News That Matters To You

By Pia Kinhult
The Canada-European Union Summit happens this week in Montreal. Pia Kinhult of European Spallation Source ERIC says Canada and the European Union must overcome internal fragmentation to remain globally competitive in technology and science innovation. By aligning their innovation strategies and removing administrative barriers, the two regions can leverage their combined strengths to secure prosperity in the Western world, she says.

By Andrew Maxwell
Canada’s persistent reliance on raw material exports stems from a "competency trap" where success in upstream resource extraction creates rigid internal structures that hinder downstream innovation. Andrew Maxwell of York University argues that shifting to high-value products through innovation requires new capabilities, specialized investment models, addressing unknown risks, and deeper market connectivity rather than just more capital.

By Andrew Maxwell
Institutional design, rather than a lack of talent or ideas, creates the primary barrier to innovation in an era of rapid technological change, says Andrew Maxwell of York University. In an ongoing series about myriad aspects of innovation, "Innovation Doctor" Maxwell argues that organizations must separate core stability from experimental exploration to increase their learning velocity and survive amid accelerating technologies and volatile disruption.

By Heather Fricke
Heather Fricke of Frick-E Energy warns that relying on historical data for AI decision-making risks turning past biases into automated mandates. This is the governance problem hiding inside many conversations about responsible AI, she says. To ensure responsible AI, organizations must distinguish between mere historical patterns and active evidence, maintaining human accountability to prevent self-reinforcing feedback loops.

By Andrew Maxwell
Universities and governments struggle to innovate because their governance systems prioritize protecting public legitimacy over rapid experimentation. In an ongoing series examining myriad aspects of innovation, Andrew Maxwell at York University explores how this structural friction creates inertia in volatile environments, and he argues that institutions must redesign their governance to value exploration and learning as much as compliance.

By Peter Josty
Canada earns the top spot in global innovation rankings by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, outperforming peer nations in the percentage of innovative enterprises and employment. Peter Josty from The Centre for Innovation Studies explores why this output-based success contrasts with Canada's productivity challenges, offering a nuanced look at the data behind the headlines.

By Ron Freedman
Ron Freedman of Research Infosource Inc. argues that attacking academic research as irrelevant, as the Canadian Taxpayers Federation recently did, misses the point, as today's seemingly obscure studies often become tomorrow's essential science -- providing a form of "societal insurance." Funding bodies should support all kinds of research, especially "That Will Never Work" research that pushes known boundaries, he says.

By Cristian Bucsa
Canada’s research institutions often suffer from a critical blind spot where the procurement trail of specialized research materials lacks a verfiable chain-of-custody record. Yet some research materials become part of the evidence behind the research itself. Cristian Bucsa of ReviveLab argues that bridging this gap is essential for ensuring research integrity, verifying experimental results and responsibly administering public research funding.

By Andrew Maxwell
Most organizations fail to innovate not because of a lack of talent, but because their internal systems, management structures and performance measures designed for a stable world that no longer exists, says Andrew Maxwell of York University. AI exacerbates these challenges. Maxwell explores how leaders can replace rigid, risk-averse frameworks with adaptive, evidence-based learning and practices to ensure survival in an era of constant disruption.