Federal Budget

Deputy prime minister meets with university leaders, researchers, grad students at U of T's Acceleration Consortium

lanthierj — Fri, 19 Apr 2024 16:42:11 +0000

Deputy prime minister meets with university leaders, researchers, grad students at U of T's Acceleration Consortium

lanthierj Fri, 04/19/2024 - 12:42

Cutline

Alán Aspuru-Guzik (right), director of the Acceleration Consortium, shows Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland (left) 'the world's brightest molecule' during a visit to the University of Toronto's St. George campus (photo by Johnny Guatto)

Adina Bresge

Topic

Our Community

Acceleration Consortium

Health and Wellness

Institutional Strategic Initiatives

Artificial Intelligence

Current Students

Faculty of Arts & Science

Federal Budget

Graduate Students

Research & Innovation

Subheadline

'An investment in our young researchers is an investment in economic growth and productivity'

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland toured a University of Toronto lab Friday – just days after announcing a transformative investment in the next generation of research leaders who will propel Canada to the forefront of global innovation.

Freeland’s visit to the Acceleration Consortium’s Matter Lab showcased the cutting-edge research and training at the lab, which received a landmark $200-million investment last year from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF).

The 2024 budget, which features substantial investments in Canada’s research ecosystem over the next five years, earmarks $825 million in support for graduate students and post-doctoral fellows – a pivotal investment in strengthening the research talent pipeline that will fuel the growth of Canada’s knowledge and innovation economy.

Freeland characterized the investment in graduate students and postdoctoral fellows as a “virtuous circle,” whereby the young researchers of today become the industry leaders of tomorrow.

"Making an investment in our young researchers is an investment in economic growth and productivity,” she said. “Some of Canada’s leading entrepreneurs and innovators started their journeys in a lab just like this one – many of them are entrepreneurs and researchers at the same time – and that is one of the reasons this investment is so important.”

This federal commitment significantly increases the value and number of scholarships and fellowships, starting in 2024-2025, building up to benefit about 1,720 more graduate students or fellows each year.

Melanie Woodin, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science, welcomed the federal government's investment in improved supports for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows (photo by Johnny Guatto)

Melanie Woodin, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science, welcomed the supports as “reinvesting in Canada’s proud tradition of excellence in the global knowledge economy,” nurturing the young minds who are poised to devise homegrown solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges, from addressing climate change to unlocking the potential of AI.

“The federal government's investment in Canada’s research ecosystem – and the trainees who are the lifeblood of this ecosystem – recognizes the critical role of this sector in the productivity and flourishing of our country.”

Frédéric Bouchard, chair of the Advisory Panel on the Federal Research Support System, commended the federal government for implementing many of the recommendations outlined in the panel’s 2023 report, including the budget’s measures to bring the world’s best and brightest to Canada.

“There is a global race for talent, and we were at risk for brain drain,” said Bouchard, dean of Université de Montréal’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences. “There is a chase for the best ideas, and we need a way to create them here and leverage them here.”

Alán Aspuru-Guzik gives Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland a tour of the Acceleration Consortium's Matter Lab (photo by Johnny Guatto)

The budget also allocates $2.4 billion in previously announced funding to elevate Canada’s AI advantage – an effort where U of T researchers are leading the charge.

Among them is Alán Aspuru-Guzik, director of the Acceleration Consortium, which harnesses artificial intelligence, robotics and advanced computing to fast-track the discovery of new materials.

A professor in the departments of chemistry and computer science in the Faculty of Arts & Science at U of T, Aspuru-Guzik said Canada’s latest investments in bolstering its research ecosystem have reaffirmed his decision to move to the country in 2018.

“With a combination of targeted research funding … and now the competitive update to the pay of our most important resource, students and postdocs, Canada has the ability to compete globally at the highest level,” Aspuru-Guzik said.

“We want Canada to be the leader of AI for materials. For that, we need the best people. To get the best people we need to pay them well. This new announcement bridges this gap.”

The Acceleration Consortium harnesses artificial intelligence, robotics and advanced computing to fast-track the discovery of new materials (photo by Johnny Guatto)

Freeland, who met with U of T President Meric Gertler before visiting the lab, was also joined by Chad Gaffield, chief executive officer of the U15 group of universities, Gabriel Miller, president and chief executive officer of Universities Canada, and Kaitlin Kharas, the co-president of Support our Science.

