Editorial - 21-12

Expect Canada's Not-So-New Government to come out with a major policy initiative on nanotechnology in 2008. If the Conservative administration lasts that long, it will almost certainly be unveiling a strategy for how Canada can play a niche role in this diverse yet profoundly important area of S&T.

Under the previous Liberal regime, major nanotech studies were received from the Office of the National Science Advisor and the former Advisory Council on Science and Technology. When the government changed hands, those reports — for reasons unknown — ended up on the shelf. And while they gathered dust, many other nations forged ahead with their own investments and strategies.

Lack of federal leadership on nanotech has prompted several provinces to formulate their own strategic plans, and appropriately so as Canada has several pockets of regional strength. Now Ottawa has decided that it needs to advance the nanotech file on the regulatory front since regulation for health and environmental impacts falls within the national mandate.

This is where the Council of Canadian Academies comes in. A creation of the previous government, it is quickly becoming the mechanism of choice for the Tories. The priority thrusts of its recent S&T Strategy drew heavily on the Council's inaugural report — . Now the Council is working on several key S&T files to produce the impartial advice Ottawa requires to formulate coherent, actionable policies. This is a system that appears to be working and is an example of skillful policy formulation in action.