September / October 2005
Ontario research outlook predicts greater global collaboration
Highlights of the 2005 Ontario R&E Summit
Looking ahead at major trends affecting research over the next 10 years, Ontario should expect to see growth in grid computing and in international collaborations in most scientific fields.
That's one of the conclusions shared at second annual Ontario R&E Summit, earlier this year.
One of Ontario's foremost scientists, Sudbury Neutrino Observatory Director Dr. Art McDonald, of Queen's University, not only foresees continued growth in global collaborations, but he called on Ontario to better leverage its investments in research in an increasingly competitive environment.
"We need to co-ordinate our investments if we are to succeed at home and co-operate internationally with countries that co-ordinate their major investments very well," he said, in a high-powered session which capped off the annual Summit, in Toronto June 14 and 15.
Dr. McDonald was among the 40 scientists, researchers and senior government and business officials who presented at the event, which drew approximately 170 participants from throughout the province.
Sessions ranged from high performance and distributed computing, commercialization of research, academic-industry research partnerships, and innovative applications and technologies.
Setting the tone for the Summit, keynote speaker Dr. Eliot Phillipson, President of the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) emphasized that among the CFI's primary objectives are to enhance the country's research capacity and to promote networking and collaboration.
"New ideas are today's most important resource and are essential for the innovation pipeline," he said.
Among the Summit highlights was Dr. Vincent Tao, Director of York University's GeoICT Research Lab, who took the audience high above the upper atmosphere for a real-time demonstration that zoomed in from a satellite image of the earth and zeroed in to a live webcam image of the Summit hotel intersection in downtown Toronto.
One session focused on the research capacity of Ontario's colleges of applied arts and technology. Several innovative research projects were highlighted, from manufacturing to advanced visualisation technology.
"There is tremendous opportunity to be had if we can recognize and harvest the unique role the colleges can play in the research - commercialization continuum," said one participant.
Carl Condon, VP, Technology Development, Bell Canada - the Summit's Platinum Sponsor, gave the keynote address to kick off the sessions on June 15.
Other keynotes included remarks by CANARIE President and CEO Andrew Bjerring, Nortel Networks' Director of Research and Experimental Networks Rodney Wilson and TELUS Chief Technology Officer, Ibrahim Gedeon.
Feedback from participants reflected appreciation of the event as a networking opportunity, and a call for future Summits to emphasize collaborative efforts between connected institutions.
Dates and location of the 2006 Summit, and a call for submissions will be announced shortly.
Download Summit presentations and browse a photo gallery on the website.
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