Thank you for the introduction Greg.
Good afternoon everyone.
It is great to be here in Cambridge today, and I would like to thank the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce for inviting me to speak with you.
Cambridge is obviously very close to the University of Waterloo’s hearts.
At last count, there were 2,751 graduates of the University of Waterloo living or working in Cambridge.
It is also my pleasure to speak to the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce today.
Local businesses, the small and medium sized enterprises, form the bedrock of this community’s economy, and indeed, are the foundation of Canada’s economy.
TD Bank notes that in 2003, small and medium-sized enterprises constituted 99 per cent of all firms, employed more than 60 per cent of all workers, and accounted for 45 per cent of Canada’s economic output.
So really there’s nothing “small” or “medium” about you.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we are living in an age of access.
Today, the means of production, the tools for innovation, in other words, knowledge, is in an ever-increasing number of hands.
This is having a transformative impact on world-class science and technology.
An unprecedented number of entities from all four corners of the globe are now competing for resources, for markets, and for talent.
We call it globalization, and we are seeing developing countries enjoying successful science and technology plans, where traditional limitations can now be overcome through the accumulation, and global trade of a wide variety of skills, goods, and most importantly knowledge.
What is the result? Centres for technological research and development are now globally dispersed, setting the stage for greater uncertainty in political and economic arenas.
After all, the next big idea could come from anywhere. This is a new concept. No longer can we focus solely on Silicon Valley for innovations, for example.
So the global competition for high tech S&T is heating up. What does this mean?
Well, among leading countries in the world, it suggests that countries that fail to exploit new technologies, or that lose the capability for proprietary use of their own new technologies will find their existing industries uncompetitive, or worse, obsolete.
Increased access to information has transformed the 1950s paradigm of “control and isolation” of information for innovation control, to the current paradigm of “engagement and partnerships” between innovators for innovation creation.
When we think about Waterloo Region’s, and even our country’s future strategies for science and technology development, we have to keep this in mind.
Consider our next-door neighbour, the United States.
Following the Second World War, the United States began one of the world’s first initiatives to provide government support for science and technology research, with the goal of producing innovations that would enhance the health, security, and economic well-being of all Americans.
Indeed, by some counts the US federal government accounted for two thirds of all research and development spending in the three decades following the Second World War.
The central focus of this knowledge mobilization was military and space-related research during the height of the Cold War, and the civilian applications of many spinoffs from that research are too numerous to mention.
The success of this and other initiatives, which, in subsequent decades propelled the United States to the peak of its prosperity, has been a model for other countries seeking to use S&T development to achieve greater wealth and power.
Here at home, we should assess our own preparedness for a successful innovation environment to ensure that we will be in a strong position for continued prosperity.
What should we use to measure our success? Global exchanges for education and talent. International and national recruitment of talent, and public policies that facilitate innovation.
For this to happen, the most successful innovation environments must be able to recruit talent into attractive positions with excellent facilities and research support.
Our globally connected and rapidly changing world has resulted in a more diverse mixture of markets, talents, competitors, and contributors for the next generation of scientific discoveries, disruptive technologies, and innovation environments.
The pace of change is accelerating, due to the explosive growth and accessibility of information, the increasing numbers of highly skilled scientists and engineers engaged in research and development, and the increasing number of countries investing in, and capable of, contributing to R&D.
So where does this leave Cambridge, and where does this leave the University of Waterloo?
Well, if we both play our cards right, it leaves us in an enviably strong position to build on our successes and seize opportunities in the coming years.
If Canada must now compete for talent and innovation, then we need to work together to raise our game.
The phrase “knowledge economy” has been widely used in recent years to describe how societies can be built around the effective use of knowledge.
A knowledge economy is one that views knowledge as a resource, valued not only for its own sake, but also as the key ingredient in social and economic productivity.
One measure of knowledge is the amount of research and development performed by our country’s small and medium sized enterprises.
TD Economics released a report in October 2010 that confirmed what a number of us already believe: that the SMEs that are positioned to succeed in the knowledge economy are the ones who are committed to pursuing knowledge through investment in research and development.
