Release of the Naylor Report

The Advisory Panel for Canada’s Fundamental Science Review headed by Dr. David Naylor officially submitted its final report to the Government of Canada on April 10th, 2017. The report entitled INVESTING IN CANADA’S FUTURE: Strengthening the Foundations of Canadian Research (aka: the Naylor Report) provides a comprehensive list of evidence-based recommendations to strengthen the foundations of independent research in Canada in the years to come.

Highlights of the Panel’s major recommendations include:

  • The creation of a new, independent National Advisory Council on Research and Innovation (NACRI) to “provide broad oversight of the federal
    research and innovation ecosystems”, including conducting evaluations of federal funding programs.
  • The appointment of a coordinating board for the four major federal research funding agencies (CFI, CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC) that would be chaired by Canada’s Chief Science Advisor.
  • A major reinvestment in research funding over the next four years, that would raise annual spending by federal agencies from $3.5 billion to $4.8 billion by 2022.

The full report and executive summary are available at the following links:
Full Report (English; 280 pages) / Rapport complet (Français; 316 pages)
Executive Summary (English; 25 pages) / Sommaire (Français; 27 pages)

#SupportTheReport : Researchers’ Responses to the Naylor Report

Support for the recommendations in the Naylor Report is widespread in the research community, and a handful of meetings have already been held that specifically aim to bring researchers of all disciplines together to discuss the most effective means of lobbying the federal government to implement those recommendations. An excellent example of the latter is the Researchers’ Response to Canada’s Fundamental Science Review, which was held on May 31, 2017 in Toronto.

Recordings of the presentations from that meeting are available here and recordings of the moderator’s summaries from each of the discussion groups are available here – including one on trainee issues by CAPS/ACSP’s current Chair, Joe Sparling). In addition, an article about this meeting and a parallel one held in Edmonton on the same day appeared in the Globe and Mail (Canadian Researchers Rally Around Funding Recommendations)

In general, the takehome message from these meetings has been one of unity and the need for action. If Canadian researchers and trainees want the federal government to implement the recommendations of the Naylor report then we need to convince the government that those changes are needed and in the best interest of Canadian society.

By far the best way to do that is to speak directly to your local Member of Parliament (MP). For guidance on this and a collection of resources to help you make a convincing argument to your MP check out the step-by-step guide for connecting with  MPs developed by the Association of Canadian Early Career Health Researchers (ACECHR). 

If this approach is going to be successful, it is very important that we reach out to MPs who do not have universities in their ridings, so please consider contacting MPs in nearby ridings and perhaps even your hometown.