News from the IPL
UPCOMING EVENTS
Jul 16, 2020 11:00 AM
As firms and communities adapt to current pandemic conditions, many entrepreneurs and creative/knowledge workers continue to work from home. While some predict this will spell a long term shift to working from home and a reorganization of businesses more generally, what are the implications for the role of entrepreneurial ecosystems in supporting innovation? This panel explores the short and long term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems.
Panelists:
Catherine Beaudry – Professor, Department of Mathematical and Industrial Engineering at Polytechnique Montréal
Ben Spigel – Senior Lecturer in Entrepreneurship and Director of Entrepreneurship and Innovation MSc at the University of Edinburgh Business School
Tara Vinodrai – Director, Master of Urban Innovation and Associate Professor at the University of Toronto Mississauga
David Wolfe – Co-Director, Innovation Policy Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy and Professor, Political Science at the University of Toronto Mississauga
Links to Recent Webinars
Will COVID-19 Bring Us Together or Blow Us Apart? The Global Security Implications of the Pandemic
This is a recording of the July 7th, 2020 event focused on the national and international security implications of the COVID-19 pandemic. Janice Stein discusses the historical security lessons of previous pandemics and depressions, Jon Lindsay considers emerging military and strategic dangers exacerbated by COVID-19, and Ron Deibert discusses the cybersecurity and surveillance threats associated with the unprecedented relocation of life online.
This is a recording of the June 11, 2020 event focused on how will COVID-19 shape the future of our cities. Join experts Anita McGahan, Shauna Brail (School of Cities), and Nathalie des Rosiers (Massey College), Richard Florida (School of Cities Professor) as they discuss cities after COVID with Marcia Young, host of CBC’s World Report.
This is a recording of the June 11, 2020 event focused on the impact of COVID-19 on higher education. Speakers: Shiri Breznitz, Heike Mayer, Donald Siegel and Elvira Uyarra.
The Future of (Decent?) Work After COVID-19
This is a recording of the May 26, 2020 Munk School / Innovation Policy Lab / CIFAR event focused on the future of work after COVID-19. Speakers: Dan Breznitz, Zabeen Hirji and Peter Warrian.
This is a recording of the May 11th 2020 event focused on “what will the world look like in the wake of COVID-19?” Speakers: Shauna Brail, Anita McGahan, Tara Vinodrai and Shiri Breznitz.
COVID-19 and the World’s Grand Challenges
This is a recording of the May 8th 2020 event focused on “what impact will COVID-19 have on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?” Speakers: Anita McGahan, Joseph Wong and Karlee Silver.
How is COVID-19 affecting global supply chains?
This is a recording of the April 29th 2020 event focused on “how is COVID-19 affecting supply chains in Canada and around the globe?” Speakers: Dan Breznitz, Shauna Brail and Steven Denney.
RESEARCHERS
Building a More Inclusive Innovation Economy After the Pandemic
For decades, Canada has struggled with sub-par business investment in innovation – a “low-innovation equilibrium.” Where innovation is happening, opportunities to participate and benefit from it have been distributed unevenly. As the COVID-19 crisis exposes socioeconomic disparities in the country, it should force us to change the way we think about innovation policy. How can we use it to expand the reach of our social policies, strengthen local supply chains, and secure a future of decent work? How can our policies ensure that more Canadians prosper from innovation-driven growth rather than be excluded from it? Researchers in the Innovation Policy Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto explore these issues in this feature series on how the pandemic affects innovation and inclusive growth in Canada. What policies, strategies and resources will we need to rebuild a stronger and more inclusive innovation economy going forward? See the Policy Digest section of this newsletter below for more information on each of the articles.
INTERVIEW
David A. Wolfe is Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Co-Director of the Innovation Policy Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto. He was the Royal Bank Chair in Public and Economic Policy from 2009-2014. Interview performed by Zissis Hadjis on May 15, 2020
In a sentence or two, describe your area of research. Why is it important and interesting to you? Why did you decide to pursue it?
I’ve been working on innovation policy generally since about the mid-80s, and went to work for the Province of Ontario in the early 1990s. Since I came back to the University of Toronto, I’ve been primarily focused on local and regional innovation, economic development policies, and cluster characteristics, life cycles, and governance.
