With the release of Canada’s Fundamental Science Review (also known as the Naylor Report) and this week’s Report from the Global Young Academy on Restoring Canada’s Competitiveness in Fundamental Research: The View from the Bench there is clear evidence of what most of us already know: there has been a dramatic erosion of support for fundamental research in Canada. This has led to a loss of discovery and a dramatic shrink in the next generation of innovators.
The Fundamental Science Review offers the Canadian government a bold comprehensive plan to restore fundamental research in Canada. Want to learn more about the report? Check out the CSMB’s Overview of the Fundamental Science Report here: https://www.csmb-scbm.ca/uploads/ScienceReviewShort.pdf
If the recommendations in the Naylor report are implemented in 2018, which would represent a 0.1% in overall Federal spending, it would largely reverse this erosion. This could be an unprecedented opportunity to make Canada an international leader in science. As a community we need to rally around the report to ensure it doesn’t sit on the shelf. We need to show our politicians that Canadians’ care about science and want to see all the recommendations of the Fundamental Science Report Implemented.
What can you do?
1. Write a personal letter to your MP (find them here), along with the Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Minister of Finance Bill Morneau, Minister of Science Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Health Jane Philpott and Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Navdeep Bains. We suggest that you introduce yourself, what you work on and why it is important and then tell them how decreases in fundamental research funding have impact you directly. Do not forget to introduce the Naylor Report and how implementing it would potentially change your research and directly say that you support the full implementation of the report
Our colleagues at Evidence for Democracy have developed a great tool kit to aid in letter writing: https://evidencefordemocracy.ca/en/writealetter
Send your MPs an email or a letter (no stamp necessary) to:
House of Commons
Ottawa, ONT
K1A 0A6
WE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE THAT TRAINEES PARTICIPATE TOO! You are the next generation of scientists. Think about hosting a letter writing party in lieu of a lab meeting this summer.
2. Request a Meeting with your MP. We all know the value of Face-to-Face meetings. Over the summer while the MPs are back in their ridings is an outstanding time to request a meeting or offer a tour of your lab. Consider meeting as delegation that includes Principal Investigators along with research staff and trainees.
Our colleagues at Association of Canadian Early Career Health Researchers have put together an outstanding step-by-step guide for researchers connecting with MPs: http://www.acechr.ca/summerofsciencecan.html
Please let the world know that you have sent letters or met with your MP by tweeting it using the hashtag: #SupportTheReport and let us know about it @CSMB_SCBM so we can retweet your work.
Please feel free to forward this email to all your colleagues and stay tuned as in mid-July we will introduce a social media campaign focusing on our trainees!
Happy Canada Day
