The rise of the knowledge disruptors
“As we develop science policy we need to look beyond the short-term context, beyond the research that looks immediately promising. If we’re blinded by the urgency of our problems, we will go the wrong way. We’ll be investing in horses, carriages, and cleaning up the streets instead of fostering the research that can give rise […]
Building on one of our greatest natural resources
We often hear that Canada is rich in natural resources, but forget that one of our greatest resources is our highly educated population. In today’s global economy, education, research, and innovation play critical roles in the balance sheet of all nations. Canada has a proud history of discovery, invention, and innovation—insulin, canola, and the BlackBerry […]
Universities call for more financial support for research, while colleges eye bigger share of funding
Advocates for Canadian post-secondary institutions are calling on the federal government to improve on the expanded investments in research seen in Budget 2016 to ensure the country can keep pace with surging global competitors. In what backers are calling the biggest increase in a decade, the Liberal government earmarked an additional $95-million this year to the Canadian granting councils, […]
Science minister sees funding gaps for young researchers, multidisciplinary and multinational research
Young researchers are starved for grants in Canada, which can make their work “impossible,” says Science Minister Kirsty Duncan. That’s one of the challenges she’s heard from scientists during her first year as minister, she said in a Nov. 10 interview after giving a speech at the Canadian Science Policy Conference in Ottawa. She also […]
University and College Research
We need a return to funding basic research
It was in the spring 2012 budget that the previous Conservative government established the primacy of utilitarian, mercantile science over basic research and pure intellectual inquiry. The budget decreed that federal funds would go to research that was “business-led [and] industry-relevant.” The significant deficit in industry investment in research and development affects our economy. We […]
Bloc Leader Fortin to test Supreme Court nominee Rowe’s proficiency in French
In question-and-answer session with the newest nominee to the Supreme Court of Canada on Oct. 25 at the University of Ottawa, Bloc Québécois Leader Rhéal Fortin says the focal point of his questioning will be to test Malcolm Rowe’s proficiency in French and the Newfoundland and Labrador native’s understanding of Quebec Civil law. “We want to know […]
Too close for comfort: Canadian academics and government
Should social scientists seek the truth regardless of whose toes may be stepped on and cite, up front, possible conflicts of interest regarding matters they study? All academic disciplines claim independence of thought and transparency are principles that guide good research. So, what to make of a Canadian foreign-policy discussion dominated by individuals with ties […]
No more treading water
Patrick Brown has heard it all before. Assertions that the Ontario Progressive Conservative leader’s most defined personality trait is that he’s not Kathleen Wynne; that he’s flip-flopped on policies as starkly as Donald Trump has on immigration; and even that he’s a dead-eyed, brainwashed robot that runs on talking points uploaded to his hard drive […]
Universities emerge as biggest lobbyists in August, according to registry
While students were enjoying their summer breaks last month, university administrators were busy lobbying the federal government on a wide range of issues, including science, aboriginal affairs, and immigration. The University of Alberta was the source of the most communication reports filed on the federal lobbyists registry in August with 25. Second was the University […]