Are there any updates from your work or current projects that you can share?
We just wrapped up a major five year SSHRC-funded partnership project in the spring of 2019 called Creating Digital Opportunity (CDO) for Canada. I also produced a policy paper for the Institute for Research on Public Policy titled A Digital Strategy for Canada. I’m currently working on three additional projects which focus on 1) the challenges faced by scale-up firms and the policy support they feel they need (with Steven Denney and Travis Southin), 2) variations in provincial policies to promote the adoption and use of electric vehicles in Canada (with Nathan Lemphers), and 3) urban mobility ecosystems, particularly looking at connected and autonomous vehicles (with Elena Goracinova).
What impact do you hope your research can have?
We always want to help inform government policymakers, but also feed our research into not-for-profit organizations, innovation intermediaries, and other associations who are working with policymakers.
What are the biggest opportunities and challenges facing your area of research?
The biggest opportunity is trying to conceive how the Canadian economy is going to be reconfigured. We were in the midst of a massive restructuring already, and now with COVID, many people are saying that sectors such as oil will not come back to the way it was before the pandemic. I think the major challenge, both for the future of the Canadian economy and for innovation policy, is to figure out how to capitalize on our own research and commercialize it in Canada, and use it to build and support scale up firms domestically.
What do you think the innovation landscape will look like in 5 or 10 years?
I think the innovation landscape is going to be changed in substantial ways by COVID, such as the accelerated pace of technology adoption by companies. Things that would have taken a year to two are happening in two months, and it’s going to create huge disruption for a lot of existing firms, such as those in retail, who can’t figure out how to combine online buying with physical buying.
What was the best book (or article) you’ve read recently? Why?
I’d say “America Inc.? Innovation and Enterprise in the National Security State” by Linda Weiss, which I think should be mandatory reading for policymakers and those interested in innovation for the simple reason that it paints a picture of the United States which completely contradicts the standard image that the US is a laissez-faire market driven economy.
What advice would you give a new graduate student interested in innovation?
Pick an area of innovation studies or innovation policy where you think you see a trend emerging that hasn’t been well-researched and drive a stake in the ground to make that your own. Then, develop an expertise that you can use to distinguish yourself from the rest of us who have been skimming the surface for a long time.
Editor's Pick
Skilling Canadians for Leadership in the AI Economy
David Ticoll, TECHNATION
David Ticoll is a Distinguished Fellow, Innovation Policy Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, University of Toronto. The report highlights the following trends related to AI talent in Canada: demand for AI skills is unevenly distributed, resulting in an emerging two-tier AI economy of leaders and laggards; Public sector organizations are underinvesting in AI; in many sectors, there’s limited understanding within management of what AI can and should mean for their organizations; not enough schools deliver AI courses and programs to meet demand; this is limited by not enough available AI educators; upskilling from a traditional (non-AI) technical career into an AI-focused one can be challenging requiring new skills and new ways of working. To address Canada’s changing tech landscape, the Report includes an innovative AI Jobs and Skills Framework that provides a starting point for workforce planning, skills development and labour market analysis. It also includes a roadmap – a series of recommendations – to help employers, educators and governments make informed decisions regarding AI leadership and implementation, workforce development, staffing and training.
Cities, Clusters & Regions
TCI North America Webinar “Building back better: Canadian Clusters on Sustainability and Recovery”
TCI Network
This virtual discussion will explore how Canadian green clusters are building a more sustainable recovery. The July 29th (12EST) webinar will feature Rob McMonagle, City of Toronto, Michaela Norberger, ZebX, and Vincent Dugré, Bivizio &TCI Network, and jointly moderated by Dorinda So, pointA and Patricia Valdenebro, TCI Network. The full online session will be 90 minutes, with plenty of time for questions. Registration for the webinar is free of charge and open to both TCI members and non- members. During the webinar we will delve into:
Cluster development from the Canadian perspective. How does cluster development look like in the Canadian context, especially during this pandemic?
Green clusters and the sustainability agenda. Why sustainability affects us all and how we can champion the sustainability agenda through cluster work in a time when “sustainability” seems more like a “nice to have” rather than a “need to have.”
