Merger to create new BC Innovation Council

The British Columbia government has announced the merger of two of the province’s key S&T organizations into a new centralized crown agency. The Innovation and Science Council of British Columbia (ISCBC) —formerly the Science Council of British Columbia — will be joined with the Advanced Systems Institute of BC (ASI) to create the BC Innovation Council. The move is designed to complement the new Leading Edge BC marketing organization, and provide a more effective leverage mechanism for federal and private sources. It will also assume administration of the provincial Science and Technology Fund, currently administered by the Ministry of Small Business and Economic Development. Former ISCBC CEO Cindy Lum will be COO of the BC Innovation Council. The merger began this month and is slated for completion in September. SCBC was established in 1976 while the ASI was created in 1986....