Is Canada ready to deliver genomic solutions to solve the world’s biggest challenges? The list of challenges related to the bioeconomy is long. The energy transition from fossil fuels to sustainable alternatives needs to happen soon and some argue it is possible to get it done fast. Ensuring that enough food is produced to feed everyone is also a growing challenge as…
Canada’s universities are calling for a significant boost to research funding to keep pace with other wealthy countries and avoid losing promising scientists to a brain drain. Paul Davidson, President of Universities Canada, says other countries such as the US and Britain are making serious investments to prioritize scientific research, while Canada’s young scientists are living on scholarships and grants…
Research hubs will further strengthen Canada’s biomanufacturing and life sciences sector while protecting Canadians against future health threats The Government of Canada’s main priority continues to be protecting the health and safety of Canadians. Throughout the pandemic, the quick and decisive actions taken by the government meant that Canada was able to scale up domestic biomanufacturing capacity, which had been…
The federal government says it is tightening its policy on bankrolling research with foreign entities that might pose a risk to national security. The government says “a sensitive research area” will not be funded if a person on the project is affiliated with a university, research institute or laboratory connected to military, national defence or state security entities of foreign…
Once again this year, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) is pleased to remind the community of an important funding opportunity for Canadian researchers interested in ambitious, international projects in the life sciences. Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP) Research Grants support innovative basic research into fundamental biological problems with emphasis placed on novel and interdisciplinary approaches that involve scientific…
As Canadian policy and investment encourages more innovative startups, we constantly hear about the “valley of death”: the point where a startup has some momentum but struggles for market traction. We hang lofty hopes on research-based startups getting past this to solve global challenges and grow into scalable companies. However, focusing on the valley of death will keep us ignoring…
Earlier this month, researchers attending Canada’s major annual science policy conference here got some seemingly good news when science minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government would be awarding CA$1 billion to research projects. But disappointment soon set in. The $1 billion, scientists realized, was existing, not new, money. The episode added to researchers’ gloom about Canada’s science funding.
Scientists and researchers play an integral role in helping to build a stronger, healthier and more resilient Canada. The Government of Canada understands that when we invest in Canada’s research community, we are investing in the discoveries of tomorrow that will lead to a better quality of life for everyone. Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, announced more than $1 billion in…
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, a core strength of the biotechnology sector was the solutions the sector brings to the challenge of a global population moving quickly to nine or 10 billion people and the imperative of finding ways to fundamentally alter how we grow, manufacture, cure and fuel our economies and societies. While policymakers generally understood the sector’s overall…
Canada must invest adequately in the commercialization and talent development for the biotech sector or we may lose our best and brightest to other countries. The right policies for data collection, the commercialization of new drugs and taxes will help make Canada’s hosting conditions ideal for biotech companies. Canada needs more entrepreneurs in the biotech sector to not only innovate…