The report also notes that the time to innovate, to pursue increased R&D and invest in new technologies, is now.
SMEs can also exploit a productivity edge over their larger, slower counterparts.
So the question is, How can we assist small and medium sized enterprises, if research and development is seen as the key to success?
What role do universities play in the knowledge economy?
We are on the supply side.
We supply knowledge-creating, talented human capital to the regions in which our institutions reside, but more importantly, we provide them to the global economy.
There is a natural pipeline between universities and the broader world around them. I believe that innovation is that pipeline.
Building and reinforcing that pipeline should be our top priority, and that is one of the reasons why I am speaking with you today.
Allow me to return to the example of the United States for a moment.
The space race and the Cold War’s intensification resulted in a number of innovations thanks to a massive government mobilization of R&D.
But this situation did not last.
The United States was not immune to international competition.
Starting in the 1970s and 1980s, the policy environment shifted.
Government funding of R&D alone was no longer sufficient to keep the country on the cutting edge.
A recent review of award-winning innovations in the United States between 1971 and 2006 concluded that groundbreaking innovations increasingly resulted from partnerships among government, business and academia, rather than from companies acting on their own.
In 1971, for example, 86 per cent of the top innovations were developed privately, but by 2006, that number had fallen to 31 per cent.
This trend should come to us as no surprise, given the history of Waterloo Region.
Waterloo Region has a long tradition of adding value, of bringing the community together to build something that is greater than the sum of its parts.
Our enterprising settlers in the 19th Century built distilleries, mills, tanneries, and factories, making use of the abundant raw materials already present in the community. The region developed a diversified economy of agriculture, manufacturing, and export.
In the 21st Century, our diversified economy is still here, but knowledge has become the Number One renewable resource in our community.
And the buildings that once housed distilleries, warehouses, and tanneries are now occupied by think tanks, high-tech start-ups, university satellite campuses, and talented workers.
Cambridge is no exception. Your city is already a model of successful university-community partnership.
The fruits of our partnership are plentiful.
The opening of our School of Architecture was an important milestone for the University of Waterloo.
It was an audacious idea that combined the vision of Cambridge’s mayor and Council with the University of Waterloo’s risk-taking attitude.
And now, more than six years later, we can see the results.
Our students contribute more than $4 million dollars annually to the economy of Galt’s City Centre.
90 per cent of our students live within a ten-minute walk from our school.
The school hosts between 30 and 40 community events on an annual basis.
The School has hosted a number of installations, design charettes, and the annual “Unsilent Night” Christmas event that lights up the downtown core.
And the Grand Co-op, born out of a graduate thesis in 2008, sits proudly on Ainslie Street.
So how can universities help small and medium sized enterprises? I would like to answer that question by looking through the lens of our experience in Cambridge.
The first way is, of course, collaboration.
What kind of collaboration are we talking about?
Collaboration between students and faculty, co-op students and co-op employers, and researchers with industry, government, and other institutions.
Collaboration is what brought Cambridge and the University of Waterloo together.
The School of Architecture came about because local business leaders bent the ear of Mayor Doug Craig, who had promised to bring a post-secondary institution to revitalize downtown Galt.
This was a bold promise, one that inspired local leaders to take action.
These leaders made the visionary choice to invest in the success of their community.
Their vision was contagious, inspiring the City of Cambridge, the province, and the federal government to join them, resulting in a $27 million gift, and a new life for an old silk factory built a century ago.
The Cambridge School of Architecture is now our textbook example of the power of partnership.
So what’s next? What new visions can the University of Waterloo support in Cambridge?
Again, we look to the business community for inspiration. And we’ve equipped ourselves with some tools and resources to make the most of those collaborative opportunities.
The Waterloo Commercialization Office, part of our university’s Office of Research, is a gateway to engaging with Waterloo’s research achievements to support your business’s innovation activities.
Our open intellectual property policy has helped to lay the groundwork for the smooth transfer of ideas from the laboratory and the lecture hall to the marketplace.
