Editorial - 30-8

Alberta is the latest province to overhaul its research and commercialization activities and it's a major change. The consolidation of four Alberta Innovates (AI) corporations into a single entity aims to amplify its scarce provincial resources while simplifying the navigation of the public innovation ecosystem.

It was only seven years ago that the province created the AI corporations, reducing the number of government S&T agencies from 10 to four. That they were established with separate (and differing) administrations, labour agreements and boards appears to be — in retrospect — an oversight that is now being addressed.

Alberta in 2016 is also in a very different economic and innovation space than it was in 2009. The oil sands boomed during that period and the province was debt free. The current reality is starkly different, with depressed commodity prices and now wildfires stretching tax dollars and prompting policy makers to think outside of the box.

With similarly fresh thinking at the federal level, the time is opportune for Alberta to take stock and forge a path where economic diversity, sustainable energy sources and S&T success are the dominant objectives. The province must strive to become an even greater magnet for highly skilled talent that can assist in its long-overdue transition to an economy and society where knowledge drives commerce to a far greater degree.

Leveraging the R&D strengths of its academic intuitions — both pure research and applied — and entrepreneurial class will go a long way towards positioning S&T as the new Alberta Advantage.