Canadian Science Policy Centre
1595 16th Avenue, Suite 301
Richmond Hill, ON
L4B 3N9
E-mail:
info@sciencepolicy.ca
Canadian Science Policy Centre
1595 16th Avenue, Suite 301
Richmond Hill, ON
L4B 3N9
E-mail:
info@sciencepolicy.ca
Subscribe to the Canadian Science Policy Conference newsletter to keep up-to-date with the latest news, events and programs.
Innovation Policy focuses on putting the outputs of research (knowledge, technology) into use for broad socio-economic benefits. Innovation policies generally support and promote technology transfer, product, process development, validation, commercialization and scale up, national and regional innovation systems with the objective of improving productivity and competitiveness and driving economic growth and job creation. Social innovation is considered as an integral part of innovation policy. CSPC encourages nominations from all disciplines of science (natural sciences and engineering, social and human sciences, and health sciences) and from all sectors (governments at all levels, academia, private and non-profit sectors, media, and others).
The Science for Policy Award recognizes an individual who has distinguished themselves via the application and use of scientific research and knowledge to inform evidence-based decisions for public policy and regulations.
The Policy for Science Award recognizes an individual who has pioneered policies and practices to improve the development of new technologies, capacity building and research infrastructure.
Science Policy is inclusive of both policy for science and science for policy. Policy for Science focuses on management of science enterprises, i.e., the generation of new knowledge, the development of new technology, capacity building, training highly qualified personnel and research infrastructure. In general, the key targets of policy for science are post-secondary institutions, research funding organizations and government science-based departments and agencies. Science for policy is the application and use of scientific research and knowledge to inform evidence-based decisions for public policy and regulations in all policy areas, not limited to but including public-interest policy priorities such as health, environment, national security, education, and criminal justice and others.
Organized by: Guelph University
Moderator: Malcolm Campbell
Speakers: Michele Anholt, Hélène Carabin, Arinjay Banerjee, Jagvinder Dhanda, Jane Parmley
If the current pandemic has taught us anything, we need to find a way to avoid, or, at minimum, mitigate the effects of disease and environmental emergencies, including future pandemics propagated in human and animal populations. A One Health approach, which focuses on the perfect storm of health challenges at the intersection of human, animal, and environmental health, must be at the centre of preparedness; these events have the potential to cause massive suffering, disrupt food systems, derail our economies, and lead to huge inequities and political unrest. Although this call to action may seem daunting, there are many examples of successful One Health initiatives and policy approaches around the globe. This panel will consider One Health’s success stories and how they chart a course for putting a strategy in place to prepare us best for future national and global health threats. Our panellists will present their stories of how they initiated positive change utilizing a One Health approach and the important lessons they have learned.
Organized by: BioCanRx
Moderator: Dr. Durhane Wong-Rieger
Speakers: Dr. Risini Weeratna, Dr. John Bell, Dr. Boro Dropulic, Dr. Conor Douglas
Canadians with rare diseases need access to drugs that can help manage and treat their conditions. For those conditions where drugs do exist, costs can be prohibitively high. Well-known national challenges include inconsistent drug access across the country, limitations in drug development and evidence generation linked to small patient populations, and how to achieve the goal of equitable and sustainable access. The panel will discuss the role of social pharmaceutical innovation in Canada’s rare disease strategy and in advancing sustainable access needs both in Canada and internationally, and its potential impact on the academic, public and private sector.
Organized by: National Research Council of Canada
Moderator: Eric Lefebvre
Speakers: Teara Fraser, Simon Azar, Ameet Sareen, Linda Schucroft
The urgent need for greener and sustainable transportation has catalyzed a transformation in aviation resulting in the development of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). AAM aims to move cargo and people efficiently in regional areas with greater frequency using revolutionary zero-emission aircrafts. Canada’s unified vision has facilitated multi-lateral collaborations thus, accelerating innovation and advancing sustainable technologies.
The panel will discuss challenges the ecosystem is actively addressing and the benefits of AAM in Canada. Through viable operational use cases, the Canadian Advanced Air Mobility (CAAM) ecosystem addresses critical gaps to enable the implementation of AAM and to export capabilities positioning Canada as a world leader.
Organized by: Genome Canada
Moderator: Karen Dewar
Speakers: Rachael Verwey, Dr. Stuart Smyth, Kelly Tanaka
Placing climate in all innovation (and policies and practices) is the only way to address the complex challenge of climate change. The agricultural sector contributes to climate change but also plays an important part in reducing its severity. Genomic innovation for climate-smart agriculture and food systems can support the new technologies, products and approaches required to mitigate and adapt to climate change while supporting growth and jobs. This panel brings together representatives from across a coalition of scientists, innovators, manufacturers, policymakers and implementers to discuss ways the agri-food ecosystem can be mobilized through genomics to realize climate impacts.
Organized by: Canada Research Coordinating Committee (CRCC) Secretariat and CRCC member organizations
Moderator: Valérie La Traverse
Speakers: Dr. Stephen Lucas, Dr. Roseann O’Reilly Runte, Tammy Clifford, Alejandro Adem, Ted Hewitt, Iain Stewart, Francis Bilodeau, Heather Jeffrey
Join members of the Canada Research Coordinating Committee as they
discuss their organizations’ collective efforts to help sustain Canada’s research enterprise through the ongoing pandemic while keeping an eye to the future – by working together on key federal priorities to build a more equitable, connected and innovative research community for Canada.
