Vox Populi on Canada’s aerospace industry
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains on the domestic aerospace industry in June 2017: “Canada’s aerospace industry is defined by its global leadership in the development of new technologies, which depend on the talents of the highly skilled men and women who work in this sector. Our highly skilled workforce is the reason […]
Canada lobbying U.S. influencers on Bombardier dispute, says Bains
Canada isn’t ready to back down in the spat between plane-makers Bombardier and Boeing, which has turned into a multi-country trade dispute, federal Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains signalled in a Q&A with The Hill Times. Canadian officials are lobbying decision makers and “influencers” south of the border, according to Mr. Bains, as the U.S. Commerce […]
No worries: Aerospace industry not fazed by melding of Harper-era R&D program into general innovation fund
Aerospace industry advocates are expressing support for the folding of the federal government’s Strategic Aerospace and Defence Initiative (SADI) into Ottawa’s broader innovation fund, saying the move better meets current research and development needs. Along with two other industry-specific programs, SADI was consolidated into the $1.26-billion Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) in the 2017 budget, which […]
Aerospace
Applied research: time to move beyond pilot projects
When Ottawa-based entrepreneur Ke Wang had the brilliant idea of using his smartphone to control certain tasks on his power wheelchair, and therefore regain some of his autonomy, he knew he needed support to bring his innovative concept to reality. Like a growing number of entrepreneurs and small-business owners, he turned to his local college […]
Innovation review welcomed, but funding needed: post-secondary research experts
As the government conducts the Horizontal Business Innovation and Clean Technology Review into its innovation programs, post-secondary research advocates say more funding is needed to allow programs and the institutions that use them to reach their fullest innovation potential. Denise Amyot, president and CEO of Colleges and Institutes Canada, said her members are only tapping […]
Fundamental and applied research both valuable
In the months since my appointment as the Conservative critic for science, I have had the pleasure of meeting with representatives of the scientific community from across Canada, including meetings with over a dozen university presidents or vice-presidents of research. Through these conversations, I now have a better understanding of the complicated federal research funding […]
Broad perspectives breed great science
On Nov. 2, Science Minister Kirsty Duncan addressed the Canadian Science Policy Conference to discuss the federal government’s plan to boost fundamental research in Canada. The following text is an edited excerpt of her speech. I’d like to share my vision of science. It is a vision that sees Canadian science as a re-energized, forward-looking, […]
Liberals talk a good game, but science is still struggling
Many credit the Trudeau Liberals with ending the war on science, after years of funding cuts and muzzling by the Harper Conservatives. Nothing seemed to demonstrate this more than the fundamental science review report (chaired by former University of Toronto president David Naylor) commissioned by the Liberals and released in April, followed by the appointment […]
Galvanizing a go-global education strategy
A report this month from the Study Group on Global Education, made up of Canadian businesspeople and academics, offers some revealing insights on preparedness and potential for Canadian students studying abroad. With only 11 per cent of undergraduate students having some form of international experience, it argues that we are stuck in neutral when it […]
