Canada’s Fundamental Science Review: Add Your Voice

As you may know, the Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science, launched Canada’s Fundamental Science Review on June 13, 2016. We would like to draw your attention to this and encourage you to provide input.

The scope of this review includes the three granting councils along with certain federally funded organizations such as the Canada Foundation for Innovation. This review is being led by an independent panel, composed of nine (9) members, and aims to determine how best to optimize support for fundamental science in Canada. The panel has been provided with the following overall questions to consider as part of its review:

1. Are there any overall program gaps in Canada’s fundamental research funding ecosystem that need to be addressed?

2. Are there elements or programming features in other countries that could provide a useful example for the Government of Canada in addressing these gaps?

The panel is expected to spend the next six months consulting with the research community and to solicit input from relevant stakeholders — including universities, colleges and polytechnics, research hospitals, research institutes, industry, civil society — and the general public representing the diversity of views from across Canada. Those consultations and submissions may lead the panel to raise additional questions and offer additional advice to the Government. A final report will be released by the end of 2016.

No concrete dates for in-person consultation have been publicly announced and the panel members have not sent out a call for formal submissions for their consideration. However, the online portal (where all Canadians can share input and ideas) presents an important opportunity for the University of Alberta community to have early input into the process.

Submissions to the review through the online portal, which is accessible here, are welcomed until September 30, 2016.

Please note that the submission (with attachments not exceeding 15MB) may be posted on the Science Review website, unless the author indicates it is to be treated as confidential.

Thank you for your attention to this important opportunity.

Steven Dew
Provost and Vice-President (Academic)

Lorne Babiuk
Vice-President (Research)


Add your input to Canada’s Fundamental Science ReviewAdd your input to Canada’s Fundamental Science Review