Share your views on national issues. The discussion aims to inform the Committee’s reflections and agenda in the year ahead.
To learn more about the collective efforts of Canada’s research funding organizations in addressing national priorities, please visit the CRCC web site: www.canada.ca/crcc
Organized by: Harvard Kennedy School, Belfer Center Arctic Initiative/Carleton University
Moderator: Jennifer Spence
Speakers: Raylene Mitchell, Janet King, John P. Holdren, Elyn Humphreys, Sarah Kalhok Bourque
The thawing of permafrost plays a poorly understood role in the current climate crisis. With about 40% of its land overlying permafrost, Canada must be a leader in enhancing our knowledge of this immediate and pressing issue. This panel will introduce Permafrost Pathways, a $41.5 million, six-year project, dedicated to strengthening understanding of the local, regional and global impacts of pan-Arctic permafrost thaw, working with Arctic residents to co-create adaptation strategies, and leveraging this knowledge to influence climate policies at all levels. This panel will be an opportunity for leaders of Permafrost Pathways and Canadian researchers, policymakers and Arctic residents to exchange insights and examine opportunities for collaboration.
Organized by: SFU
Moderator: Elicia Maine
Speakers: Sami Khan, James Lota, Enda Murphy, Alison Shaw
Communities in Canada and globally are key sources of emissions and are also needing support as they confront the impacts and costs of climate change. Reducing climate risk (adaptation) and rapidly decarbonizing (mitigation) are crucial for all decisions and policies to advance community resilience and sustainability goals. Evidence-based, multi-solving approaches are vital for transformative action, and will require interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and inclusive collaboration. Learn about cross-cutting climate action research, that co-develops real-world solutions with community partners on the frontlines of climate change. Panelists will discuss advances in low carbon resilience planning and implementation, clean energy innovation, and sustainability transition pathways.
Organized by: National Research Council
Moderator: Lakshmi Krishnan
Speakers: Dr. Nadia Sabeh, Mark Lefsrud, Krin Mann
Sustainably increasing the self-sufficiency of food production requires innovative approaches that can respond to both evolving global drivers and uniquely Canadian needs. The panel will discuss promising emerging technologies positioned to respond to these challenges, and explore potential new opportunities for Canadian-led innovation and investment. Central to this discussion will be the capacity for technology to address the socioeconomic factors that contribute to food insecurity and the practicalities of infrastructure in remote and Northern communities.
Organized by: University of Regina
Moderator: Margot A. Hurlbert
Speakers: Chief Cadmuss Delorme, Wes Jickling, Larkin Mosscrop, Zinta Zommers, Larissa Shasko
Canada’s climate change (“CC”) policy is advancing in mitigation (achieving net zero emissions) and adaptation (risk reduction and hazard/disaster planning). Addressing all aspects of CC will require transformative, intersectional (addressing inequality and the most vulnerable peoples), interdisciplinary, and intersectoral policy. Globally, and in Canadian policy, a gap exists between fragmented CC policy and achieving net zero and CC resilience goals. This panel will consider policy that is required to address CC through engagement with CC modeling (including Shared Socio-Economic Pathways (SSPs) – climate change scenarios based on narratives of social inequality, regional rivalry, or sustainability) and possible future pathways for achieving CC targets. The SSPs are part of a new scenario framework, established by the climate change research community in order to facilitate integrated analysis of future climate impacts, vulnerabilities, adaptation, and mitigation. The SSPs are based on narratives describing alternative socio-economic developments, including sustainable development, fossil-fuel development, natural resources and energy development, and technological advancement for hard to decarbonize sectors including steel and cement (with small modular reactors (SMRs) and carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS)). Key tensions and barriers in future decision points necessary to reach net zero GHG emissions by 2050 and adapt to climate change will be outlined. Interactive methods will involve the audience in virtual voting and determination of these future decision points resulting in the creation of a policy pathway for Canada’s future decarbonized world.
Organized by: Queen’s University
Speakers: Janet Annesley, Pat Carlson, Anna Harrison, Dr. Warren Mabee, Dr. Joule Bergerson
Limiting global warming to 1.5oC requires new technologies to capture and utilize carbon from the atmosphere. This panel addresses a series of questions: (1) how can we best reduce sectoral emissions related to Canada’s existing energy sector? (2) what are the most effective technologies to capture carbon, from emissions and from the atmosphere? (3) how can we most effectively reutilize carbon that has been captured? (4) what tools are going to be most important in driving behavioural change to make this happen? The discussion will highlight the role of new technologies in supporting Canada’s energy transition.
Organized by: NSERC PermafrostNet
Moderator: Janet King
Speakers: Kumari Karunaratne, Dipika Deol, Emilie Stewart-Jones, Gregory M. Flato
Canada is in a climate crisis and permafrost is thawing. Permafrost thaw is not only releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases, but also destabilizing the frozen ground that literally supports northern communities, and infrastructure, and sustains traditional lifestyles and interlinked ecosystems. Yet capacity, research, data, services, and informed risk assessment remain limited and fragmented, as negative impacts accelerate. This panel session will stimulate discussion on the competing priorities and considerations of Canada learning to live with and prepare for permafrost thaw, within the broader policy landscape of climate change, Arctic issues, energy and food sustainability, self-governance, reconciliation, and data sovereignty.