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This newsletter is published by ONRIS at the Centre for International Studies, University of Toronto, and sponsored by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade. The views and ideas expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Ontario Government.
ANNOUNCEMENTS [Table of Contents]
Trends for Global Technology, Media and Telecom Sectors
Deloitte's Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) industry group has announced its top predictions for the global TMT sectors in 2005, forecasting a number of significant advances and new trends, along with some serious challenges and issues within each of the technology, media and telecom sectors. The report suggests that 2005 will be an incredibly diverse year in the world of technological advancements. Among the trends indicated are the mainstream development and application of nanotech, an increase in the threat level and frequency of electronic viruses, electronic ID versus digital crime and many others.
EDITOR'S PICK [Table of Contents]
Towards an Integrated Knowledge Ecosystem: A Canadian Research Strategy
Canadian Association of Research Libraries
The government spends billions of dollars every
year to promote research in Canada but it needs to give more attention
to the way that the results of research are disseminated into society.
The principal investigators describe a profound transformation occurring
in the way research is conducted and disseminated. New technologies
are radically changing the modes of research communication, speeding
up the research process, and facilitating new types of research. However,
this is also creating a whole host of challenges for those involved
in disseminating research. In a knowledge society, where the dissemination
of research is as important as its generation, it is critical that
Canada respond quickly to this transformation.
INNOVATION & RELATED POLICY [Table of Contents]
European Commission, Community Research
In 2003 DG Research established an expert group
on regional foresight. Five working groups were created to prepare
“blueprints” for how to initiate foresight actions in
European regions. The blueprints are meant to be concrete descriptions
(or roadmaps) of foresight actions related to a clearly identified
and concrete regional need. Each working group has prepared a blueprint
structured around a specific regional policy issue. The present blueprint,
produced by the ‘FOR-RIS Group’ is intended for application
of foresight in a context of RIS/RITTS projects
conducted in a large number of European regions.
On the Future Role of Universities and Research Institutes in the Knowledge Economy
Robin Cowan, Universiteit Maastricht
In recent decades our understanding of innovation has moved from a linear model to a systemic model, which sees an innovation system as a complex network containing many and varied links between different types of knowledge agents. Universities and research institutions are now described as (key) as nodes these systems. For specialized research institutions this is a natural role. For universities it is not; it represents a very dramatic shift in their place in society. At the same time, and perhaps as a consequence of attempts to insert universities as these central nodes, universities are being forced to adopt new ideas regarding success, excellence, and funding. This implies a very fundamental change in the way universities see themselves. Similarly, there is a growing commodification of knowledge within industry, as more and more complex operations are out-sourced. As attention is focused on "technology transfer" as a central mechanism of knowledge flow from universities to industry, this commodification is being pushed into the university sphere as well.
CLUSTERS & REGIONS [Table ofContents]
Dynamic Cities and Creative Clusters
Weiping Wu, Virginia Commonwealth University
This paper focuses on how urban policies and the clustering of creative industries have influenced urban outcomes. The set of creative industries include those with output protectable under some form of intellectual property law. More specifically, this subsector encompasses software, multimedia, video games, industrial design, fashion, publishing, and research and development. The cities that form the basis for the empirical investigations are those where policy induced transitions have been most evident, including Boston; San Francisco; San Diego; Seattle; Austin; Washington DC; Dublin (Ireland); Hong Kong (China); and Bangalore (India).
The Importance of Proximity and Location
Maryann Feldman, Barak Aharonson and Joel
Baum, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
This chapter considers the importance of spatial proximity and geographic
location for the creation and use of knowledge. The motivation is
to provide an understanding of the forces that contribute to the agglomeration
of innovative activity and subsequently affect the growth of the firms,
industries and cities. This chapter reviews the body of research which
examines the role of proximity and location to knowledge creation
and highlights the importance of industry life cycle, the composition
of activities within an agglomeration and the effect of existing industrial
structure. Firms located in geographically bounded knowledge-rich
environments realize higher rates of innovation, increased entrepreneurial
activity, and increased productivity due to the localized nature of
knowledge creation and deployment. The ability of firms to derive
economic value from knowledge is dependent on the firms' capabilities
and strategic use of resources. However the local environment shapes
the firm's competencies, ability to absorb and utilize knowledge in
the development of new products and access to resources. Thus, the
capabilities of firms and regions weave a tapestry of knowledge creation
and commercial success.
STATISTICS [Table ofContents]
BIOTECanada: State of the Industry 2004
BIOTECanada
This is an annual survey of BIOTECanada members for the latest information on revenues and the issues they face in commercializing products.The report states that there are over 450 Canadian biotechs in areas such as vaccines, stem cell research and plant biotech. In 2003, $1.9 billion was invested into the Canadian biotech sector, the majority of which went to public companies, leaving $242.4 million for private biotech companies. On the research and development side, Canadian biotech firms demonstrated their commitment to R&D by undertaking an investment of $2.8 billion in 2003, an increase of 115 per cent over $1.3 billion in 2001. Canada's leading role in the production of genetically-modified (GM) crops makes it the third largest biotech crop producer behind the US and Argentina. Between 1996-2003 the global area of GM crops increased 40 times to almost 700 hectares.
Indicators for Benchmarking Innovation in Atlantic Canada
Wade Locke et al, CSIIC
This report presents a set of forty indicators
of innovation in Atlantic Canada for purposes of benchmarking. In
the context of this paper, innovation refers to the complex set of
social and economic processes that produce knowledge and convert it
into wealth and other forms of social value. Benchmarking, on the
other hand, pertains to monitoring of behavior within an innovation
system and is designed to assess performance and affect the allocation
of resources within that system to permit strategies to be translated
into actions that will optimize the flow of innovation activities
from that system. The overall portrait of innovation in Atlantic Canada
shows that the region is failing to keep up with central Canada in
key areas of R&D investment. These investment shortfalls will
have consequences on knowledge spillovers in the region and on the
region’s capacity to attract and retain highly qualified talent.