Kharas, a PhD candidate in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine’s department of laboratory medicine and pathobiology, said the supports for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows will not only make Canada’s research ecosystem more inclusive and diverse, but will ease financial pressures so scholars can focus on what’s important.

“This enhanced support will ensure the next generation of Canadian scientists, innovators and entrepreneurs can focus on their research and the essential work of creating solutions to Canada's largest problems,” she said.

“Make no mistake – by ensuring graduate students and postdoctoral scholars are supported, budget 2024 has ushered in a new era of Canadian research excellence.”

U of T welcomes federal budget provisions for work-integrated learning, international education

geoff.vendeville — Tue, 19 Mar 2019 16:06:02 +0000

U of T welcomes federal budget provisions for work-integrated learning, international education

geoff.vendeville Tue, 03/19/2019 - 12:06

Cutline

The U of T crest as seen on the downtown Toronto campus (photo by Nick Iwanyshyn)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Topic

Our Community

Centre for International Experience

Experiential Education

Research & Innovation

STEM

The University of Toronto is lauding a number of measures announced in Tuesday’s federal budget aimed at giving more students the opportunity to learn in the workplace and around the world.

The budget also supports research by promising to create more master's and doctoral scholarship awards through the federal granting councils.

“These investments in experiential learning are investments in Canada's future,” said U of T President Meric Gertler, the co-chair of Canada’s Business/Higher Education Roundtable, which has been advocating for increased investments in work-integrated learning.

“The investments are good news because they will drive economic growth by giving Canadians the skills they need to succeed,” he added. “They will enhance the success of U of T graduates and others across the country who are entering the labour force.”

Touting his fourth budget as an investment to create “well–paying jobs and the promise of a better future,” Finance Minister Bill Morneau said it includes several measures to help students get ahead in a competitive, increasingly inter-connected world.

The budget targets 84,000 new student work placements across the country by 2023-2024. “This will be a significant step toward ensuring that, ten years from now, every young Canadian who wants a work placement will be able to get one,” Morneau said in his prepared remarks.

These opportunities – ranging from co-op placements to internships and applied research projects – provide students with a chance to hone their skills on the job while giving employers access to new talent and ideas.

The budget plans to support work-integrated learning through investments of:

$631.2 million over five years in the Student Work Placement Program to create 20,000 work-integrated learning opportunities, including for students outside STEM (science, technology, engineering and math)
$150 million over four years in Employment and Social Development Canada to foster partnerships with innovative businesses and create another 20,000 opportunities by 2023-24
$17 million over three years in the Business/Higher Education Roundtable (BHER), representing some of Canada's largest companies and universities including U of T, to help forge partnerships and create more work-integrated opportunities across Canada. BHER has committed to creating an additional 44,000 work-integrated learning placements and opportunities per year by 2021. President Gertler is a co-chair of BHER with Dave McKay, president and CEO of RBC, and Anne Sado, alumna and president of George Brown College.

Morneau also unveiled an International Education Strategy to give more post-secondary students the chance to travel for their studies and acquire critical cross-cultural skills.

Although many employers look for graduates who can thrive in a globalized work environment, only 11 per cent of Canadian undergraduates have a study-abroad experience during their degree, according to Universities Canada. A higher share of U of T students go abroad – about 20 per cent – but the university is aiming to increase that number to 30 per cent.

U of T has been a vocal proponent of increased funding for international mobility, aligned with the university's own goals to prepare graduates to meet global challenges. Last year, U of T increased funding for study, work and research abroad opportunities available through the Centre for International Experience.

The latest federal budget promises $147.9 million over five years and another $8 million per year ongoing for the International Education Strategy. It includes an outbound student mobility pilot program and an investment “to promote Canadian education institutions as high-calibre places to study.”

Though the 2019 budget provides more funding for graduate research, U of T is eager to continue working with the government to support the full costs of research. The budget sets aside $114 million over five years and $26.5 million per year ongoing in new funding for the federal granting councils to create 500 more master's level scholarship awards and 167 three-year doctoral scholarship awards through the Canada Graduate Scholarship Program.

"Since graduate students play a key role in our research enterprise, today's announcement adds an important complement to the government's past investments to bolster the country's research strength," President Gertler said.

