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Canadian Science Policy Centre
1595 16th Avenue, Suite 301
Richmond Hill, ON
L4B 3N9
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Innovation Policy refers to policies and public strategies, regulations, and initiatives aimed at promoting the development, diffusion, and application of new ideas, technologies, products, and services. It seeks to enhance capacity for innovation to drive economic growth, competitiveness, and social well-being. Innovation policy encompasses support for research and development (R&D), entrepreneurship and education, digital infrastructure, social innovation and collaboration between industry, academia, and government.
Science for Policy refers to the use of scientific knowledge, evidence, and expertise to inform and support decision-making in public policy. It involves translating complex scientific research into accessible insights that can guide the development, implementation, and evaluation of policies across various sectors, including (but not limited to) health, environment, technology, security, education, justice. Science for policy emphasizes evidence-based policymaking, where decisions are grounded in reliable data and research and knowledge rather than opinion or ideology.
Policy for Science refers to the set of governmental policies or institutional strategies, decisions, and frameworks that shape the funding, priorities, infrastructure, and governance of scientific research and development. It involves creating conditions that support scientific innovation, including investments in research institutions, training of scientists and development of science infrastructure, research integrity, EDIA, and international collaboration, ultimately aiming to strengthen the scientific enterprise to advance knowledge,economic development, and societal well-being.
Science for Policy refers to the use of scientific knowledge, evidence, and expertise to inform and support decision-making in public policy. It involves translating complex scientific research into accessible insights that can guide the development, implementation, and evaluation of policies across various sectors, including (but not limited to) health, environment, technology, security, education, justice. Science for policy emphasizes evidence-based policymaking, where decisions are grounded in reliable data and research and knowledge rather than opinion or ideology.
Science & Society refers to areas that strengthen public understanding and engagement with science, including the relationship between science and society. This includes but is not limited to science communication, education, journalism, public engagement, and citizen science and more.
Dr. Sarah Burke is an Associate Professor in the departments of Physics & Astronomy, and Chemistry, and a Principal Investigator in the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute at the University of British Columbia. Her research uses scanning probe microscopy techniques to investigate materials from the atomic scale up. Burke received her Bachelor’s Degree from Dalhousie University in 2002 (Honours in Physics) and her Master’s and Doctoral Degrees in Physics from McGill University in 2004 and 2009 respectively, where she focused on studying the growth and epitaxy of organic molecules on insulating surfaces using non-contact atomic force microscopy. She then held an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship at UC Berkeley with Michael Crommie where she investigated graphene nano-structures using low temperature scanning tunnelling microscopy and spectroscopy.
Since arriving at the University of British Columbia in 2010 she has been built an interdisciplinary research group approaching materials questions from the atomic scale, applying these techniques to a wide range of materials from superconductors to molecular materials for future devices and controlling surface reactivity. She held the Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Nanoscience 2010-2020, received a Peter Wall Early Career Scholar Award for Interdisciplinary study 2011-2012, and the Killam Award for Excellence in Mentoring in 2022. She serves as a member of the SBQMI leadership team as a member of the Executive committee and Chair of the QMI EDI committee.
Dr. Aimee Gunther is the Deputy Director of the Internet of Things: Quantum Sensors Challenge Program (QSP) at the National Research Council of Canada (NRC). At the NRC, she also engages across research centres and collaborative challenge programs to shape and lead the Quantum Communications theme within the High-Throughput and Secure Networks Challenge program.
Previously, Aimee was the Scientific Advisor for Quantum at Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) where she co-authored the DND/CAF Quantum S&T Strategy and specialized in advising and equipping senior leadership on national quantum initiatives.
Aimee has over a decade of experience communicating quantum and optical science whether it be to kids, families, or policymakers. Aimee has PhD (Quantum Information) in experimental quantum optics from the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo. Her research encompassed: quantum photonics, nonlinear optics, biological imaging, and ultrafast laser science.
Andrea Damascelli is a Full Professor at the University of British Columbia (UBC) and a Tier I Canada Research Chair in the Electronic Structure of Quantum Materials. He currently serves as Scientific Director of the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute (QMI) at UBC and is Co-Director of the Max Planck-UBC-UTokyo Centre for Quantum Materials.
Prof. Damascelli works in one of the most advanced areas of condensed matter physics — quantum materials — systems that exhibit new electronic properties, such as high-temperature superconductivity. His work has gained global recognition and helped make Canada a leader in the field of photoelectron spectroscopy — a highly sophisticated technique that images the energy and velocity of electrons propagating inside a material. Particularly, he is internationally recognized for his studies of superconducting cuprates and other correlated oxides by spin and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (Spin+ARPES) and resonant elastic x-ray scattering (REXS).
Nick Werstiuk is the Chief Executive Officer of Quantum Valley Ideas Lab, leading the strategy and growth of the applied quantum research lab based in Waterloo, Canada. Prior to joining Ideas Lab in 2020, Mr. Werstiuk was Director of AI Offerings at IBM, where he led an AI product portfolio and IBM Spectrum Computing, driving a large portfolio of products in HPC, AI, and Cloud-based services.
His broad expertise, across a range of company sizes and stages from start-up to large multi-national, includes product management, development, corporate strategy, and identifying growth markets to drive research towards commercial success. In addition to driving product innovation, he played a leadership role in the acquisition of Platform Computing by IBM.
Mr. Werstiuk graduated with Honours from the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Electrical Engineering.
Eric Miller is President of Rideau Potomac Strategy Group, a consultancy that advises private and public sector clients on trade and business matters. Mr. Miller works with clients on trade and economic policy challenges, market development, resolving supply chain and regulatory issues, improving their government relations, understanding technology trends and navigating geopolitical developments.
Mr. Miller presently serves on the external advisory committee on international trade policy to Canada’s Deputy Minister of International Trade. He also served for three years as Senior Advisor to the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation and led the development and implementation of Alliance projects in South and Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, India and Sri Lanka.
He previously served as Vice President for North America and Cybersecurity at the Business Council of Canada, which represents the CEOs of the 150 largest companies in the country. Before joining the Council in 2013, Mr. Miller represented Canada’s Department of Industry at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC.
Mr. Miller has extensive international experience, having advised more than 40 governments in Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean on trade, transportation and economic policies. Over the course of his career, he has worked on the development of six free trade agreements.
He is a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington and a Fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute in Ottawa. He has been published in and/or interviewed by an array of leading news outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, BBC News, The Guardian, Bloomberg and The Globe and Mail.
Alexandra Daoud is Vice President, Intellectual Property at Anyon Systems, a quantum computing company in Montreal. She graduated from McGill University with a degree in Electrical Engineering. She joined Anyon Systems after having spent 20 years at Norton Rose Fulbright as a Partner and a Patent Agent. She is registered to practice as a Patent Agent before the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and the United States Patent and Trademark Office.