Article Type: Generic

Government to consider expansion and greater coordination of digital research infrastructure

Canada’s digital research infrastructure (DRI) is fragmented, oversubscribed and underfunded, according to officials close to the file. Its precarious state compared to competitor nations comes at a time when more and more areas of R&D are becoming digitized and data driven while the size and complexity of data sets are increasing exponentially.

New coordinating committee established to align granting councils and CFI

Ottawa has announced a new coordinating body that aligns the three federal granting agencies—the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)—and the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).

Supercluster contenders must include strategies for confronting the risks in managing diverse interests

Managing different organizations with varying interests and different sizes of financial commitment will require a change in culture for the companies and institutions engaged in the Innovation Supercluster Initiative (ISI) competition. Governance and managing millions of dollars in government funds matched by industry are among the key challenges and risks ISI contenders will face, according to panelists at the recent Canadian Science Policy Conference

Government banks on supercluster initiative to boost economy through innovation

Almost a billion dollars in taxpayers’ funds are the carrot that the federal government hopes will bring industry and other stakeholders together to talk to each other and tap into each other’s resources to boost the Canadian economy through innovation. That’s the logic behind the $950-million Innovation Supercluster Initiative (ISI) which is heading into the final stretch of the two-phase selection process for between three and five winners.

Liberals enact new measures pushing for greater diversity in science

The Liberal government is pushing for more diversity and inclusion in science and engineering, even to the point of threatening to cancel some funding to universities that don’t support the agenda. At the recent Canadian Science Policy Conference (CSPC) held in Ottawa, Science minister Kirsty Duncan announced a number of initiatives to encourage equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

NRC announces sweeping changes as part of Stewart-led renewal strategy

The National Research Council (NRC) will appoint a Chief Science Advisor and establish a President’s Research Excellence Advisory Committee as part of sweeping, comprehensive changes planned over the next four years. In August, the 101-year-old research institution launched several short-term actions as part of a renewal strategy undertaken by NRC president Iain Stewart, stemming from his mandate to assess and reinvigorate the organization and establish its future direction. Those actions will be followed by more initiatives in the medium term (two years) and longer term (four years).