(November 27, 2013) Brazil has become an important economic partner for Canada with new research collaborations, academic exchanges, and business development related to advanced digital technology. Brazil recently surpassed China in having the world’s seventh largest domestic IT industry.
The upcoming Brasil-Canada 3.0, now in its second iteration, will further this developing partnership. The conference’s goal is to map the major challenges and opportunities that stimulate Brazil’s digital economy. The event is now Canada’s main summit devoted to boosting international cooperation with Brazil around Information and Communication Technology (ICT). As with the inaugural meeting in 2012, this year’s conference will host a number of high-level Canadian delegates from the government, academic, and industry ICT sector.
Joining the Canadian delegation is GRAND Scientific Director Dr. Kellogg Booth and PNI Dr. Sidney Fels (University of British Columbia) who will be discussing opportunities for cooperation between Canadian and Brazilian researchers. The delegation is organized by Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada.
Drs. Booth and Fels will describe how Canada’s NCE Program promotes effective academic-industry partnerships, highlighting some of the specific mechanisms developed by GRAND to accomplish this in the digital media sector. PNI Dr. Catherine Middleton (Ryerson University), the new Vice-Chair of CANARIE, will give a virtual presentation on how Canada’s digital infrastructure supports research, education, and innovation. The visit will include further discussions towards finalizing an MOU between GRAND and FAPESP (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo / State of São Paulo Research Foundation) to expand student and faculty exchanges, as well as encourage new research collaborations with Canadian universities in digital media.
“Digital media is becoming one of the primary forces within society for discussion of a range of cultural, political to economic issues. It is also raising new issues on its own about how digital media is transforming the global economy,” says Dr. Booth. “Brasil-Canada 3.0 2013 will offer an opportunity to continue discussions that were initiated last year to promote collaboration between Brazilian and Canadian researchers, and industry in the digital media sector.”
Thanks to the support of Brazil’s Comitê Gestor da Internet (CGI), the Canadian Digital Media Network (CDMN) – GRAND’s partner Centres of Excellence for Commercialization and Research (CECR) – is bringing representatives from ten Canadian companies to Brasil-Canada 3.0 to explore the Brazilian market. The companies were selected from 164 applications across Canada, four of which are engaged with CDMN hubs.
At the 2012 Brasil-Canada 3.0, GRAND representatives joined over 20 Canadian delegates from government, academia, and the ICT sector in discussions around the benefits of greater internationalization of research and development, and its implications for Brazilian society. For GRAND, the meeting strengthened ongoing partnerships established at the preceding Brazilian Visual Analytics workshop (BRAVA) launched in March 2012, and continued in March 2013.
Inspired by the model of the CDMN’s annual Canada 3.0 Conference, the Brasil-Canada 3.0 partnership was developed under the scope of the Canada-Brazil Joint Science, Technology and Innovation Action Plan announced by Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff and Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2011.
In recent years, the Canadian and Brazilian governments have committed to stronger international cooperation targeting digital technology. New funding opportunities such as ISTPCanada (Canada-Brazil Framework Agreement for Cooperation on Science, Technology and Innovation) and NSERC/FAPESP’s (Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada/Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo) joint grant program provide big incentives for collaborative research, exchanges, and workshops in advanced technology.
Science and technology linkages between Brazil and Canada were further cemented in the spring of 2012 with a momentous mission by 30 Canadian university presidents, including OCAD University President and GRAND Board Member Dr. Sara Diamond, as members of the Association of University and Colleges of Canada (AUCC), alongside the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada.
“Brazil is a priority market for Canada,” said the Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade. “We recognize the importance of Brazil as a major economic player and a strategic partner for Canada globally, regionally and bilaterally. We want our dynamic, wide-ranging and multi-faceted trade and education relationship to keep growing.”
“Brazil is one of the countries that GRAND is targeting for international partnerships,” notes Dr. Booth. “We already have a number of joint initiatives underway, but as we move forward into our second phase as an NCE, we expect to increase our international collaboration significantly, especially with partners such as Brazil. Initiatives such as Brasil-Canada 3.0 2013 help pave the way.”
- 30 -
Media Contact:
Spencer Rose
Communications Officer
GRAND NCE