforming themselves through dramatic investments in higher education and research, and Western countries must take action now to not be left behind.

That’s the focus of a workshop hosted by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada at the AAAS Annual Meeting in Vancouver on Feb. 17. The session, “Establishing research collaborations with emerging economies: Canada’s experience in India and Brazil” will look at why and how Canada’s universities are establishing and enhancing educational and research partnerships with India and Brazil, the opportunities these collaborations are creating, and lessons that can be learned from the Canadian experience.

“International partnerships in research and innovation are vital to building prosperity in the new knowledge-driven economy,” says Paul Davidson, president of AUCC. “And in Canada, building international collaborations is increasingly about reaching out to emerging nations – countries that are building prosperity by investing in research and innovation.”

Brazil is an excellent example. This dynamic Latin American country is poised to become a top-five economy in the next five years and has set a research expenditure target of 2.5 percent of its GDP by 2022.

India, one of the fastest growing economies, will need 1,400 new universities in the next decade. It is currently sending about 160,000 students abroad annually and is poised to surpass all of the G8 in terms of research output.

The AUCC workshop will look at how Canada is positioning itself as a world leader in research and innovation – in part through enhanced partnerships and collaborations with emerging nations – and how this strategy fits with the country’s ongoing mission of attracting the best and brightest minds from around the world to its universities.

Workshop details:

Date: Friday, February 17, 2012

Time: 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm

Facility: Vancouver Convention Centre (West Building)

Room: 107-108

-30-

 NOTE TO MEDIA: AUCC president Paul Davidson is attending the AAAS Annual Meeting Feb. 16-20 and is available for interviews on this workshop topic and also the importance of hosting the AAAS gathering in Canada for our university research community.

Media Contact:

Helen Murphy
Communications Manager
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
hmurphy@aucc.ca
613-563-1236 ext. 238
Cell: 613-608-8749