Ontario Investing $4 Million to Help Drive World-class Research, Development and Commercialization
TORONTO – The Ontario government is investing $4 million to support greater collaboration between industry and the postsecondary education and research sectors to create well-paying jobs in local communities and help build a resilient economy. The investment will support the Ontario Collaborative Innovation Platform, a new online portal to match industry professionals with equipment, facilities and experts at postsecondary institutions. These partnerships will help businesses and innovators engage in world-class research, development and commercialization and provide Ontario postsecondary students with real-world, hands-on experience.
“Ontario’s colleges, universities and research institutes are key sources of innovation and commercialization, making them leading contributors to Ontario’s productivity and economic growth,” said Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities. “By making it easier for industry to access the talent and resources they need at postsecondary institutions and research partners across the province, our government is helping businesses bring more Ontario-made ideas and inventions from the lab to market.”
The Ontario Collaborative Innovation Platform (OCIP) is designed to be responsive and flexible and will simplify pathways to research and commercialization. After piloting the online platform in 2020 at select postsecondary institutions, the province is now expanding this resource to businesses and all publicly assisted colleges and universities in Ontario.
Collaborative initiatives supported through the pilot stage focused on urgent needs related to the pandemic and included projects that:
- Developed a low-cost decontamination process for disposable N95 masks
- Explored potential economic and labour market trends the City of Toronto may experience over the next three to five years
- Investigated the impacts of telework on both the environment and employee performance.
“With the launch of OCIP, eCampusOntario is thrilled to support innovation and collaboration by increasing research partnerships between Ontario businesses and the province’s colleges, universities and Indigenous Institutes,” said Robert Luke, CEO, eCampusOntario. “By helping businesses remain at the forefront of their sector while giving students valuable work experiences, we will not only help industry succeed today, but also ensure Ontario’s innovation capacity is stronger for tomorrow.”
Ontario businesses interested in accessing postsecondary research, innovation and expertise can learn more about the Ontario Collaborative Innovative Platform through eCampusOntario.
Quick Facts
- The Ontario Collaborative Innovation Platform leverages a combination of existing technology and a new collaborative platform administered by eCampusOntario.
- The platform builds on the proven Tech-Access Canada model for linking small- and medium-sized enterprises to expertise and resources at Canadian postsecondary institutions.
- The Ontario government is supporting the province’s innovators in developing, managing and commercializing their intellectual property (IP) with the launch of services at Intellectual Property Ontario (IPON).
- Through partnerships with Mitacs, the government is continuing to fund thousands of research internships for undergraduate and graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows.
- The Ontario government is supporting Ontario-made innovation with an investment of more than $198 million in research projects at colleges, universities and research hospitals across the province.
Quotes
"We’ve been very pleased to support this initiative since its inception. Enhancing the opportunities for colleges and businesses to collaborate on real-world research will lead to innovations that make businesses more efficient and to the development of new made-in-Ontario products."
- Linda Franklin
President and CEO, Colleges Ontario
"The Ontario Collaborative Innovation Platform will help industry access the highly skilled talent and world-class research facilities available across Ontario’s universities. By supporting greater collaboration, these partnerships will continue to provide students with vital work-integrated learning opportunities that drive world-class research and commercialization and help create the type of Ontario-made solutions that bolster the economy and benefit all Ontarians."
- Steve Orsini
President and CEO, Council of Ontario Universities
"OCIP projects create authentic and meaningful opportunities for Ontario companies to bring products and visions to life, while establishing networks for entrepreneurs to learn and grow together. This programming has impacts in Ontario communities and creates pathways for economic and social growth that will pay dividends for years to come. Accessing OCIP and activating the funding is in line with the pace of business; very welcomed for companies who need to act fast."
- Matt Foran
Founder and CEO, KnowMeQ
"The capacity for innovation that postsecondary institutions, like Humber, bring to the Ontario economy is invaluable. Combining research power with industry professionals and partners through the Ontario Collaborative Innovation Platform will help continue to drive the province forward. We are proud to have participated in the piloting of this new platform and look forward to the opportunities it will bring in the future."
- Dr. Ann Marie Vaughan
President and CEO, Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
"Communitech is thrilled to partner with eCampusOntario on their new OCIP program that will drive research commercialization in Ontario. By connecting domestic founders with Ontario-made research and high-quality intellectual property, this partnership will drive value for taxpayer investments into higher education while enabling Ontario entrepreneurs to grow and scale on the strength of Ontario ingenuity."
- Matt Bondy
Vice-President, External Relations, Communitech