The Role of Universities in Canada's Digital Economy

Summary

Universities play a critical role in the research, innovation and education (RIE) agenda and, for that reason, have great interest in Canada's digital economy strategy. Our graduate and undergraduate programs provide the talented personnel the strategy requires, and our research is the source of many of the innovations on which it depends. We also benefit from a healthy digital economy in the interest that creates in our degree programs and in support for our research. This is truly a symbiotic relationship.

Canada has made great strides in the development of a globally competitive digital infrastructure with the help of substantial government investments at both the federal and provincial level and the hard work of a great many committed individuals. We can point with pride to our successes but much remains to be done to fully leverage the investments that have been made. Going forward will require vision and strategy, and we applaud the government for rising to the challenge.

Universities across the country depend heavily on the digital infrastructure that is provided through agencies such as CANARIE and Compute Canada in both our research and our teaching. The development of a world–class digital environment is still very much a work in progress. Fragmentation of effort will impede our progress. We must move beyond ad hoc development of the separate elements and take a holistic view.

We can't say enough about the importance of people as a crucial component of digital infrastructure. We've enjoyed good support for the acquisition of technology from sources such as CFI and the National Platforms Fund but we've been less successful in securing support for the people. We need to find ways to close this critical gap within a new funding strategy.

A strong ICT sector is critical to Canada's success in the global digital economy. David J. Mitchell, President and CEO of the Public Policy Forum, has spoken to the importance of "people and talent development." The role of universities as developers of talent cannot be overstated. Our graduate and undergraduate programs will supply the talent needed for a strong ICT sector.

At the University of Saskatchewan we welcome government's efforts to grow our digital economy. We fully support the call for a unifying vision and coordinated national strategy. Pan–Canadian coordination will be required and we are excited about the opportunity to participate.

Submission

Preface

Canada's universities are a key contributor to a prosperous, sustainable and growing digital economy.

Universities are critical players in the research, innovation and education (RIE) agenda, and for that reason have great interest in the development of the Digital Economy Strategy. The students we educate, both graduate students and undergraduate students, are the engines of progress, and the innovations that derive from our research are the fuel.

The University of Saskatchewan stands among Canada's leading research universities. As the home of the Canadian Light Source, Canada's first and only synchrotron, we have witnessed a dramatic change in the way research is done. We have worked hard to position ourselves to be successful in the contemporary environment by investing in digital infrastructure locally and by leveraging national and international initiatives.

While all five themes of the Digital Economy Strategy consultation document resonate with us we have focused our response on two of them: "Building a World–Class Digital Infrastructure" and "Growing the Information and Communications Technology Industry." Universities both contribute to a strong digital economy and benefit from it. We are excited about the prospects that lie ahead.

Introduction

The University of Saskatchewan's submission focuses on the crucial role that universities play in the research, innovation and education (RIE) agenda and, through that, in the development of Canada's digital economy strategy. Our graduate and undergraduate programs provide the talented personnel the strategy requires, and our research is the source of many of the innovations on which it depends. These contributions were identified as key elements supporting Canada's innovation system in the Science, Technology and Innovation Council's 2008 State of the Nation report.¹

Canada has made great strides with the help of substantial government investments at both the federal and provincial level and the hard work of a great many committed individuals. We can point with pride to our successes but much remains to be done to fully leverage the investments that have been made. Going forward will require vision and strategy, and we applaud the government for rising to the challenge.

In the following sections we describe ways in which two of the five identified themes in the consultation document resonate with university interests, some challenges we see to progress in these areas and ways in which we believe universities can help.

Building a World Class Digital Infrastructure

"Canada's ability to drive innovation will only be as successful as our digital infrastructure allows it to be." Eric Gales, President, Microsoft Canada.²

A digital infrastructure refers to an integrated and comprehensive digital environment to support research, innovation and education. Too often this is viewed simply as computers and networks, but it also includes elements such as repositories of data and rich digital content, network–accessible research equipment (such as synchrotrons and undersea observatories), the software (operating systems, middleware and applications) that integrates the infrastructure, and the technical staff that supports the researchers in its use.

Canada has been making extensive investments in the country's digital infrastructure for several years. With funding from the federal and provincial governments, the granting councils, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), post–secondary institutions and the private sector the foundation for a globally competitive digital infrastructure has been developed. Even with the funding, though, this would not have been possible without great vision and effort on the part of individual researchers and research communities.

The University of Saskatchewan, like our peer institutions across the country, depends heavily on the digital infrastructure that is provided through agencies such as CANARIE and Compute Canada in both our research and our teaching. Here are two current examples of how we use that digital infrastructure.

• Researchers from across the country access the facilities at the Canadian Light Source through CANARIE's high–speed network. Not only does this enable the movement of large volumes of experimental data, it also makes it possible for researchers to run their experiments remotely using software developed with CANARIE funding.
• The University of Saskatchewan serves as a parallel data storage site³ for the Neptune undersea observatory through the WestGrid high performance computing infrastructure that Compute Canada oversees. This redundancy helps to safeguard Neptune's research data and provides researchers from across the country an alternate way to access it.

None of this would be possible without the digital infrastructure we already have in place and the collective commitment to work together to a common purpose.

