We invite you to read a recent publication by a group of stakeholders and trainees including members of the CSMB trainee committee have published “Analysis of financial challenges faced by graduate students in Canada” in BCB Journal.
Category: Advocacy
Read the CSMB submission to the Minister of Finance pre-budget consultations
CSMB Past President Imogen Coe wins national recognition for her impact through leadership in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) advocacy in scientific research environments.
Congratulations to Dr. Imogen Coe, on winning the 2022 CSPC Policy for Science Trailblazer award!
Dr. Imogen Coe, Professor, Toronto Metropolitan University, was selected for her work on integrating the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) into the research ecosystem of STEM including into the policies and practices of funding agencies and government, and into the workplaces of commerce and industry where scientific knowledge may be generated or applied. Long before EDI became street-talk within government and academia, she recognized a problem endemic to science. She has had significant influence on where, when, and how EDI has been – and is being – integrated into policy developed by government, funding agencies, scholarly societies, post-secondary institutions, health-care entities, and commercial and not-for-profit enterprises. Imogen Coe has inspired a generation with her championship work on EDI.
Read an interview with Dr. Coe on the Toronto Metropolitan University website
Learn more on the awards on the CSPC website.
You can watch the awards ceremony here:
Read the CSMB’s pre-budget submission
We invite you to read our submission to pre-budget consultations in advance of the 2023 budget of the House of Commons permanent committee on Finances (FINA)
View our submission:
The deadline to submit a brief is Saturday, 8 October 2022 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time – View the news release here
First report of the House of Commons Science and Research Committee
On June 6, the new House of Commons Standing Committee on Science and Research tabled its first ever report, as part of its study on “Successes, Challenges and Opportunities for Science in Canada”. The Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences (CSMB) was one of sixteen organizations that submitted a written submission as part of the consultations. The Committee held meetings over the course of three months, which CSMB closely followed, hearing from science and research organizations, post-secondary institutions, companies and government departments. + + +
Recording available: Science Policy Session with Senator Stan Kutcher – April 25, 2022
Science Policy Session with Senator Stan Kutcher
Co-hosted by the Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences and the Canadian Association for Neuroscience
On Monday, April 25, the Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences and the Canadian Association for Neuroscience welcomed the Honourable Senator Stan Kutcher for a session on science policy and advice. + + +
Federal Budget 2022 fails to support Canadian scientists and researchers
The Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences echoes the disappointment being expressed by others in the scientific community in response to Federal Budget 2022. Funding for basic discovery research in the sciences has not received the financial support needed for the creation of new knowledge from Canada’s scientists, despite the pandemic clearly showing the necessity of ongoing investments to support fundamental research. We need to look only as far as the pandemic to realize the impact basic science has had on global health. Specifically, we would not have mRNA vaccines had there not been significant and sustained basic funding to basic scientists decades ago. Nor would we have artificial intelligence or machine learning without basic research, funded by the federal government, to researchers working on, at the time, novel ideas that had no obvious application. + + +
Advocacy update from Research Canada
Research Canada has submitted a brief to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Science and Research – read it here
The Science and Research Committee is still accepting formal submissions to this study (Successes, Challenges and Opportunities for Science in Canada), and we encourage our Members to submit as soon as possible if you have not already done so.
The Committee has also agreed to launch a study on Top Talent, Research and Innovation. While the first meeting is yet to be scheduled, the Committee is now accepting briefs under this study.
Submit briefs to the Clerk of the Committee:
Mr. Leif-Erik Aune
Tel.: 613-943-9388
Email: SRSR@parl.gc.ca
Website: ourcommons.ca/SRSR-e
Senator Stan Kutcher: A Champion for Science in Parliament
Earlier this week, Senator Stan Kutcher (Nova Scotia) co-authored an article with Dr. Abraham Fuks (McGill University) in Policy Options titled “Canada needs to grow basic science capacity.” This article is a great read that echoes our communities’ long-standing calls for increased and sustained investments in fundamental science as a critical driver of health security and economic prosperity. Since his nomination to the Senate in 2018, Dr. Kutcher has attended many Parliamentary Health Research Caucus events, and we are thrilled to see him continue to champion science and health research with his parliamentary colleagues and the Canadian public.
Our thanks and congratulations go to both the Senator and Dr. Fuks for working together on this great article!
Click here to read: Canada needs to grow basic science capacity
The CSMB submits a brief to the Standing committee on Science and Research
The CSMB is pleased to have submitted a brief to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Science and Research.