Waterloo’s research partnerships with industry are among the strongest of all Canadian universities, with nearly 45 per cent of our research being funded in collaboration with industry partners.
Our Accelerator for Commercialization Excellence actively supports company creation.
Our government partners are using universities as part of that innovation pipeline.
Two programs I can highlight in particular include FedDev Ontario’s Applied Research and Commercialization Initiative.
The University of Waterloo received funding to support projects that involve collaborative projects with small and medium sized enterprises.
Activities include applied research, engineering design, technology development, product testing, and certification.
Three sectors in particular are eligible – Information Technology, Energy and Environment, and Manufacturing.
This is a pre-commercialization opportunity.
The NSERC Engage Grant Program provides grant support of up to $25,000 to fund a research project or development assignment for a Small and Medium Sized Enterprises.
It’s about tapping into a wellspring of expertise that exists on our campuses.
I mentioned earlier the importance of human capital in the knowledge economy.
Skilled graduates stand alongside promising research and innovations as the most important output of a university.
But as far as we’re concerned, why wait until our talented students graduate before accessing their value-added skills, motivation, and drive?
Thanks to our co-operative education program, they are a resource you can tap into right now.
Our co-op students are involved in almost every aspect of the Cambridge economy, from home-based businesses to Toyota.
Since 2004, over 160 companies in Cambridge have hired more than 1,500 Waterloo co-op students.
We have students working in both the private and public sector.
Several of our Cambridge co-op employers actually increased their co-op hiring during the recession, aiding the university in a time of crisis.
We aren’t limited to undergraduate students either. We do graduate, alumni, and summer recruiting, which benefits a wide cross section of businesses.
Employers who hire co-op students are first in line for permanent recruits once they have graduated. A co-operative work term is effectively a four-month long job interview.
Co-op integrates academic learning and work experience, and Waterloo’s research-intensive environment translates into relevant training for SMEs.
Our Department of Co-operative Education and Career Services supports chambers of commerce across southern Ontario.
We have field coordinators working with businesses across the province and the country.
Some of our field staff are in attendance today. I’d like to ask them to stand for a moment. They are:
o Margaret Adaran;
o Keith Middleton; and
o Montse Sanzsole.
Please feel free to say hello to them today. They are eager to seize opportunities for collaboration and co-operation with you.
For more than 50 years, the University of Waterloo has sought to provide a different kind of education – one that is related to the needs of our community.
The Cambridge School of Architecture is no exception.
Our School has also benefited immensely from the community.
The notion of service learning, for example.
Our students can work closely with the community in their research and thesis work, developing their high quality skills with real-world application, because they are directly involved in the kind of real-life practical community issues that are so important.
Issues like housing, business development, downtown revitalization, urban design, transit, and public spaces.
The service-learning approach that has helped define our Cambridge experience has been replicated in downtown Kitchener with our Health Sciences Campus.
Community involvement is a key component of the education experience for our students.
And we look to Stratford for lightning to strike a third time.
So what is the overall goal? Building on our successful innovation cluster in Waterloo Region, so that our small and medium sized enterprises have a platform to launch themselves into global leadership.
50 years ago, the United States dominated the global science and technology community.
There are now other major global players in an increasingly integrated global science and technology arena, and more are expected to arrive.
Canada is one of these countries, we have achieved significant milestones that allow us to count ourselves as a major player in high tech.
Top talent from around the world, talented people who would once have come to the United States without a second thought for higher education and postdoctoral or permanent positions in Science & Technology are now attracted to Canadian universities and Canadian enterprises with significant R&D capabilities.
With more than 95 per cent of the world’s talent residing outside of the United States, it is important for Canadian businesses and universities to recruit internationally.
This region has an attractive story to tell the world.
What is that story?
It is this: Ideas start at Waterloo and grow here through a collaborative approach that brings researchers together with communities and businesses to seek solutions to the challenges of today, and tomorrow.
Excellence through innovation. That’s the Waterloo Advantage.
Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge all learned long ago not to think small, and because of that we are punching above our weight.
Let’s keep that momentum going. Together.
Thank you.