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By Paul Davidson
President and CEO
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

This op-ed was published in The Times of India on November 1st, 2010

A colleague was recently travelling in India and asked Indians she met what came to their mind when they thought of Canada. Invariably the answer was “cold”. While it is true our winter months have low temperatures in most provinces, we have a warm welcome awaiting Indian students, faculty and research partners at our world class universities. We want you to think of Canada’s higher education sector as your partner of choice for collaborative research or your study destination.

“Why Canada?” you might ask. To begin, Canada has strong cultural links to India – being home to over a million Indian immigrants. What’s more, we are known for our safe campuses, being bilingual (English-French, with English predominating) and are globally-oriented. Canada ranks as being among the most multicultural nations in the world. According to the World Bank, Canadian cities are among the best places to live, work and study. Besides an outstanding quality of life, Canada offers one of the healthiest economies in the world.

In addition to these factors, quite simply, Canada offers high quality university education in a rich learning and research environment. Our internationally ranked universities have great value to bring to the Indian higher education sector as partners or as a destination of study.

In addition to our universities’ internationally renowned reputation for top quality learning and cutting edge research, Canada has a vibrant high-tech sector to facilitate leading industry linkages.

Research and development in Canada is thriving and has long contributed to the country’s economic backbone. Did you know, for example, that Canada is home to such life-changing discoveries as insulin, the electron microscope, the pacemaker? Canadian universities perform more than one-third of the country’s research and contribute billions of dollars to the Canadian economy. Across Canada and every day, research institutes are being established and world-renowned research teams are setting up shop. Research, for example, in health, nanotechnology, high-performance computing and film animation is exploding. We’d like to welcome Indian partners to be a part of this. And you can be assured, with this kind of strength in research, we have found effective ways to heat our homes and offices during the winter. Get more statistics and analysis on Canadian university research.

Partnerships in higher education and research are critical in these endeavours and range from university partnerships with private companies to research projects with governments, communities, the not-for-profit sector and international partners.

Canada has a proven track record for making our campuses more global; we have welcomed tens of thousands of international students and created important long-term linkages. So far about 2,800 students have come from India, but we have room for many more.

That is one of the reasons why the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) has made strategic engagement with India a priority. AUCC is the national association representing public and not-for-profit universities in Canada. It currently has 95 member institutions in more than 80 communities across Canada.

In November this year, AUCC is leading a mission of close to 20 university presidents – representing the largest international delegation of Canadian universities – to India to profile Canada as a partner of choice in higher education. The mission will include a Presidents’ Roundtable, intended to build on Canadian Prime Minister Harper’s 2009 education roundtable in Delhi, and on the Canada-India higher education Memorandum of Understanding signed by Prime Ministers Harper and Singh last June. University presidents will also participate in a partnership forum to build university-industry linkages between the two countries.

Higher education and research is essential to advancement in both countries for our respective participation in the global economy. To meet this challenge, Canadian universities are coming to India to engage with key Indian government decision-makers, business leaders and universities.

Learn more about Canadian universities, and about our mission to India.

In 15 years, university participation has increased by 57 percent.

OTTAWA, October 28, 2010 – The latest university enrolment figures show overall enrolment is up almost four percent – 32,000 more, full-time students registered this fall than in 2009. At every level and in every region of the country, more young people are heading to university. Canada now has 898,000 full-time university students.

Today, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada released these numbers in its publication The value of a degree in Canada’s labour market.

AUCC President Paul Davidson says, “This is good news for the economy. University graduates are part of the solution to increasing Canada’s productivity and innovation. They possess the necessary critical thinking, research and analytical skills in demand by employers. They also contribute more than 40 percent of Canada’s tax base.”

The demand for university graduates in the last 20 years has been high: of the 1.5 million new professional and management positions created, 1.3 million were filled by university graduates. The increased demand is a direct response to the shift in Canada’s labour market from a resource-based economy to a knowledge-based economy.

However, the economy is in for a dramatic demographic shift over the next two decades. By 2030, the number of people over the age of 65 will double, while the 25-64 year-old population will grow by a mere eight percent. There will be a huge demand for professionals such as doctors, lawyers, accountants and entrepreneurs. The AUCC president stresses that “governments will need to continue to invest in Canada’s universities if they are to provide innovative research, meet Canada’s labour shortages, attract international talent and open the doors to more Aboriginal students – the fastest-growing segment of the Canadian population.”

