Give grants to younger scientists: minister

Young scientists often don’t get research grants early enough, delaying careers and stunting the growth of Canada’s information-based economy, Science Minister Kirsty Duncan suggested Monday in response to a report on the state of science in Canada.

In the report, an independent nine-member panel is calling for $1.3 billion in new cash for science programs and an overhaul to the way research is overseen.

Struck last June by Duncan to find better ways to make the most of funding given to three research granting councils and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, the panel’s report also said the biggest gaps in the system are in resources and aspirations.

Duncan said one of the areas most concerning for her is early research career development.

“We’re hearing that people aren’t getting that first grant until age 41 or 43,” Duncan said Monday outside the House of Commons.

“You cannot build a research career if you’re receiving that grant at that age,” she said.

The blue-ribbon panel also recommended the creation of a new national advisory council on research and innovation,

WE’RE HEARING THAT PEOPLE AREN’T GETTING THAT FIRST GRANT UNTIL AGE 41 OR 43.

as well as a co-ordinating board for Canada’s research agencies.

It also called Canada’s research ecosystem unbalanced, and said the major federal agencies don’t work together as well as they should.

“We are firmly convinced that by strengthening the foundations of Canadian research, this government can make an immediate and major difference to the prospects of future generations,” the report concluded.

Duncan said she understands that while some of the report’s recommendations come with a price tag, others call for needed changes that won’t cost taxpayers any money.

“That’s important to know,” she said. “It’s about better co-ordination.”

The panel was led by David Naylor, the former president of the University of Toronto, and received over 1,200 submissions during its work, which also included a dozen roundtables in five cities with 230 researchers.

The study focused on 10 questions related to the funding of scientific research, supporting the next generation of emerging researchers, and whether or not there’s a healthy balance between who is getting funded and ensuring a full range of research is being carried out.