But the development of a complete digital research environment is still very much a work in progress. The collective submission⁴ from CANARIE, Compute Canada, the Canadian Digital Media Network (CDMN), the Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN) and the Canadian University Council of Chief Information Officers (CUCCIO) speaks to the need for a national vision and an integrated national strategy so that the investments we've made to date can be leveraged effectively. The University of Saskatchewan is in full agreement. Fragmentation of effort will impede progress. We must move beyond ad hoc development of the separate elements of the emerging digital environment and take a holistic view.

The University of Saskatchewan looks forward to participating actively in the formulation of the vision for an integrated digital environment and the development of a strategy for how the various elements, and the organizations that provide them, must align.

As the collective submission notes, trends in technology and in RIE demand an evolution of our national digital environment. Here are some of the trends to bear in mind as we proceed.

• Paradigm shifts occurring across research, education and innovation communities. Successful research has become increasingly reliant on a collaborative, multi–disciplinary approach based on the ability to effectively access, share, manipulate and analyze vast amounts of research data. To quote Eliot Phillipson, then President and CEO of CFI, "The iconic image of the lone scientist toiling away in an isolated laboratory… has given way to teams of scientists from multiple disciplines working together to address complex challenges."⁵
• The emergence of the social sciences and the humanities as digital disciplines. The storage and curation of extensive data resources to support social sciences and humanities collaboration will need to be given increased priority. Chad Gaffield, President of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, is among those speaking eloquently on the implications of this trend.
• The demand for rich digital media networks. There is a need to provide for the sharing of things such as extensive textual resources, repositories of three–dimensional depictions of cultural artifacts, libraries of medical images, and high definition audio and video materials.
• The need for new services. A new layer of services built on the underlying infrastructure is needed to support collaboration and data sharing. Through the Canadian University Council of CIOs, university IT departments have been channeling their collective resources towards the definition and development of new technology (referred to as "middleware") to facilitate access to shared resources. These services are offered through the Canadian Access Federation.

Finally, we want to emphasize the importance of people as a crucial component of digital infrastructure. Success will depend on having highly trained people to develop the digital infrastructure, to operate it, and to provide advice to those of us who use it. We've enjoyed good support for the acquisition of technology from sources such as CFI and the National Platforms Fund but we've been less successful in securing support for the people. We need to find ways to close this critical gap.

At the University of Saskatchewan we look forward eagerly to a comprehensive and integrated digital environment. We fully support the call for a unifying vision and coordinated national strategy. Pan–Canadian coordination will be required and we are excited about the opportunity to participate.

Growing the ICT Industry

A strong ICT sector is critical to Canada's economic prosperity in the 21^st century and university participation is absolutely essential to achieving it.

As the consultation paper says, "R&D and technology innovation are crucial to the continued growth and competitiveness of the ICT sector." University–based research has long been, and will continue to be, an essential component of R&D in Canada. Some support for that research comes from provincial programs and some comes from the private sector, but tri–council funding remains the most important source of support for individual researchers. That cannot be compromised.

The consultation paper also notes that Canadian companies depend on a rich supply of highly qualified professionals to be successful. Much of this talent comes from our universities.

It's true that undergraduate enrolment in ICT–related degree programs has declined over the past decade, but this is turning around. Among the factors contributing to this turnaround are the following:

• Universities are recruiting aggressively, both in Canada and abroad. Many international students come to our universities specifically for the ICT degree programs, and many of these stay in Canada following graduation to contribute to the ICT sector.
• Universities are introducing important programmatic changes. Increasingly ICT is becoming a part of degree programs not traditionally seen as "ICT," including programs in the life sciences, humanities and social sciences. Graduates of these new programs are beginning to participate in the ICT sector and their numbers will grow.
• Universities are increasing emphasis on experiential learning through co–op and internship programs. This is attracting additional students and giving them important practical experience.

Although enrolment in undergraduate ICT degree programs might have been in decline over the past decade, enrolment in graduate programs has remained strong. Federal scholarship programs and tri–council grants are crucial sources of support for graduate students.

We are in complete agreement with a statement made by David J. Mitchell that, "The most important focus on innovation should be placed on people and talent development."⁶ The role of universities as developers of talent cannot be overstated. Strong graduate and undergraduate programs will supply the talent needed for a strong ICT sector and, conversely, a strong ICT sector will help revive interest in university ICT programs. This is truly a symbiotic relationship.

Conclusion

The foundation for a prosperous, sustainable and growing digital economy lies within our universities. We are proud of the role we have played to date in the pursuit of the research, innovation and education agenda and we look forward to continuing to work with all levels of government and with the private sector to continue the growth of our digital economy. University–based research will continue to be a prominent source of innovation and our graduate and undergraduate degree programs will continue to supply the talent needed. Pan–Canadian collaboration will be required and we are excited about the opportunity to participate.

¹ State of the Nation 2008, Science, Technology and Innovation Council.

² Innovation Next, Public Policy Forum, May 27, 2010.

³ Ocean Observatory Data Heads for Saskatchewan, November 2009

⁴ Canada's Digital Environment for Research, Innovation and Education, July 2010.

⁵ Innovation Next, Public Policy Forum, May 27, 2010.

⁶ David J. Mitchell, President and CEO, Public Policy Forum, May 27, 2010.

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