Sustainability as a driver of economic recovery. How can sustainability and green clusters help drive economic recovery from the pandemic.
Innovation Policy
PCAST Recommends Bold Actions to Ensure American Leadership in Industries of the Future
SSTI
The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) is recommending a set of actions to help ensure continued American leadership in Industries of the Future (IotF), including artificial intelligence (AI), quantum information science (QIS), advanced manufacturing, advanced communications, and biotechnology. The three pillars underpinning these actions are: enhancing multi-sector engagement in research and innovation; creating a new institute structure that integrates one or more of the IotF areas and spans discovery research to product development; and ensuring the availability of a qualified, diverse IotF workforce.
Report: Building Back Better with a Bold Green Recovery
Ralph Torrie, Céline Bak & Toby Heaps, Corporate Knights
The Building Back Better plan set out in this report is a synthesis of seven white papers published between April 22 and June 3 . This plan asserts that governments have a unique opportunity today to boost economic growth, create millions of new jobs and position Canadian businesses as suppliers rather than buyers in tomorrow’s economy. This document outlines a series of investments that the federal government could make to set Canada on a path to a resilient, net-zero economic recovery. The areas for investment for the Building Back Better Canada Plan include the following programs: deep retrofits of homes and workplaces; accelerated electric vehicle (EV) uptake; support for active mobility (e.g. walking and biking); greening of the electricity grid; decarbonizing of heavy industry; nature-based climate solutions for our forests and farmland, and making Canada a leading supplier of EV components and zero-carbon natural resources.
Statistics and Indicators
Study: Automation and Job Transformation in Canada: Who is at risk?
Statistics Canada
This study is the first to provide a detailed examination of the risk of job transformation due to automation faced by different groups of Canadian workers based on the tasks that they perform. The study found that, overall, 10.6% of Canadian workers were at high risk of automation-related job transformation in 2016 (prior to COVID-19). A higher proportion (29.1%) were at a moderate risk. Several groups had a relatively higher share of workers who were at high risk, including those who were 55 years and older, had no postsecondary credentials or postsecondary credentials in certain fields, had low literacy or numeracy proficiency, or had low employment income. Workers who were employed part time, in small firms, or in the manufacturing sector also faced a higher risk of automation-related job transformation. Workers who were employed in certain occupations were at a higher risk than others. Notably, over one-third of workers in office support occupations (35.7%) were at a high risk of job transformation due to automation. Conversely, virtually no one in several professional occupations faced a high risk. These included professional occupations in law and social, community and government services; professional occupations in education services; and specialized middle management occupations in administrative services, financial and business services, and communications (except broadcasting).
Policy Digest
Building a More Inclusive Innovation Economy After the Pandemic
For decades, Canada has struggled with sub-par business investment in innovation – a “low-innovation equilibrium.” Where innovation is happening, opportunities to participate and benefit from it have been distributed unevenly. As the COVID-19 crisis exposes socioeconomic disparities in the country, it should force us to change the way we think about innovation policy. How can we use it to expand the reach of our social policies, strengthen local supply chains, and secure a future of decent work? How can our policies ensure that more Canadians prosper from innovation-driven growth rather than be excluded from it? Researchers in the Innovation Policy Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto explore these issues in this feature series on how the pandemic affects innovation and inclusive growth in Canada. What policies, strategies and resources will we need to rebuild a stronger and more inclusive innovation economy going forward?
Reconstruction Planning Must Take Into Account Existing Economic Trends
David A. Wolfe
This article makes the case that the government’s approach to reopening the economy post-pandemic needs to account for decarbonization and digitization. Reconstruction efforts must take into consideration these two long-term trends that were already reshaping the economy.
Cutting post-secondary budgets during COVID a bad move
Shiri M. Breznitz & Daniel Munro
This article asserts that Canada’s universities face a financial crisis. With a full and normal return to classes in September off the table due to ongoing risk from COVID, funding from tuition sources are threatened. At the same time, governments keen to balance budgets are cutting post-secondary funding. However, this article argues that this will hurt the economy, innovation and research in the long-term.
