Some say there’s been too little progress toward supporting Canadian research in fundamental science.
In 2016, then science minister Kirsty Duncan convened a panel of experts to conduct a comprehensive review of Canada’s academic science and research ecosystem. Led by David Naylor, former president of the University of Toronto, it was the first such exercise in almost 40 years.
The resulting Fundamental Science Review (FSR), released a year later, included recommendations on how to streamline, support and improve the country’s research landscape. It became the lodestar for Canada’s science community, and for a time at least, the federal government as well. Now, five years later, the work to implement those recommendations is at best only partly done. And while the FSR, also known as the Naylor report, remains a top priority for academics, it seems to have largely slipped off the government’s agenda. Read more in University Affairs.