NSERC Overview

March 23-24/2011

Federal S&T Structure

PARLIAMENTPARLIAMENT

Prime Minister

Prime Minister

CABINET CABINET Minister of IndustryMinister of Industry

Science, Technology and Innovation

Council

Science, Technology and Innovation

Council

Research Performed in Labs

•National Research Council (NRC) •Science-Based Department and Agencies e.g., Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), Health Canada

Research Performed in Labs

•National Research Council (NRC) •Science-Based Department and Agencies e.g., Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), Health Canada

Research Funding•National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP)•Canada Revenue Agency’s Scientific Research and Experimental Development(SR&ED) tax credits

Research Funding•National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP)•Canada Revenue Agency’s Scientific Research and Experimental Development(SR&ED) tax credits

Research Funding

Granting Agencies: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR)

Foundations: Canada Foundation For Innovation (CFI), Genome Canada,

Post-secondary research inuniversities, colleges and

teaching hospitals

Post-secondary research inuniversities, colleges and

teaching hospitals

IndustryIndustry

Industry CanadaIndustry Canada

Minister of State (S&T)Minister of State (S&T)

Canada’s Research and Development Priority Areas and Sub-Priority Areas

NSERC Budget 2011-12Total: $1.07 billion

29%

37%

29%

5%

People

Discovery

Innovation

Admin.

29%

37%

29%

5%

People

Discovery

Innovation

Admin.

NSERC’s Priorities

PeopleBuilding our human capital in the natural sciences and engineering

DiscoveryUnleashing the creative power of our researchers

InnovationConnecting and applying the strength of our research capacity to the challenges and needs of industry and society

Total budget in 2011-12$1.07B

NSERC International Strategy Approach

Enabling an open research environment• International collaborations pervasive across all

NSERC programs• Ensure policies, rules and criteria do not create

barriers to international collaboration

Focusing on priority initiatives• Internationalization of Canadian NSE research for

initiatives in priority areas

(2007)

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Percentage of Canadian Papers in the Natural Sciences and Engineering with International

Collaborators, by selected country in 1998 and 2008

1998

2008

%

Source: Observatoire des Sciences et Technologies (SCI Expanded):

US ranks first at 20.6% (17% in 1998)

Strategic Project Grants

• Early-stage project research that could strongly enhance Canada’s

economy, society and environment in the next 10 years

• Average SPG awards are $120,000 over three years

• Application success rate is typically 25 – 30%

• Although there must be significant involvement from the partners, a cash contribution is not required

• Foreign universities or companies can collaborate on projects – applicants are encouraged to incorporate international collaborations into their proposals

Innovation

Strategic Target Areas (2011-2015)

Collaborative Research and Development (CRD) Projects

• Partnerships between Canadian companies and Canadian researchers in universities/colleges

• 1 to 5 years duration, usually 2 to 3 years• Average grant $65K per year, but can vary from

$10K/year to > $400K/year• Industry responsible for at least 1/2 costs & must

exploit results• Flexible leverage: cash and in-kind• 80-85% success rate• No fixed application deadlines• Can now include project management costs

Support for International Collaboration

International Researchers: • Encouraged to work in partnership with Canadians

either in peer-to-peer collaborations or as members of international research teams

• Must bring their own resources to the collaboration

• In 2009-10, over 8400 experts (37% from outside Canada) acted as external referees and provided detailed, written evaluations of the merit of applications

Support for International Collaboration

Canadian researchers can use their NSERC Discovery research grants to support a range of international activities:

• Fieldwork

• Stipends for visiting researchers, students and

fellows• Travel and subsistence allowances for visiting

researchers, students and fellows• Attendance at international conferences,

workshops and planning sessions

What’s new?

NSERC Frontiers InitiativesDiscovery and Innovation Frontiers

• Larger-scale research projects lasting up to five years, worth at least $1 million per year

• Addressing national research priorities with a one-time injection of funding

• Teams of top Canadian researchers will carry out large, potentially transformative projects with top international teams

Innovation Frontiers

• To fund exceptional, solution-driven research opportunities of large scope and scale

• Focused on enabling transformative industrial innovation and addressing issues of national importance

• Industrial Contribution: at least $500K (1/3 of direct project costs)

• International partnerships required

G8 Research Councils Initiative on Multilateral Research Funding

• Consortia consist of at least three partners from separate participating countries

• Topics of global relevance which can best be tackled by a multinational approach

• First call: Application Software towards Exascale Computing for Global Scale Issues

• Estimated that 8-10 research consortia will be funded in this call

• 2011 and 2012 will launch separate calls in other themes of

global relevance

Finding Canadian Expertise…Finding Canadian Expertise…

• NSERC Awards Search Engine: contains the results of NSERC competitions and information on its funding since 1991. This allows foreign researchers to identify Canadian researchers that received NSERC funds in specific fields of research (www.nserc.gc.ca/programs/result/database.htm). 

• NSERC Chairholder Database: is designed to connect you with some of Canada’s leading scientists and engineers. Each profile includes a summary of the Chairholders’ activities, relevant key words, partnering organizations and contact information (www.nserc.gc.ca/partners/chairs_e.asp).

• Canada Research Chairs: this database contains short profiles of each of the Canada Research Chairs to date (www.chairs.gc.ca/web/chairholders/index_e.asp).

• Canada Excellence Research Chairholder Profiles

(http://www.cerc.gc.ca/hp-pa-eng.shtml)

Strategy for Partnerships and Innovation

Canadian industry needs to realize more value from the Government’s investment in post-secondary R&D capabilities.

The Strategy:• Builds on our base of world-class research • Emphasizes making connections and applying

research to create prosperity• Expands the reach and impact of our partnerships

programs

Igniting New Research Partnerships Through Engage Grants

• 445 new collaborations in first year, 88% with SMEs

• 272 companies new to NSERC Partnerships (>10% increase)

• 187 researchers new to Partnerships Programs

• Decisions in 4 to 6 weeks