Canada's Science Verdict

This is one of those conundrums; on the one hand, but then on the other hand...  As in here is the good news, and now that you've digested it, I'll tell you the bad news.  Nothing, however, is written in stone, it's not a situation that cannot be overturned.  And it would be just fine if this government took the initiative to do that.  Since it would appear that under its watch the situation has evolved.

With less than 0.5% of the world's population, Canada's scientific minds and its research community produces 4.1% of the world's scientific papers.  And as well, close to 5% of the world's most often-cited papers.  That's according to a 232-page report compiled and presented by the Expert Panel on the State of Science and Technology in Canada.

The Council of Canadian Academies which specializes in public policy issues released the report.  The Expert Panel is comprised of eighteen experts from Canada, from the United States and from Europe.  It was chaired by the former president and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation. 

Their survey of over five thousand researchers from across the Globe and an additional 679 in Canada led them to conclude that Canadian science and technology "is healthy and growing".  Specifically as it pertains to the generation of scientific research papers.

"In 2005-2010, Canada produced 50% more scientific papers than in 2990-2004, representing the only G7 country with an increase above the world average", states the report.  "In contrast to the nation's strong performance in knowledge generation is its weaker performance in patents and related measures", the report goes on.

"Despite producing 4.1% of the world's scientific papers, Canada holds only 2.7 percent of world patents".  Canada holds a "negative balance" in royalties and licensing revenues, and the country spent close to $5 billion more in fees to access intellectual property from other countries than was generated in revenue for intellectual property held by Canadians.  A clear and inappropriate deficit.

The six fields that Canada excels in according to the panel are:  clinical medicine, historical studies, psychology and cognitive sciences, physics and astronomy, visual and performing arts and information and communication technologies.  Now that's an astonishing and proud accomplishment for a middling-sized country in terms of population base.

Another snippet of bad news pointing a finger of blame is that Canada's total investment in research and development between 2006 and 2010 declined.  This represents an anomaly, one that makes Canada "unique" among OECD countries.  And this obviously represents a government priority-and-values choice on the part of the current government.

And while the report doesn't dwell on details with respect to the cause of the decline in natural resources and environment science and technology, it is abundantly clear that this is the result of deliberate neglect and questionable choices on the part of the government, sidelining those vital areas in a country which should be a leader in those fields.

"...the declines that are seen are relative to the world: Canada is making gains in these areas, but not as fast as the world average."