Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I'm very happy to be here with my colleagues Valérie La Traverse and Valérie Laflamme.
I'm sure all of us in the room agree that science and research have become more important than ever in the current environment as economic, environmental and social challenges have become as serious as they are complex.
Expanding knowledge across all disciplines is foundational to innovation and to finding solutions that will enhance health, combat climate change, and drive economic and social prosperity.
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, SSHRC, plays a key role in Canada’s research ecosystem, as the federal agency that supports research and talent in the humanities and social sciences, and as the agency that administers a number of prestigious national programs—such as the Canada research chairs program and the new frontiers in research fund—on behalf of the three federal research funding agencies.
SSHRC recognizes the crucial need to protect Canadian research from risks such as theft, foreign interference or the unwanted transfer of knowledge. We have been collaborating with government partners and consulting with the research community to develop and implement the national security guidelines for research partnerships.
Following the February 2023 statement by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, the Minister of Public Safety, and the Minister of Health, we are also contributing to the development of a new interdepartmental policy on sensitive technology research and affiliations of concern.
To help the research community meet these requirements, in 2022, we began providing $125 million over five years to Canadian institutions through the research support fund to help them enhance their research security capacities. We also engage with the Government of Canada-Universities Working Group and other federal government partners to provide the research community with tools, resources and information sessions.
Given growing geopolitical tensions and rivalries, it is imperative that Canadian researchers have the necessary tools and knowledge to safeguard their work.
However, it's also important to point out that international collaborations, including those with researchers and institutions based in China, remain vital to Canada's research enterprise and provide a basis for science diplomacy. Researchers need to work together across disciplines, sectors and borders to understand and respond to global challenges, whether they involve a global pandemic or the climate crisis, and it's crucial to maintain open channels of communication between scientific communities in times of crisis and to promote collaborations in other areas of mutual interest.
For instance, SSHRC is currently funding a research partnership among scientists from Canada, China, Costa Rica, the United States, Ghana, France and other countries aimed at feeding the future human population in a just and equitable way, while also achieving biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation goals.
The challenges facing Canada and the world today are frequently interconnected problems. They require that we cooperate on shared priorities while remaining vigilant about potential risks and steadfast in our efforts to protect the integrity of our research system.
This reality reinforces that the Government of Canada, the granting agencies, the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the research community at large must all work together on this shared responsibility. Indeed, the Canadian research community comprises a vast range of experts on national security issues, science and innovation policy and international relations. This expertise could contribute to the Government of Canada's research security efforts.
It is also our shared responsibility to ensure that security measures do not lead to discrimination against, or the profiling of, any member of the community—including on the basis of nationality.
The granting agencies, the Canada Foundation for Innovation and their federal partners will continue to work with the research community to implement research security measures. But my colleagues and I believe that it's important that we continue to take an evidence-based approach and look at the broader implications.
As stated in a House of Commons unanimous motion in May 2021, we must affirm our “commitment to science, research and evidence-informed decision-making”. In doing so, I'm confident that we can better protect Canada's research ecosystem from security risks while continuing to foster international collaboration on areas of mutual interest.
Thank you.