Yesterday’s Globe and Mail contained an op-ed by David Naylor (President, University of Toronto) and Stephen Toope (President, University of British Columbia). Outlining seven “innovation nostrums,” they argue that Canada’s productivity gap can’t be fixed by quick solutions. Rather, creating a national culture of innovation requires sustained investments and thorough planning. They highlight the role the social sciences and humanities can play, articulating how graduates from all disciplines can foster creativity and innovation.

In a letter sent to the editor, CFHSS President Noreen Golfman concurs with their conclusions:

It is refreshing to see our senior academic leaders challenging tired mantras. University of Toronto President David Naylor and University of British Columbia President Stephen Toope (Don’t swallow these nostrums – Aug. 30) are absolutely right in calling for a move from invention and commercialization to a culture of innovation, mobilizing the talent and ingenuity of every sector and discipline to close the country’s productivity gap. Social sciences and humanities graduates offer some of the best potential to close this gap, particularly as we move towards an increasingly digital economy driven by content rather than technology.  We need more programs and mentoring initiatives that encourage collaboration among academia, government, business and the voluntary sector. No single sector or discipline has all the answers for confronting today’s complex issues.

Summertime usually conjures up images of lakes, sunshine and gardens. Here at the Federation,  summer is also the time to think about priorities – specifically, to develop our submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance, with our recommendations on the priorities for the 2011 federal budget.

This year, our recommendations centre on mentoring the next generation, supporting the highest levels of research excellence and building strong connections with the user community.  The Federation also identifies key features for new investments in SSH research, including:

•    Well-defined ambitious and large themes linked to pressing socio-economic issues, with direct relevance in Canada and within the international community;
•    Cross-sectoral, interdisciplinary, cross-jurisdictional work as required  by the issues;
•    Promoting knowledge mobilization and links with users in the public, private, and voluntary sectors;
•    Strengthening the ability of not-for-profits to partner with academia to address socio-economic issues, notably by creating a level playing field for the voluntary sector to access start-up and entrepreneurial funds that are at present available only to business;
•    Support for skills development and mobility nationally and internationally;
•    Developing clusters of global expertise at Canadian universities; and
•    Training of next-generation research talent by providing opportunities to work with best researchers and users in public, private and voluntary sectors.

Our full submission can be found on our website.

“A degree will help you get ahead” – so many young Canadians have been told. But with crippling debt and high tuition costs, the cost of getting post-secondary education can become higher than the benefits.

And, as Roseann O’Reilly Runte points out in a recent Globe and Mail piece, these disincentives for attending post-secondary education actually end up hurting society as a whole. President of Carleton University, Dr. Runte argues that without access to education, our world would be “a hotbed of strife.” Education, on the other hand, promotes civic engagement and connections to the community, leading to richer experiences and better wellbeing for students and community members alike.

While Canada has excellent education available, Dr. Runte calls for continued support in providing access to education. In turn, she argues, this will lead to innovation, economic development and civic engagement. After all, she states,

A truly powerful society is one where ideas reign and where an educated population is understood as the greatest possible resource.

Read Dr. Runte’s full op-ed here.

Daniel Paul O’Donnell, Federation member and Co-President of the Society for the Digital Humanities wrote an op ed piece in the Edmonton Journal this week discussing the role that the humanities and social sciences have in the development of Canada’s digital economy. According to O’Donnell, “What makes the new digital economy so exciting and so different from what came before is the emphasis it places on problems humanists and social scientists have always studied: organization and communication; finding the balance between the group and the individual; and producing, disseminating and sharing cultural work.”

O’Donnell’s comments are timely given that the government’s digital economy consultation has just closed. As a country we need to ensure that perspectives from across the full spectrum of disciplines are able to contribute to innovation and problem solving. O’Donnell’s piece is a good reminder of what we have to offer in this regard. The full article is available on the Edmonton Journal website. Enjoy!