The CSMB is proud to be a winner of the 2021 Leadership in Advocacy Award.
The Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences (CSMB) is a very proud winner of the 2021 Leadership in Advocacy Award, by Research Canada. Click here to learn more, and stay tuned for the 2022 Call for Nominations, coming to you on March 1!
View the message sent by Research Canada
Join Research Canada to celebrate the 2021 Leadership in Advocacy Award Winners
The CSMB is very proud to have received a 2021 Leadership in Advocacy Award from Research Canada and invites you to join us on Dec 1, 2021 for the 2021 Leadership in Advocacy Award virtual award presentation ceremony.
Prize details and a link to register for the virtual ceremony are available on the Research Canada website
Read the CSMB’s pre-budget submission to the House of Commons Standing committee on Finances
Read the CSMB’s submission to the House of Commons Standing committee on Finances pre-budget consultations:
CSMB advocacy update
On Friday, June 25, the Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences, in partnership with the Canadian Association for Neuroscience welcomed former Minister of Science and current Member of Parliament, Dr. Kirsty Duncan to an event on Science and Government 101. During the session, Dr. Duncan stressed the need for scientists and researchers to get involved, with a unified voice, in advocating to government on how scientific evidence matters. As said best by Dr. Duncan, “We can’t continue on two separate tracks… where science doesn’t know politics, and politics doesn’t know science”. Heeding her advice, the CSMB is planning for future engagement with government officials, especially in light of a potential Fall 2021 election.
Further details will follow once the timing of the election is clear, but we will be supporting Members with their election engagement through the preparation and sharing of template tweets and social media advice, one-page documents with election priorities, and support for Members looking to reach out to their local candidates.
In the meantime, if you were looking to engage with your local Member of Parliament over the summer and would like some support, please reach out to Kristina Proulx from Temple Scott Associates at kproulx@tsa.ca and she will try her best to coordinate a meeting on your behalf.
Thank you @CSMB_SCBM and @CAN_ACN for an excellent afternoon of science and politics. I look forward to hearing you share your science stories, and how science changes the lives of Canadians every day. Your expertise and voice will help build a better Canada and future. pic.twitter.com/Bf86sJxYPt
— Kirsty Duncan (@KirstyDuncanMP) June 25, 2021
The CSMB wins Research Canada’s Organization Leadership in Advocacy Award
Press release by Research Canada
OTTAWA, June 9, 2021 – Research Canada is pleased to announce the 2021 Individual and Organization Leadership in Advocacy Awardees: Dr. Aubie Angel, the founding and current President of Friends of CIHR (FCIHR), a professor at the University of Manitoba and President and Board Chair of the Diabetes Research and Treatment Centre, and the Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences, a professional association of active researchers and students in the fields of biochemistry, cell biology, molecular biology and genetics.
The Research Canada Leadership in Advocacy Award recognizes outstanding champions of health research and health innovation. Recognition of Canadian health research—the kind that attracts the necessary public and political support—often comes from the dedicated and tireless efforts of health research advocates who educate policymakers, the media and the public about the social and economic benefits of health research and its promise of future cures and, importantly, a better quality of life for all Canadians. This year’s winners exemplify this. + + +
Invitation to participate in pre-budget consultations by the Department of Finance
Dear CSMB members
We would like to bring to your attention that the government is currently soliciting feedback in advance of Budget 2021 and invites all Canadians to fill out the following questionnaire.
https://letstalkbudget2021.ca/pre_budget_consultations
This consultation is open until February 19, 2021
We encourage you to provide your feedback, and particularly this question:
If you were designing the federal budget, what would you like to see in it to help create jobs and grow Canada’s economy?Â
We encourage you to review the recent pre-budget CSMB submission and our recommendations, here is what CSMB recommends
That the Government implement all recommendations from the 2017 Fundamental Science Review, notably:
- Recommendation 1: That the Government significantly increase investment in science and discovery research in line with the recommendations of the Report, by 25%.
- Recommendation 2: That the Government increase investment in training of the next generation of scientists, over 4 years, to an additional $140M per year (increases at $35M per year).
- Recommendation 3: That the Government increase its investment in the Research Support Fund, over 4 years, to an additional $478M to help institutions across Canada to support their researchers as effectively and efficiently as possible.
- Recommendation 4: That the Government increase investments to support investigator initiated fundamental research at CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC by increased investments into the granting councils.
Science has an important role to play in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and the voice of scientists needs to be heard.
Please participate in these important consultations!
Dr. Imogen R. Coe
President of the Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences
