Thank you, Madam Chair, for the invitation to speak to you today about the National Research Council of Canada, as part of your study on success, challenges and opportunities for science in Canada.
We would like to begin by acknowledging that the National Research Council’s facilities are on the traditional unceded territories of many first nations, Inuit and Métis people. We recognize our privilege to be able to conduct research and drive innovation on these lands and pay respect to the peoples who were here before us.
My name is Dr. Dan Wayner. I am the departmental science adviser at the NRC. In this capacity, I'm responsible for encouraging research excellence among the NRC’s 2,250 scientific and technical staff, and for leading dialogue around our scientific direction. During my 37-year career at NRC, I've held a variety of roles: scientist, director general, vice-president of emerging technology and now departmental science adviser.
I'm joined today by my colleague, Dr. Shannon Quinn. Dr. Quinn is the secretary general at the National Research Council of Canada, serving as the lead VP for policy and NRC’s support of government priorities. She has an extensive background in science and technology in both the private and public sectors. Prior to joining the NRC, she served as the VP of science, technology and commercial oversight at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited.
As you know, the NRC is Canada's largest federal research and development organization, with a national footprint that includes laboratories in 22 locations spread across every province in the country. Our scientists, engineers and business experts partner with universities, colleges and Canadian industry to take research and technology from the lab to the marketplace. We serve a unique role in connecting the diverse parts of Canada’s research ecosystem, responding to public policy priorities and creating opportunities that benefit all Canadians.
Over the past five years, we have implemented a plan to revitalize and sustain the NRC’s role at the forefront of research and innovation. This has resulted in the creation of nine collaboration centres with university and other partners in areas such as quantum photonics, ocean technologies, green energy, AI and cybersecurity. In addition, we are pursuing research excellence through support for exploratory research in select disruptive technologies, ensuring a more diverse workforce, revitalizing our NRC research environment and aligning with industrial priorities in key innovation clusters.
As the largest federal science organization, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NRC quickly pivoted its capabilities to support the Government of Canada’s response to the crisis. The NRC’s pandemic response challenge program was up and running within 18 days of its announcement on March 20, 2020. As of today, we have supported 67 projects.
From the beginning, the NRC worked collaboratively to secure the supply chain for several key components used in molecular diagnostic procedures for COVID-19 testing, reducing Canada’s dependence on other countries for critical testing supplies during the pandemic. About 120 million PPE items have been assessed to make sure they meet the necessary standards as they enter the Canadian marketplace, thanks to the support provided by our NRC testing facilities.
The NRC industrial research assistance program, or NRC IRAP, has invested $81 million to support 14 made-in-Canada vaccine and therapeutic developers. Through NRC IRAP, we supported 2,200 innovative businesses, helping them weather the pandemic and preserve over 26,000 jobs in Canada. We also completed construction of the biologics manufacturing centre in Montreal in June 2021, to provide Canadian vaccine and therapy production capacity.
I'm here to speak to my role in NRC’s recent undertaking of a horizon-scanning initiative to identify key economic and societal challenges of significance for Canada over the next 10 to 15 years. Six broad subject areas were explored: climate change, resource futures, big data and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and privacy, health care futures and new models of innovation. The next phase, which is currently under way, is intended to show the potential of horizon scanning to identify the capabilities needed to respond to these challenges.
While the NRC has a role in identifying where science is going and where science can help to meet public good objectives, part of what NRC provides is a ready base of skills, knowledge and infrastructure that can be mobilized to address a variety of urgent, emergent and long-term needs of Canada. We are an instrument of government that can deploy dedicated interdisciplinary teams to advance long-term challenges yet remain nimble enough to respond in a crisis.
With that, I'd like to thank you for your time. We're pleased to answer any questions.