Author: Mark Henderson

Four years after a major cut in government support, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) has ramped up its collaboration with large philanthropic organizations and struck bilateral accords, boosting projected donor contributions for FY-16-17 to an all-time high of $81.

Health minister Jane Philpott has requested that the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) hold an emergency meeting — tentatively slated for July 13 — to deal with the persistent and growing revolt among senior health researchers over the granting council’s recently implemented peer review process for awarding research grants.

Assessment required to determine future status

The pilot phase of a novel three-year, $15-million college social innovation program is now fully committed with the announcement of results from a second competition.

Winners in the latest NSERC Discovery Grants Program (DGP) competition will see their grant sizes increased retroactively using a portion of the $30 million in non-directed funds the agency received in the last federal Budget.

Leveraging a vibrant ecosystem

Small and growing businesses in the City of Montreal could soon be receiving at least $100 million in new venture capital with the creation of Capital Intelligent Mtl and its Smart City initiative.

Ontario needs to leverage its strong foundational elements for cluster development and growth by focusing on five key clusters and their subcomponents to ensure they contribute to enhanced productivity and economic activity, says a new report from the Institute for Competitiveness & Prosperity.

High aspirations, soft targets

The Liberal government is taking to the road this summer to consult on its new Innovation Agenda with the goal of producing an action plan by the fall. The consultation phase will feature round-table discussions led by a group of innovation leaders sourced from all sectors including not-for-profits and social entrepreneurs (see chart page 2).

A new report by a former senior innovation policy official is calling for “a smart combination of microeconomic carrots and sticks to create a more comprehensive, pro-innovation business climate” that bolsters Canada’s productivity performance.

The Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance (CATA) is calling for a refundable, labour-based digital innovation tax credit for smaller information and communications technology (ICT) companies and the creation of a third-party organization to determine eligibility of ICT claims.

Canada should take action to boost productivity and introduce policies for improving “small business dynamism” to sustainably move towards non-resource production, says a bi-annual report on the nation’s economy from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).