EVENTS [Table of Contents]
Workshop 2 for Medical Devices Manufacturing Special Interest Group
London, Ontario. 24 February, 2005
NRC's Integrated Manufacturing Technology Institute (IMTI) in London, Ontario will be hosting Workshop 2 to form a Medical Devices Manufacturing Special Interest Group (SIG). Based on the feedback from Workshop 1 in June 2004, participants will explore three topics with the help of medical experts, NRC research staff, and the input from knowledgeable industrial participants. The goal of the workshop is to create pre-competitive research platforms to accelerate the technology transfer from NRC to industry and to create collaboration opportunities among the participants. For more information, or to register for the workshop, please contact researcher Daniel Johnston at IMTI at 519-430-7081 (telephone), 519-430-7140 (facsimile), or by email at: Daniel.Johnston@nrc.gc.ca.
OECD International Conference on City Competitiveness
Tenerife, Spain, 3-4 March, 2005
This conference will be a unique opportunity for local or national government representatives, mayors and practitioners by giving them the occasion to discuss the topical issues faced by cities in their endeavours to develop the best economic and social conditions in order to attract skills and investment. This two-day event will involve five thematic sessions, each of which will be introduced by a distinguished expert speaker and followed by a panel discussion involving government leaders and practitioners. The session offered are: Globalization and City Competitiveness, Cluster-based Urban Development in Metropolitan Areas, Addressing Specialization and Networking in Medium-sized Cities, Impact of Tertiary Education on Urban Development and, Governance and City Competitiveness:The Role of Metropolitan Economic Development Agencies.
Biotechnology
Management Network Event 
Vancouver, 31 March, 2005
This event provides an opportunity to listen to and engage with leading thinkers concerning the management of biotechnology companies. Speakers: Dr. Jorge Niosi, "US, UK, and Candian biotechnology: clusters and the growth of the firms."; Dr. Adam, Holbrook and Dr. Richard Smith, "Innovation Systems Research Network: A Report on the Biotechnology Cluster in Vancouver"; Dr. Peter Phillips, (to be confirmed) TBA; Dr. Ian McCarthy, "Performance Measurement of Biotechnology Firms". This section is open to all Network members for the sharing of relevant information with other members.
Regionalism and Local Government Reform in Europe
Tolo, Greece, 8-11 April, 2005
The objective of this conference is to explore comparative
regionalism and regionalisation, together with comparative local government
and governance. Plenary speakers include a welcome from Fofe Yenimata,
President to the Greek National Union of Prefectural Local Authorities
(ENAE), Prof. Charlie Jeffery, University of Edinburgh and Dr. Evie
Christofilopoulo, Hellenic Open University and Member of the Greek Parliament.
The major themes of the conference are: The impact of structural reorganisation
on local governments and local governance; Local political and administrative
leadership, including the impact of directly elected mayors and other
existing or new political leadership arrangements; Local economic development;
The development of regional government and governance, including the
influence of the European Union on regional development.
Turin-Milan, 18-21 May, 2005
The 5th Triple Helix Conference will bring together researchers interested in the interaction between University, Government and Industry. The conference program will include 10 Track Sessions per day, made up of paper sessions dedicated to individual scientific contributions, workshops on selected specific themes and panels intended for industrial experts and policy makers. The organizers invite contributions on issues related to the conference theme: economics of innovation, organizational sociology, regional policy, business & management, cognitive economics, finance, law & economics, industrial economics, scientific and technology policy, and political science.
EECO Environment and Energy Conference
Toronto, 25-27 May, 2005
EECO is a biennial 'platform' where business leaders,
elected officials, public policy makers and NGOs meet to examine priority
business and environment risks/opportunities. This series fosters dialogue
and debate on building a future of increased competitiveness coupled
with environmental protection. The dynamic and strategically focused
program, highly targeted and interactive exposition, and engaging social
events deliver outstanding value to delegates, sponsors and partners.
In addressing the region's critical business and competitiveness challenges
head on, this conference will feature the EECO Forum and four informative
and exciting tracks.
UK eLearning
Regions and Cities Conference
Oxford, UK, 21-22 June, 2005
The 2005 UK eLearning Regions and Cities Conference
will bring together the most up to date information in eLearning for
regional authorities. The 2005 conference will also work with groupings
of regional stakeholders (e.g. the RDA, representatives from LEAs and
from HE and FE institutions, local LSCs, employers and workforce representatives,
as well as locally based technology providers) to work on regional strategy
and tactics. Policy is all very well, but what is needed is a sense
of mutually aware action: more than just talk.
Dynamics of Industry and Innovation: Organizations, Networks and Systems
Copenhagen, Denmark, 27-29 June, 2005
The DRUID Ten Year Anniversary Summer Conference will be held at the Copenhagen Business School. The conference's scientific committee will consider all papers in the order in which they arrive with respect to novelty, academic quality and the proposed paper's relation to the theme of the conference.
Toulouse, France, 27-29 October, 2005
This conference will bring together academic and
industrial decision makers and their municipal counterparts with a view
to fostering debate and discussion about best practices with respect
to the creation, management and development of technology clusters.
SUBSCRIPTIONS & COMMENTS [Table of Contents]
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This newsletter is prepared by Jen
Nelles.
Project manager is David
A. Wolfe.
