Impact Statement:

Dr. Ilse Treurnicht has been selected as the recipient of the CSPC 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award for Science and Innovation Policy in recognition of her exceptional contributions to research commercialization, investment, and public policy in Canada.

As CEO of the MaRS Discovery District from 2005 to 2017, Dr. Treurnicht guided its growth from a nascent initiative into a leading innovation hub. She brought researchers, entrepreneurs, investors, industry, and governments together to help turn promising discoveries into ventures with economic and social impact.

Dr. Treurnicht has brought her deep knowledge and insights to major public policy discussions in Canada through her service on Canada’s Science, Technology and Innovation Council, Advisory Council on Economic Growth, Advisory Committee on Open Banking, and Council of Expert Advisors on Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences. Most recently, she chaired the Council of Canadian Academies’ expert panel on the state of science, technology, and innovation in Canada, leading an evidence-based assessment of the country’s strengths, challenges, and opportunities.

Her leadership in venture capital and impact investing has helped innovative health and clean technology firms grow. Through Primaxis Technology Ventures, TwinRiver Capital, and North South Ventures, she has worked to connect investment with both commercial opportunity and public benefit. As chair of the Canadian Task Force on Social Finance, she also helped advance a national conversation about using capital to address social challenges.

Her governance leadership, including her past chairmanship of the Public Policy Forum, reflects a career devoted to connecting ideas, institutions, and people. This award recognizes Dr. Treurnicht’s enduring impact on Canada’s innovation ecosystem and her conviction that scientific discovery can achieve its greatest value when research, entrepreneurship, investment, and policy work together for the public good.

Bio:

Ilse Treurnicht’s career spans research, health and cleantech firms, innovation ecosystems, venture capital and public policy.  She is an impact investor, former chair of the Public Policy Forum and a director of the Equality Fund. She chaired the Council of Canadian Academies expert panel on the State of Science, Technology and Innovation in Canada (2025), and is an advisor to technology businesses, governments, non-profits and international organizations. Ilse served as CEO of MaRS Discovery District as it developed from a nascent organization into a leading urban innovation hub. She holds a doctorate in chemistry from Oxford University, which she attended as a Rhodes Scholar.