Higher Education : Innovation + Job News

Starting August 1, Dr. Darin Graham, a global innovation leader who has headed up research and innovation projects across Ontario and in Scotland and New Zealand, will take over as President and CEO of the Ontario Research and Innovation Optical Network (ORION). He replaces the network's retiring founder, Phil Baker.

Maxim Jean-Louis, chair of ORION's board of directors, notes that they "set out to get the very best and did get the very best" and says the the appointment represents a shift into a higher gear for the organization. "What it means for us is that we're going square into supporting the innovation agenda for the province," he says. "It means we've completed the building phase of our organization's development and we're preparing to get into the implementation phase. We know that based on Darin's experience he will be able to help us leapfrog into the forefront of innovation in Ontario."

ORION is an "ultra high-speed research and education network" that links 1.7 million Ontario researchers, scientists, students, teachers and staff to enable research collaborations and discoveries in physics, cancer research, environmental science and technologies, social sciences and the humanities and other disciplines.

Graham served most recently as head of New Zealand's ICT Innovation Institute and was formerly in charge of the Communications and Information Technology Ontario.

Jean-Louis says that in recruiting a "young man with an international record," the location in the GTA was a pivotal plus. "It was a huge asset," he says. "[Graham] told us that the government of Ontario's commitment to transforming the province into a hub of innovation interested him greatly."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Maxim Jean-Louis, Chair, Board of Directors, ORION

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From the Mozilla internet browser to the Linux-based Red Hat operating system, open source software development has been one of the biggest technologies stories of the millennium. Along the way, Toronto's Seneca College has been an academic leader in teaching and research on the subject -- indeed, the school has worked with both companies mentioned above to get their students involved in innovating on real-world open-source projects.

Late last month, the federal government announced $2.3 million in funding over five years aimed at helping that research benefit local businesses by taking "innovations from the campus into the marketplace," in the words of the government. The funding is part of $15 million in grants announced under the federal government's Community Innovation Program -- Centennial College, another local school, was also among those receiving grants.

Although the number of jobs that could be created by the investment was unclear at this stage -- jobs will flow from businesses bringing innovations to market, which is a difficult process to predict -- employment was the driving motivation indicated by federal cabinet minister Gary Goodyear in announcing the grants. "Our government supports innovation because it creates jobs, improves the quality of life of Canadians and strengthens the economy," he said. "We are supporting this project at Seneca College to strengthen the competitiveness of ... businesses and enable young Canadians to prepare for the jobs of the future."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Martine Perreault, Media and Public Affairs Officer, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

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The new waterfront campus of George Brown College -- under construction now and expected to be finished late next year -- will be home to an innovative approach to healthcare education preparing students for the new direction of medical services  in Ontario, according to spokesperson Paul Zanettos.

Zanettos says that the facility will be educating nurses and healthcare practitioners in a way that prepares them for a future in which Family Health Teams and Nurse-Practitioner-led Clinics will be ever more common, in line with priorities announced by the provincial government. The province, as if to underline his point, is a major contributor to the construction of the project, chipping in $61.5 million towards its cost. The school itself is investing $15 million, with additional money for the $175 million project coming from private sector partners.

The project will not only prepare students for the jobs of the future, but will directly create employment too, according to Zanettos. A significant number of workers will have been employed on the construction of the project, and there will be approximately 260 staff and 3,500 students within the George Brown campus building by the time it's complete.



Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Paul Zanettos, Media Relations Consultant, George Brown College

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Last month, a $35 million gift from philanthropist Peter Munk -- the largest in the history of the University of Toronto -- was added to $25 million from the province of Ontario to set up the Munk School of Global Affairs at U of T. This week Prime Minister announced that his government would be chipping in an additional $25 million to create a centre for global security at the school.

According to the federal government's website, Prime Minister Stephen Harper says, "This new Centre will help us develop deeper expertise in addressing global security concerns."

The new school is expected to employ top researchers from around the world at a newly constructed downtown facility to study issues around terrorism and global security. In a separate statement, school director Janice Gross Stein said the Munk School of Global Affairs is in an excellent position to tackle the mandate. "Issues of global security will be a defining framework for our country over the next decade and beyond, and Canada needs a strong publicly supported research centre to put the Canadian voice on the international stage," said Stein. "Given our strengths, the Munk School is the natural place to house this new Centre.

Although numbers were not immediately available, there are significant employment implications to the recent announcements, as the total of $85 million in funding will, according to University of Toronto representatives, construct new facilities and hire new faculty and administrators.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Sources: Janice Gross Stein, Munk School of Global Affairs; Office of the Prime Minister of Canada; University of Toronto Media Relations; Glob and Mail

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The former Lakeshore Lions Arena reopened April 23 with lots of fanfare after a renovation project that employed trades workers over the past year and will employ knowledge workers in the years to come, according to Humber public relations spokesperson Andrew Leopold.

The official opening of the Humber College Arts & Media Studios at the school's Lakeshore campus represented the payoff on $35 million in federal and provincial stimulus spending. The new building will be home to a host of arts, trades and media-related classes and programs, and will also house a gymnasium.