Other key investments include:

Parental leave coverage for graduate and post-doctoral students: $37.4 million over five years, starting this year, and $8.6 million per year ongoing to the federal granting councils to expand parental leave coverage from six months to 12 months for students and post-doctoral researchers who receive granting council funding
Canada Training Benefit: $1.7 billion over five years and $586.5 million per year ongoing for a new Canada Training Benefit. One component is a new “training credit,” intended to help workers aged 25 to 64 with the costs of training fees. Workers accumulate $250 per year to a lifetime limit of $5,000 and apply that credit against half of training fees at universities, colleges and other eligible institutions. They would then claim a refund when they file their tax return. The other component is the Employment Insurance Training Support Benefit to provide income support when an individual needs to take time off work
Indigenous Student Support: A number of investments, starting in 2019-2020, to ensure that Indigenous students have better access to post-secondary education, and more support to ensure that they can succeed during their studies. This includes investing $327.5 million over five years to renew and expand funding for the Post-Secondary Student Support Program while the government engages with First Nations on the development of long-term, First Nations-led post-secondary education models

Federal budget 2017: Funding for AI and foreign scholars to help U of T

lanthierj — Wed, 22 Mar 2017 21:34:40 +0000

Federal budget 2017: Funding for AI and foreign scholars to help U of T

lanthierj Wed, 03/22/2017 - 17:34

Jennifer Robinson

Author legacy

Jennifer Robinson

Topic

Artificial Intelligence

New funding for artificial intelligence research and support for the recruitment of established foreign scholars were among the highlights for Canadian universities in the federal budget tabled today.

The budget, announced by Finance Minister Bill Morneau, is providing $125 million to create a pan-Canadian strategy for promoting research, talent development, and industry partnerships in artificial intelligence (AI).

The government also set aside $117.6 million to establish the Canada 150 Research Chairs program, which will create approximately 25 research chairs to attract top international scholars and researchers to Canada over the next eight years.

“The federal government’s support of AI research and the creation of the Canada 150 Research Chairs program is a signal that the Government of Canada is serious about helping Canadian universities like the University of Toronto retain and recruit top scholars to propel our globally recognized research forward,” said U of T President Meric Gertler.

“This funding will enable us to strengthen our leadership in areas where our scholars are already doing exceptional work,” he continued. “It will also help ensure future generations of students can continue to learn from the best.”

The University of Toronto is widely regarded as a global leader in machine learning, a booming field in AI research that has set off global demand in academia and the corporate world for top talent. It’s also the home of the ‘godfather of machine learning’ – Geoffrey Hinton, a U of T Emeritus Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Fellow at Google.

The budget continued support at the previous year's level for federal research granting councils. Next year’s budget is expected to tackle recommendations from the forthcoming Review of Federal Support for Fundamental Science, chaired by former U of T president David Naylor, as well as reflect the Government of Canada’s Innovation Agenda.

“We very much look forward to the national discussion that will follow the release of the Naylor Report, and will urge the Federal Government to build on its landmark commitments to unfettered research funding in Budget 2016,” President Gertler said. ”This will be crucial in enabling Canadian universities to recruit and retain academic talent from around the world at a time when Canada’s brand is rising globally.”

Federal support for research is delivered primarily through programs associated with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC); Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC); Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR); and the Research Support Fund, in addition to the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Canada Research Chairs program.

Other highlights for universities from the 2017 budget include:

$950 million for Innovation Clusters over five years. The government will launch a competition in 2017 focused on supporting a small number of business-led innovation “superclusters” that have the greatest potential to accelerate economic growth in highly innovative industries such as advanced manufacturing, agri-food, clean technology, digital technology, health/biosciences and clean resources, as well as infrastructure and transportation.
$73 million for the Work-Integrated Learning Program to create up to 8,700 new work-integrated learning placements over the next four years. The program encourages partnerships between employers and interested post-secondary institutions.
$221 million over five years to Mitacs to provide 10,000 work-integrated learning placements for Canadian post-secondary students and graduates each year.
$2 million annual budget for a Chief Science Advisor and related secretariat.
A number of new investments in government research/science, which may be accessible to university researchers, including Natural Resources Canada, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Canada Space Agency.
$6 million in renewed funding for stem cell research through the Stem Cell Network in 2018–19.
$80.9 million over five years for new projects through the Canadian Space Agency to demonstrate and utilize Canadian innovations in space.
$241 million over the next 11 years for the National Housing Strategy, which includes expanded housing research through university networks and collaboration with other levels of government, as well as a network of innovation labs to incubate new ideas and design solutions to affordable housing challenges.
This year, the government said, it will assess how the National Research Council can best support the Innovation and Skills Plan and work to develop a new federal science infrastructure strategy.