For the arts, the show must go on after COVID-19
Shauna Brail, Nathalie Des Rosiers, Anita M. McGahan
The COVID-19 pandemic has shattered the arts sector. The shutdown of the arts has had serious repercussions on the economy and on our psyche. This article suggests some policy recommendations for the arts sector. First, federal, provincial and municipal governments must continue to ensure that relief packages are designed in a way that reaches artists. Second, the pandemic crisis should lead us to reimagine our cultural policies especially because it is accelerating the digital transformation that had threatened the arts with problems such as piracy even before the pandemic.
Learning from Denmark’s socially inclusive approach to COVID-19
Darius Ornston
This article illustrates how the Nordic model of COVID response encourages inclusion, using the welfare state to promote social solidarity. The Nordic example highlights how inclusive innovation is worth taking seriously as social cohesion represents a valuable asset for Canada and others seeking to navigate a growing number of disruptive epidemiological, economic and geopolitical threats.
How contact tracing by employers could change the economics of innovation
Anita M. McGahan
This article argues that a thoughtful, well-managed and balanced system for contact tracing is essential for preserving our core values of privacy, freedom, equity and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. The system must protect workers’ rights and to disincentivize employers from eliminating jobs.
Is this Canada’s last chance to revive manufacturing and long-term prosperity?
Dan Breznitz
COVID has highlighted how rapid offshoring has left Canada in a vulnerable position. From swabs, facial masks, drugs and ventilators to simple computers and advanced 5G telecommunication products, we are largely dependent on overseas suppliers. This article argues that a strategy for action must address the managerial and financial regulations and incentives that have made offshoring the rational, as well as engineer a response to rebuild our depleted production capacities.
An opportunity to reimagine the role for platform economy firms
Shauna Brail
This article illustrates how COVID-19 has exposed the vulnerabilities of firms like Airbnb and Uber. It’s also an opportunity for cities to recalibrate their policies. This article explores how we can design policies that ensure reciprocal benefits from the presence of platform economy firms.
A chance to rethink our approach to innovation and inclusive growth
Dan Breznitz & Daniel Munro
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed fragilities and inequities in Canada’s innovation economy. At the same time, COVID presents an opportunity to reorient the Canadian economy out of its low innovation equilibrium and in ways that provide more people with opportunities to participate and benefit. But we need better data to gain a clearer picture of exactly who is participating, who benefits, and how different sectors and actors are faring to inform decision-makers in industry, government and civil society about where we should focus our resources and efforts.
Events
Research Money Design Thinking Workshops
Research Money is offering a series of design thinking workshops on innovation challenges, in collaboration with IBM Canada’s Centre for Advanced Studies. Six series of workshops will run from June 15 to August 29. Each series consists of five 2-hour sessions (9 am to 11 am Pacific time) on separate days.
Challenge A: How do we capitalize on our natural resources strength to grow the green economy?
First series: June 15, 17, 19, 22 and 24. Second series: August 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14.
Challenge B: How do we capitalize on foreign direct investment to scale domestic tech firms?
First series: July 6, 8, 10, 13 and 15. Second series: August 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21.
Challenge C: How do we capitalize on research excellence to enhance prosperity & quality of life?
First series: July 20, 22, 24, 27 and 29. Second series: August 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28.
Regional Innovation Policies Conference
Aalborg, Denmark, 25-26 March 2021
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak the conference has been postponed to March 25 and 26, 2021 in Aalborg, Denmark. The conference will focus on regions in transformation – as well as transformations in regional innovation policy and new developments in methods for defining and analyzing regions. Submission deadline: 30th November 2020.
Canadian Science Policy Conference
Ottawa, Canada, 23-25 November, 2020
The CSPC 2020 call for panel proposals is now open. The 12th Canadian Science Policy Conference (CSPC 2020), will be held in Gatineau Quebec on November 23-25, 2020 at Hilton Lac-Leamy. Presenters are invited to submit proposals in a variety of presentation formats that revolve around any of the conference themes. Due to the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individuals and organizations across Canada and the world, and to accommodate the community, CSPC is extending the panel proposal deadline by an additional four weeks, to May 15th, 2020.
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This newsletter is prepared by Travis Southin.
Project manager is David A. Wolfe