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Groundbreaking bilateral initiative

Three years after its original conception, the Canada-California Strategic Innovation Partnership (CCSIP) has completed its third and most productive summit, attracting more than 200 high-powered delegates to Montreal to advance discussions on future bilateral research in key technology areas.

Momentum fulfills 2002 commitment

Canada’s universities are hoping a new dynamic model for capturing the impact of university research will help to persuade the federal government that continuing investment to the country’s future economic and social well being, despite a catastrophic downturn in global financial markets and a looming recession.

Top 50 university ranking

The Univ of Toronto solidified and enhanced its standing as Canada’s foremost academic research powerhouse in an otherwise lackluster year for university R&D. U of T posted an 11.

TOP 100 company ranking

The state of Canadian corporate R&D entered a precarious stage in FY07, posting a second consecutive year of aggregate losses that will likely grow in FY08 and beyond as the full extent of the global financial meltdown is realized.

The recently created Alberta Water Research Institute (AWRI) has struck a $15-million research deal with General Electric’s Water and Process Technologies subsidiary to try and reduce water, energy usage and costs for oil sands extraction by 30%.

$15 million in CECR funding

The MaRS Discovery District is set to launch the largest commercialization initiative of its kind in Canada for the pooling of intellectual property (IP) from 14 Toronto-based institutions and covering a wide range of largely life sciences-based technologies.

Ontario dominates the 2008 Deloitte Technology Fast 50 ranking, placing 27 firms including seven in the top 10. Markham ON-based Nightingale Informatix Corp (healthcare service and software) took the top spot with a five-year growth rate of 23,078% — an impressive feat but far off the 42,120% growth rate registered by Sandvine, last year’s overall winner.

A new report from the Institute for Competitiveness & Prosperity (ICP) contends that the hollowing out of the Canadian economy is illusory and that government policies to encourage the creation of national champions do not work.

$1 billion for university research

The Liberal Party of Canada is pledging more than $1 billion in new funding for university-based research, including massive increases to the base budgets of the granting councils and the indirect costs of university research.

War and debt limit options

Concern is increasing south of the border that the financial crisis rocking the nation and the planet has the potential the seriously cut into funding for science, technology and innovation.