Speaking Points
The Honourable Gary Goodyear, PC, MP
Minister of State (Science and Technology)
Vancouver, British Columbia
January 21, 2013
Check Against Delivery
Thank you for the kind introduction. I'd like to thank Recon Instruments for hosting us here today. I've had an opportunity to see some of the great work that you are doing here in designing mobile technologies for action sports. And I have to say that I am very impressed by what I've seen. Your Heads-up Display goggles for skiing are incredible—the GPS tracking, the LCD screen that tells you your speed, positioning, distance travelled—wow. What a great way to enjoy action sports. I could use a pair to help navigate through the House of Commons sometimes!
I'd also like to thank everyone at Mitacs for the invitation and for the great work you do. Your organization is making a profound contribution to the success of Recon Instruments and many other companies like it all across Canada. Our government shares your vision of helping Canadian businesses capitalize on real-world opportunities by tapping into the talents and expertise of bright young graduate students and researchers in our universities and colleges.
The success of Recon Instruments demonstrates well how the Mitacs-Accelerate internships can support Canadian business innovation. Recon first invested in an internship organized by Mitacs in 2008. It has now co-funded eight internships with graduate students from UBC. The students have been instrumental in supporting Recon innovations.
But these internships haven't just provided benefits for Recon. I understand that one of Recon's first-ever Mitacs-Accelerate interns was Reynald Hoskinson, who is no longer a student but is now Recon's Research and Development Manager. Congratulations, Reynald, and thank you for helping put this morning's event together.
What we are seeing today at Recon Instruments is a great example of something that applies across Canada—our long-term economic growth will be driven in large measure by science and innovation. Our government understands this, we are committed to this, and we have made this a priority.
Through our science and technology strategy, we have made significant investments in scientific research at Canada's universities and colleges, to the extent that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ranks Canada at the very top of the G7 in higher-education expenditures on R&D, expressed as a percentage of GDP.
And those investments have helped make our universities and colleges world-class sources of superior research. In fact, last fall the Council of Canadian Academies released a report proving this: Canadian S&T is healthy and growing and is recognized around the world for its excellence. The Council had surveyed the authors of the world's top-cited scientific papers, who ranked Canada's S&T as fourth in the world, behind the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany. That is not fourth on a per capita basis or as a proportion of GDP. That's an absolute score.
Clearly Canada is punching well above its weight in scientific expertise. And our reputation is helping to further strengthen our position. Canada has become a powerful magnet for high-quality researchers from abroad. Over the past decade, there has been a net migration of researchers into the country.
We can take pride in these accomplishments, not only as Canadians but also as members of the global community. Scientific advancement knows no borders; it benefits everyone. While being number four in the world is fantastic, I know that we have the ability to be number one.
This past fall, I travelled to Japan to take part in the Science and Technology in Society Forum in Kyoto. I was asked to speak about innovation and the partnerships between governments, researchers and business people.
They were keen to hear of our government's efforts to promote excellence in research and eager to get together with Canadian researchers and entrepreneurs.
Clearly, the world wants to know Canada's story.
I want to tell it and our government wants to support it.
Since 2006, our government has provided $8 billion in new funding for science, technology and the growth of innovative firms. We are redefining the way governments, business people and the research community band together to drive economic activity through science.
At a time when innovation is increasingly dependent on collaboration, we are taking a leadership role by providing programs that bring the private and public sectors together, creating a supportive climate for start-ups, and attracting and retaining world-class talent.
Mitacs-Accelerate internships have proven to be an effective means to not only make it easier for businesses to innovate, but also increase the chances of successful innovation by tapping into one of Canada's competitive advantages—our world-class academic research.
This is why I am delighted to be here today to celebrate the $35-million investment by the Harper Government in Mitacs. Part of Economic Action Plan 2012, this funding will enable Mitacs to support industrial R&D at 1,200 additional companies by delivering 4,800 Accelerate internships over five years.
Through this investment, Mitacs will provide these companies with cutting-edge research expertise and skills. It will develop the ability of graduate students and post-doctoral fellows to apply their expertise to solving real-world challenges in the private sector. And it will enable valuable connections between academic researchers and businesses.
Today, more than ever, successful innovations come from companies working in partnership arrangements, whether with other firms or with knowledge institutions. This is a significant change from 40 or 50 years ago, when innovations generally came from large firms acting on their own. In short, the innovation landscape has changed. And the rate of change is accelerating.
In this new reality, it is organizations that are promoting information sharing and research connectedness—organizations such as Mitacs—which are driving economic advancements. And it is companies like Recon Instruments that will drive future economic growth by seizing opportunities to apply the latest scientific research and expertise. Now, and even more so in the future, successful countries will be those that create knowledge by supporting collaborative R&D and facilitate the private sector bringing innovations to the marketplace.
Again, I congratulate you on the amazing work you are doing here at Recon Instruments. You are truly a model of Canadian innovation.
I look forward to hearing about your progress and achievements in the coming months.
Thank you.
