On March 23, the Federation appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Science and Research as part of its study on the governance and accountability of federal science policy and institutions.
In her testimony, Federation President and CEO Karine Morin pointed to Canada’s existing strengths in ethical research practice, expert peer review, and transparent public evaluation. She also highlighted opportunities to build on work already underway to strengthen the mandate to assess gaps in Canada’s science policy, while calling for the development of a national strategy accounts for the contributions of humanities and social sciences scholarship and leadership. Morin argued that broadening how the value and impact of research are assessed is part of establishing a new contract between science and society. She called for more human-centred measures beyond economic outputs alone, measures that recognize social innovation and research contributions to health, social resilience and cohesion, public trust, , and sovereignty.
She also emphasized that science policy must remain grounded in public benefit and responsive to communities and noted that government can build on existing mechanisms to identify opportunities for improvement and strengthen the research ecosystem.
The Federation will continue to make the case for a science policy landscape that reflects the full breadth and value of research to society.
Access the Federation’s appearance before the Standing Committee on Science and Research.