The first national Canadian science policy conference

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Compiled by Shawn Lawrence

Science policy is the discipline that lies at the interface of scientific enterprise and public administration. It is difficult to say just when the notion of “science policy” became a part of public deliberations about science and technology, but the consensus is that it has always been under attended in Canada.
Over the past five years there have been many changes to Canadian S&T policy, beginning with the position of the independent, nonpartisan advisor to the prime minister on science and technology which was introduced in 2004. This position was abolished in January 2008 after the Harper administration formed an 18-member Science, Technology and Innovation Council (STIC) in 2007. The federal government presently has two channels by which it receives external science and technology advice. The first is STIC, the second is the Council of Canadian Academics.
Born out of growing perception that the current Canadian science policy has limited external input from academic scientists and that science policy in Canada needs to be coordinated and shaped by an ongoing critical discussion, the first National Canadian Science Policy Conference (CSPC) will bring together industry, government and academia to discuss the current state of science policy in Canada.
This month Biotechnology Focus goes one on one with conference chair Dr. Mehrdad Hariri to discuss the conference, who will be there and what it will mean to the future of science policy in Canada.

Q: What are the objectives of this conference?

Dr. Mehrdad Hariri: “There are three primary objectives to this conference. The first is identifying and discussing current Canadian science policy issues, the second to create networking opportunities in order to forge stronger links between scientists and policy makers and lastly, to lay the foundation for establishing a Canadian “Virtual Institute” for science policy research. Something that is missing in Canada right now in terms of science policy is proper channels of communication, specifically a national firm in which stakeholders can raise their voice and talk not just with government but also with each other. We need an environment in which we can have a national dialogue on science policy. As a national conference the CSPC is an excellent opportunity for networking and could be a first step in bringing various stakeholders under one roof to hear from and get to know each other and possibly build alliances on those partnerships. Through these alliances a third goal can be achieved, which is to lay the foundation for establishing a Canadian “Virtual Institute” for Science Policy Research. This is perhaps the most exciting and possibly most ambitious goal that we have. Currently we do not have a national research institute dedicated to science policy. This conference can be the first step in creating a platform for such institute. Finally our slogan is better policies for better science, and we think this slogan represents what we had in mind in organizing such an effort.

Q: Who will be attending this conference and why is it important that these individuals will be there?

MH: It’s hard to estimate the number of participants but we are hoping for around 250-300 attendees. We expect people from numerous sectors to attend, ranging from both the private and public sectors. Most attendees will have a strong research and development focus, this includes scientific advisory bodies, scientific funding agencies, federal and provincial government departments, agencies and crown corporations, industry and private sector, academic schools and departments, research centres, universities, scientific associations and consulting firms. With respect to government agencies we have speakers and participants from various departments including Industry Canada, MRI, NRCan and many others.


Q: How does Canada’s science policy infrastructure compare with other countries?

MH: Science policy has always been under-attended in Canada, especially in comparison to the U.S. Here, there are very few university departments dedicated exclusively to science policy research and likewise there is no real infrastructure in place to ensure that the proper channels of communications between various stakeholders in science policy are open. Additionally, up until now there has been no national entity dedicated to science policy and we’ve never had an annual national forum in which science policy issues could be discussed among various stakeholders, and I think this is a major reason that we lag behind other countries when it comes to science policy infrastructure.

Q: How will this conference lay the groundwork for establishing a Canadian “Virtual Institute” for Science Policy Research?

MH: Currently we do not have an independent research institute with exclusive focus on Canadian science policy. We believe this conference can initiate discussions and efforts to mobilize our resources in creating such institute. The mechanism for moving toward such a goal is by forming a dynamic network of all those who are either experts or interested in the science policy field and the CSPC can very well serve this purpose. This network will be capable of initiating and hosting discussions around various issues of Canadian science policy including establish a research institute dedicated to science policy.
The virtual part reflects the fact that we respect the diversity and geography of our country. In order to benefit from all resources coast-to-coast, we will probably be better off using the existing models of several organizations, such as CIHR virtual institutes, CEFAR and many others. This will certainly be advantageous since there is no big money available at the beginning. But the need for a research institute dedicated to science policy in Canada cannot be more emphasized, it’s long overdue.

Q:What other highlights of the event can you offer our readers a sneak peak into?

MH: So far we have secured two keynote speakers and there are numerous prominent figures of science policy in Canada involved on our panel discussions. Over the course of the two and half day event various aspects of science policy will be discussed in a multi-panel format. The conference aims to discuss issues around five themes. They are: major issues in Canadian Science and Technology Policy; Scientific research in Economic Growth and recession; Science and technology and Canada’s future challenges; Science and Public engagement; and Science and technology in the Global village.
In total, there will be 13 panels, each will have four to five speakers. There are two plenary sessions and the rest will be concurrent sessions. This means that there will be more than 60 speakers from across the country. We have tried to have both balanced and diverse representation in each panel from the private sector, industry, academia and government. Our hope is that this leads to open discussion panels between various sectors of Canadian science and technology, that will allow for the exchange of ideas about how to best use the scientific knowledge input into the policy making process. Additionally we hope that it will form the basis for long-term lines of communication and better policy for better science.
I must mention that we have had an excellent organizing committee in place, all of its members are young and enthusiastic. This group has put together what will surely be a memorable event, all on a volunteer basis. It has been a very pleasant and of course challenging experience, but I am sure the landscape will never be the same as before. They are determined to be active in shaping the future of science policy making in Canada

Q: Will this be the first of many conferences on science policy?

MH: The plan from the earliest stages of organizing this conference as mentioned is that we needed a national forum on science policy that occurred on a regular basis. So, we do aim to make this an annual event.

Q:There are those in industry who say that they should be the ones dictating science policy as opposed to academics, what response would you like to give them?

MH: I don’t think any particular sector can dictate such policies alone. Scientific research, innovation, commercialization are all part of that chain. Without proper policies for example, the proper process for innovation and development of new products cannot be as efficient. Every invention, from Blackberry to development of a new drug requires massive and continuous investment in basic science and of course in order to insure implementation of science policies, the first thing needed is the proper channels of communication in which all stakeholders are included, from academia, to industry and to the public sector. Science policy is a landscape in which various stakeholders have things in common, for making the best use of this landscape we need a multi-player effort. Moreover, this is a time for us in the scientific community and industry to set aside our differences and participate in a dialogue on matters that may be the key to urgent issues facing our sector, including our weaknesses in commercializing our innovations, something Canada is lagging behind in. This conference is one way that we hope that we can at least initiate some sort of discussion at a national level. I think this is going to be both a successful event and a must attend event to participate in.