Article Type: Generic

Ontario is pushing ahead with plans to establish a chief scientist for the province following premier Dalton McGuinty’s announcement while on a life sciences trade mission to Israel. The new position — a first for Canadian provinces — would help to identify commercialization opportunities, especially those relating to its three R&D priorities — life sciences, green energy and clean water and provide advice on how to achieve better alignment of the various players in the innovation system.

Science Academies release statements

By Debbie Lawes

The Canadian government’s reported $1-billion commitment to child and maternal health at this month’s G8 summit appears to have sidelined a separate $500-million proposal to support 1,000 new academic research chairs for African universities, as well as a more modest $95-million plan for math institutes throughout the continent (R$, April 9/10).

National defence bucks trend

Science and technology spending by the federal government has increased as a proportion of overall government expenditures over the past 13 years but has retreated in recent years from a high of 5% in FY03-04, according to the latest data from Statistics Canada.

Analysis

By David Crane

Societies that are best at innovation have the best chance of achieving jobs, economic growth and the wealth to sustain a high quality of life, the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) promises in its just-released major report on innovation strategy.

Unprecedented media coverage of the winners of the inaugural competition for the Canada Research Excellence Chairs (CERC) program has thrust Canada’s attempts to build world-class targeted research expertise into the public consciousness.

The arrival of Dr Soren Rysgaard at the Univ of Manitoba to assume a Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Arctic Geomicrobiology and Climate Change is spurring the formation a bi-national research institute between Canada and Denmark to examine the impact of climate change on glacial and sea ice.

Ontario’s research and education network is hoping that a new report detailing the potential economic benefits of increased networking speeds will help to convince the provincial government to fund the lion’s share of a major systems upgrade.

2010-05-13

To the Editor,

After reading your story on the results of NSERC’s 2010 Discovery Grants competition in the April 23/10 edition of RE$EARCH MONEY, I have a few concerns that I wanted to bring to your attention.

Grand Challenges Canada

A new organization devoted to fusing S&T and innovation with Canada’s international assistance efforts has chosen point-of-care diagnostics as the first of five major challenges to combat health challenges in the developing world.

By Debbie Lawes

Ontario has set its sights on becoming a top-tier global cluster for life sciences with a new strategy designed to attract global product mandates and clinical trials, despite a climate of fierce international competition, tight credit and volatile markets.