{"id":53603,"date":"2024-12-02T14:55:33","date_gmt":"2024-12-02T14:55:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=53603"},"modified":"2024-12-02T14:55:33","modified_gmt":"2024-12-02T14:55:33","slug":"elevating-quebecs-research-and-innovation-capabilities-through-international-collaboration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/elevating-quebecs-research-and-innovation-capabilities-through-international-collaboration\/53603\/","title":{"rendered":"Elevating Qu\u00e9bec\u2019s research and innovation capabilities through international collaboration"},"content":{"rendered":"
Research and innovation has long been at the forefront of Qu\u00e9bec\u2019s economic landscape. Over many years, Qu\u00e9bec has established a scientific research base of international calibre and has built strong relationships with stakeholders in the research and innovation ecosystem across the globe. Qu\u00e9bec is positioning itself as a leader in innovative fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum technologies. In 2024, Canada officially joined the Horizon Europe programme<\/a> under Pillar II, opening up ample opportunity for Qu\u00e9bec to propel its research and development (R&D).<\/p>\n The Innovation Platform<\/em> spoke to Marco Blouin, Director General Science and Partnerships, Minist\u00e8re de l\u2019\u00c9conomie, de l\u2019Innovation et de l\u2019\u00c9nergie, Qu\u00e9bec government to discover more about Qu\u00e9bec\u2019s research and innovation landscape and find out what the new Horizon Europe partnership could do for the province.<\/p>\n We like to think of ourselves as punching above our weight when it comes to science and innovation globally, especially on the research side. Our overall R&D spending is significantly higher than the Canadian average. In terms of academic publications, between 2010 and 2021, the share of joint publications that involve both a Qu\u00e9bec-based researcher and an international partner has grown from 45% to 61% of the total. We maintain two universities in the top 200 of the main international rankings. We also have two university incubators in the top ten of the UBI Global Ranking.<\/p>\n However, because we are relatively small, when it comes to turning this research expertise into innovations, we also need to set some strategic priorities. There are several sectors that are key to our innovation capabilities: aerospace, artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum, life sciences, energy transition and electrification, for example. These are sectors in which our research and innovation is recognised internationally, and where we have an industrial base that can support the transfer of our research into commercial products.<\/p>\n We know that this expertise has value to our partners, and we need to push our ambition further to remain attractive collaborators on the global stage.<\/p>\n We aim to leverage some of these key sectors through strategic initiatives. To give you an example, our government supports the development of innovation zones in some of these key areas, and across our province. For now, we have four of them \u2013 digital technologies, quantum technologies, energy transition, and aerospace \u2013 and there might be more to come. Innovation zones concentrate, within a specific geographic area, our expertise in a particular sector. It brings together researchers, industries, and investors in attractive living environments so that we have a critical mass that allows us to develop our innovation capabilities further in these sectors. Our innovation zones are also meant to serve as a showcase for international partners.<\/p>\n Our geographic position and our identity as a province also have an impact on how we view our contribution to global innovation. I will give you two very different examples to illustrate this.<\/p>\n On technological innovation, because of our location and our networks, we tend to act as a bridge between Europe and North America. For example, in the southern part of the province, close to the US border, we have created our innovation zone on digital technologies, Technum Qu\u00e9bec. The zone notably features the Miqro Innovation collaborative center (C2MI) \u2013 the largest R&D centre in Canada focusing on the manufacturing of electronic systems, including semiconductors. Our investments in this centre and this zone are part of a broader joint commitment between Canada and the US to develop a cross-border innovation corridor for semiconductors. At the same time, though, this digital technology ecosystem is active in the development of partnerships with European collaborators in the quantum and photonics industry \u2013 for example, in the Netherlands. We try to use this bridge-building position between Europe and North America to our advantage.<\/p>\n If I zoom out, we are also very active in terms of science diplomacy. In Qu\u00e9bec, we have a dedicated Qu\u00e9bec Research Fund<\/a>, headed by our Chief Scientist, Professor R\u00e9mi Quirion. It is an explicit mandate of our Chief Scientist to contribute to the reputation and outreach of our research expertise and excellence abroad. In 2024, Professor Quirion acts as a president of the International Network for Governmental Science Advice (INGSA), which is present in 110 countries. For us, this is a unique opportunity to voice some of our science priorities and concerns globally, such as the responsible use of AI technologies, for example.<\/p>\n As I said, given that we are a small nation, we need to rely on international collaborations to grow our research and innovation. If we want our research to have an impact in fields that are of global relevance and interest to solve big societal challenges \u2013 such as, energy transition and climate change, digital transformations, medical and biomedical research, just to name a few \u2013 it is crucial that we join our efforts and funding capacity with partners outside of Qu\u00e9bec.<\/p>\n This is also true of innovation, if we think of our start-ups in the technology sector. We have a very solid ecosystem in Qu\u00e9bec to raise and support them, but our domestic market is too small to allow them to grow. In our current Qu\u00e9bec Research and Innovation Investment Strategy \u2013 which covers the years 2022-2027 \u2013 we have defined a series of actions to accelerate the transition of our most promising start-ups and scale-ups to the international market.<\/p>\n To help us, we are also fortunate to count on a diplomatic network that is rather unique for a provincial entity. We have 34 diplomatic representations in 19 countries across the globe, and about half of them include specialised policy advisors that focus on research and innovation, in key territories and markets such as London, Paris, Munich, Seoul, Los Angeles, etc.<\/p>\nWhat role can Qu\u00e9bec play in the global innovation landscape?<\/h3>\n
How important is international collaboration and support to Qu\u00e9bec\u2019s research and development sector?<\/h3>\n
Can you provide an example of a successful project supported by international funding?<\/h3>\n