The federal government kicked in $5 million towards construction under its Knowledge Infrastructure program, while the province anted up another $30 million under its Open Ontario program in the 2009 budget. The money also funded the construction of Humber's Centre for Justice Leadership, which opened last November.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Andrew Leopold, Humber College

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A $15 million innovation initiative launched April 19 in Oakville by the Federal Government's Economic Development Agency will help Ontario small- and medium-sized businesses partner with Colleges and Universities to bring innovative products and services to market. At the launch, federal minister Gary Goodyear said that the Applied Research and Commercialization Initiative would drive jobs and the economy.

The initiative will allow smaller businesses that would like to innovate to partner with post-secondary institutions who can help them with research and bringing new products to market. The funding will go to educational institutions that offer, according to an announcement, "services focused on improving innovation, productivity and commercialization to help individual businesses with pre-commercialization activities. These activities may include: product and process applied research; engineering design; technology development; product testing; certification; and pilot testing as well as proof-of-concept work for a partner business."

Almost immediately, the move was applauded by representatives of the academic community. Polytechnics Canada, a national alliance of publicly funded colleges and institutes of technology, called the new program an "innovation game changer."

Nobina Robinson, CEO, Polytechnics Canada says that this pilot project is significant for her members in that it recognizes the role community colleges play in driving practical innovation and developing the economy. "The reason [community colleges] do research is to help companies and to give our students hands-on experience," she says, not to rack up credits as is often in the case with universities. "It's applied science, applied technology, appllied health, and what you see is the federal government saying they're going to give us the capacity to help companies and advance the economy."

In a release, Polytechnics Canada chair John Davies called it a win-win. "Everyone will benefit -- companies, Ontario colleges, students and graduates -- as well as the economy."

Those interested in applying can find information and applications at the FedDev website.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Nobina Robinson, CEO, Polytechnics Canada; Office of the Honourable Gary Goodyear

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In the wake of the success of Avatar and Sherlock Holmes, virtually every media commentator agrees that the future of the film business is in 3-D. But as the industry attempts to explore the storytelling potential of what is essentially a new medium, the local film industry finds itself facing an adjustment to a new type of production.

A series of initiatives, including Sheridan College's research project at Pinewood studios, are set to ensure that the GTA becomes a hub for 3-D filmmaking. The latest of these launches with a presentation April 23 at the Cinespace Studios in Toronto: 3D FLIC, a $1.4 million research project out of York University.

"The really interesting things will start to happen when people figure out how to use this technology," says Nell Tenhaaf, York University's research lead on the project. She says that the 3D FLIC project brings together partners from academia and various corners of the industry to explore technology, techniques and content. "We're trying to take on the whole package."

Tenhaaf agrees that the GTA is well-positioned to become a global hub for this new dimension of filmmaking. She says that many of the project's partners, including Cinespace film studios, have driving business and jobs as a key goal. "Certainly... that's what they want, to keep the studios full. We've always been a centre for film production," she says, noting that traditionally Toronto's attractiveness as a production centre varies from time to time based on the strength of the currency and the status of certain tax advantages. "If you have a solid expertise base, that makes you very attractive." Setting up that expertise base in 3-D is what this initiative is all about.

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Nell Tenthaaf, Associate Dean, Faculty of Fine Arts, York University

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A new study [pdf] for the Toronto Region Research Alliance from the Munk Centre at U of T says that Golden Horseshoe manufacturers need more research and development support from academia.

While noting that Southern Ontario manufacturers often enjoy a competitive advantage globally because of infrastructure and proximity to the U.S. market, the study's consultation of 76 industry players concluded that "Similar regions in Japan and Germany were consistently mentioned as being more advanced in research ... and, if Ontario is to compete on quality, this is an area that needs to be addressed."

The study goes on to suggest that deeper contacts need to be developed between universities and manufacturers. According to Ruth Lewkowicz, a spokesperson for the Toronto Region Research Alliance, they have formed a partnership with Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters and "are now exploring how the two organizations can partner to further engage the Southern Ontario manufacturing sector to address some of the issues raised."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Ruth Lewkowicz, Director of Marketing and Communications, Toronto Region Research Alliance

In a largely unheralded announcement just before Christmas, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) indicated it will invest over $3.43 million in research grants to Toronto universities.

The money from the arms-length federal government agency is intended to fund infrastructure that allows universities to attract and retain top talent, create and sustain jobs and foster innovation. According to the CFI, the investment should yield more than $24 million in economic benefits to Toronto, including jobs, due to the multiplier effect of the capital projects it funds.

The University of Toronto will receive $3,168,321 to support 19 different projects, including "Infrastructure for Molecular Genetics and Therapeutics in Sarcoma," "Establishment of a Live-Cell Imaging and Biochemistry Laboratory for Research in Organelle Biogenesis and Degradation" and "Pharmacogenetics in Psychiatry: a New Era of Personalized Medicine."

Ryerson University, meanwhile, will receive $264,401 to fund a "Combined X-Ray Diffraction and Differential Scanning Calorimetry Facility for the Evaluation of Phase Changes in Foods and other Materials."

The grants, given under the CFI's "Leadership Opportunities Fund," were among those awarded to 40 institutions across Canada totaling $59.39 million. The CFI said in its announcement that in addition to jobs created that are associated with capital construction, the awards will fund the work of "351 of the country's brightest minds."

Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: CFI