Canada's Fundamental Science Review | UBC Research + Innovation

UBC fully endorses the recommendations made by the Fundamental Science Review and we encourage the UBC community to continue to tell Canadians why research and the Review’s recommendations are so important to Canada.

Read UBC president Santa Ono's blog post following the 2018 federal budget.

Read UBC president Santa Ono's statement on the release of the report and the joint opinion piece, Ottawa must improve research funding – or risk losing the innovation race.

VIEW UBC'S SUBMISSION TO THE FUNDAMENTAL SCIENCE REVIEW PANEL

The final report was published in April, 2017.

Report of Canada's Fundamental Science Review

Executive Summary

Background and Consultation

The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science, launched an independent review of federal funding for fundamental science in June 2016. The review was to assess the program machinery that is currently in place to support science and scientists in Canada. The scope of the review included the three granting councils along with certain federally funded organizations such as the Canada Foundation for Innovation.

The review was led by an independent panel of distinguished research leaders and innovators including Dr. David Naylor, former president of the University of Toronto and chair of the panel. Other panelists included:

Dr. Robert Birgeneau, former chancellor, University of California, Berkeley
Dr. Martha Crago, Vice-President, Research, Dalhousie University
Mike Lazaridis, co-founder, Quantum Valley Investments
Dr. Claudia Malacrida, Associate Vice-President, Research, University of Lethbridge
Dr. Art McDonald, former director of the Sudbury Neutrino Laboratory, Nobel Laureate
Dr. Martha Piper, interim president, University of British Columbia
Dr. Rémi Quirion, Chief Scientist, Quebec
Dr. Anne Wilson, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research Successful Societies Fellow and professor of psychology, Wilfrid Laurier University

READ THE NEWS RELEASE

In forming an institutional response to the Fundamental Science Review and the innovation Agenda, UBC consultation with faculty, staff and students took the form of four roundtable meetings. At these meetings, input was received on the issues relevant to the mandates of the two federal initiatives.

The questions that we sought input on during these sessions included:

Structure of granting councils and peer review
Balance between elements funded
Big science
Internationalization of research
Develop, recruit, and retain talent
Clusters for innovation
Platforms

The roundtable meetings were held on:

Tuesday, August 30, 1–3 pm, UBC Vancouver Campus
Thursday, September 1, 1–3 pm, UBC Okanagan
Tuesday, September 6, 1–3 pm, UBC Vancouver Campus
Wednesday, September 7, 2–4 pm, Blusson Lecture Hall, ICORD

ONGOING ENGAGEMENT

SOCIAL MEDIA

We recently invited a number of our researchers to talk about their research and why the recommendations of the report matter to them.

If you are a UBC researcher and would like to produce a similar video, please let us know.

Social media discussions around the report have mobilized largely around the hashtag #supportthereport.

Resources

The Association of Canadian Early Career Health Researchers: Guide for faculty wishing to engage further with MPs.

Canadian Association of University Teachers advocacy: “Get Science Right”

#SupporttheReport: Webpage

Science and Policy Exchange: #Students4theReport campaign

UBC Postdoctoral Association: Overview of the report's relevance to postdocs and how to take action in support

Universities Canada

Universities Canada have created a webpage showcasing their call for action on the report, including the publication Improving lives and building a stronger Canada through research.

UBC TOWNHALL

On June 21,2017 UBC welcomed Dr. Martha Crago, Vice President, Research at Dalhousie University and member of the Federal Science Review Panel, to UBC for a town hall to discuss the recent report of Canada's Fundamental Science Review.

The town hall attracted over 250 participants in-person at the Life Sciences Institute and via webcast. Colleagues at universities across BC were invited to participate.

VIEW THE WEBCAST
VIEW DR. CRAGO'S SLIDES
READ MINISTER DUNCAN'S LETTER TO TOWN HALL ATTENDEES