Dr Elizabeth Cannon, president and vice-chancellor, University of Calgary.

Taking on the world's rising economies through collaboration and research investment

By Dr Elizabeth Cannon

The third Science, Technology and Innovation Council "state of the nation" report, released earlier this year, says Canada risks erosion of its competitive talent advantage if it does not make significant investments in research and education. The report findings are no surprise. It says that Canada continues to rank in the mid-levels as a performer in science, technology and innovation when compared to other countries.

While noting that Canada can celebrate the high quality of talent coming out of our postsecondary institutions – and calling that talent a "competitive advantage" – the report signals that the country requires real improvement in other areas. Among the key challenges highlighted is the need to enhance private sector investments in R&D, which continue to lag behind many other countries. When a country such as ours trails on R&D spending, we typically trail in productivity and competitiveness measures as well.

One need only look at the international horizon to witness the changing dynamic. Many of Canada's international competitors are coming from new places. As European countries and the United States continue their slow economic recovery, Asia and South America are home to the world's rising economies.

Expansion and productivity in emerging nations are changing our world in ways we are only beginning to grasp. Since 2008, GDP in India and China has been growing by an average of more than 7% a year, in real terms, and Brazil's is growing by 3% per year. Meanwhile, in the developed OECD nations, annual GDP growth has been less than 1% per year.

New realities require new ways of competing. In Canada, one of our greatest assets is our high-quality education system. Now, as never before, there is an urgent need to leverage that asset for growth and prosperity.

In our knowledge economy, progress relies heavily on technological and process advancements; prosperity requires innovation. And innovation increasingly happens at the junction between university research and business initiative.

Universities are natural partners for private sector R&D. They help businesses solve problems through new technologies and new ideas. Through their international connections, they open up new markets; through their expertise, they uncover efficiencies.

So how can educational institutions help Canada compete? Among the most effective and efficient ways of improving our competitive position and boosting our economic prospects is through increased collaboration between universities and business. Canadian universities conduct close to $900 million in research annually in partnership with the business sector.

Partnership through R&D is not solely the domain of industry however. The not-for-profit sector is also investing heavily in university R&D; in 2011, this sector represented another $1 billion in university research.

But in the competitive global marketplace, this is still not enough. Canadian companies spend less on R&D than our direct competitors. Israeli companies, for example, spend proportionately three times more on R&D than do Canadian firms, while Swedish, German and American companies invest more than twice as much.

Further collaboration is essential. Collaborative and innovative research between universities and business is a key link to economic prosperity. For example, Roger Butler, a former Imperial Oil employee (1983 to 1995), who held the first Endowed Chair in Petroleum Engineering at the University of Calgary, is often referred to as the father of steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD), after developing one of the most commercially effective technologies for extracting bitumen in Alberta's oil sands. Today, SAGD is a key technology driving new innovations to increase oil production using the smallest amounts of water, natural gas, electricity and land. This breakthrough technology will continue to play a key role in the future of the oil sands.

Another significant way universities support business innovation is through internships. Interns and co-op students bring energy and a wealth of new ideas and new knowledge to their placements in business and civil society. Along the way, they learn how organizations operate and develop the skills and contacts that will help them in their future careers.

Today, half of all undergraduate students participate in internships and co-ops during the course of their studies. Expanding these kinds of opportunities for Canadian students — especially at the graduate level — will improve knowledge transfer to industry and help businesses of all sizes become more innovative and competitive.

Still, we can do even more by challenging the status quo. Canada's universities and businesses are actively engaging the public and policy-makers in a number of areas that will improve partnership opportunities, and in turn boost our bottom-line global competitiveness. Policy decisions supporting areas such as research funding, graduate education, and immigration of skilled individuals can all help.

Universities and the private sector can do more for Canada by partnering and collaborating. Industry needs the ideas, imagination and creativity universities provide. Universities benefit from the real-life challenges businesses present.

The true beneficiaries are all Canadians, because industry and university collaboration creates jobs, builds prosperity and enhances our quality of life.

Dr Elizabeth Cannon is president and vice-chancellor of the University of Calgary. An expert in geomatics engineering, she is a former dean of the Schulich School of Engineering and is a former holder of the NSERC/Petro-Canada Chair for Women in Science and Engineering.