The Value of a Degree in Canada’s Labour Market is the third brochure of a four-part series on trends in university education.

AUCC is the voice for Canada’s universities. It represents 95 Canadian public and not-for-profit universities and university-degree level colleges.

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For interviews and information contact:
Mélanie Béchard
Communications Officer
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
Tel: 613-563-3961, ext. 306
mbechard@aucc.ca

By Paul Davidson
President and CEO
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada

This op-ed was published in the Vancouver Sun on October 27, 2010

Canadians are going to hear a lot about India in the coming months.

That’s partly because 2011 has been designated the Year of India in Canada, and we’re going to be exposed to Indian culture like never before through performances, exhibitions, film festivals, food festivals and other events and activities. In tandem with that, we’re also going to be hearing a lot about India as a new economic partner, and the tremendous potential for mutually beneficial partnerships between our two countries.

It is in that context that the largest delegation of Canadian university presidents ever to travel abroad (and the largest delegation of university presidents ever welcomed by India) undertakes a seven-day mission in India this November. The visit, organized by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, includes 15 presidents from universities across Canada. The goal of the mission is to find new ways for Canadian and Indian universities to work together, while at the same time creating awareness of Canada’s “brand” in India.

It’s hard to exaggerate how far India has come in the last 20 years.

Characterized as an unparalleled innovation hub and an emerging economic powerhouse, India achieved average real growth of almost nine per cent per year from 2003 to 2007. Even in 2009′s recession, according to Canada’s Export Development Corp., the country’s economy grew by six per cent in the final quarter. Over the next decade, the Indian government expects that 1,400 new post-secondary institutions will be created, to serve seven million more students.

India has recognized it can’t do this alone and the country is inviting more international partnerships. Canada has signalled that it is willing to take up the challenge. Last June, as part of the G20 Summit held in Toronto, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in higher education.

Canada’s internationally ranked universities have a lot to offer the Indian higher education sector. Canadian universities perform more than one-third of the country’s research and contribute billions of dollars to the Canadian economy. Across Canada and every day, research institutes are being established and world-renowned research teams are setting up shop. Research in health, nanotechnology, high-performance computing and film animation, for example, is exploding.

Given India’s potential, we have to be mindful of the fact other countries are also sounding out partnerships. One of the goals of the visit is to establish Canada’s profile in India. We have to let people know that Canada stands for excellence in higher education and research, especially in fields of interest to India.

Canada has much to work with in seeking new partnerships with India: strong cultural links; thriving high-tech companies; a strong university research system; natural resource strengths; and a multicultural society and workforce. We are also both geographically large and ethnically diverse federations, democracies, and members of the Commonwealth using the Westminster parliamentary system. We have in common the English language. Canada is home to over a million people of Indian origin. There are already several well-established Indo-Canadian academic partnerships. Increasing Canadian universities’ contribution to India’s higher-education sector will do much to enhance Canada’s profile and social and economic leadership in the world.

Harper noted in a speech in Toronto earlier this year that the economies of Canada and India “complement each other in so many ways that the low level of trade between us seems unnatural.”

He added: “That’s something we must change. … The road to the future for both India and Canada could carry much more traffic, if we continue to work on building the bridges.” This mission of Canadian university presidents is a step in that direction.

Ottawa, October 22, 2010 – Canada’s universities welcome today’s announcement of $185 million to provide more predictable and stable funding for major science initiatives through a new Canada Foundation for Innovation funding program.

“This funding will provide university researchers on campuses across Canada with support needed to keep advanced technology and equipment functioning at the most productive levels possible as Canadian university faculty pursue cutting-edge research with partners from around the world,” said Paul Davidson, President of AUCC. “These investments will bring much needed, predictable support to maximize the benefits Canada can generate for our major science projects.”

This investment, when combined with other CFI investments, the Canada Excellence Research Chairs, the new Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships Program, the Vanier Scholarships and the Knowledge Infrastructure Program make Canada a more attractive destination for the best and brightest researchers from around the world.

“Support for operating big science research projects, combined with research grants and scholarships is essential to feed innovation, and ensure Canada remains competitive in the global knowledge-based economy,” added Mr. Davidson.

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AUCC is the national voice for Canada’s universities. It represents 95 Canadian public and private not-for-profit universities.

For more information:

Lyse Huot
Director
Government Relations and Communications
Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada