Research & Innovation

Many organizations, especially small- and medium-sized companies, are not aware of the support networks and tools available to help support their businesses, or do not have the time and resources to navigate the required forms and processes. On July 30, Ryerson held its Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Credit Workshop, the most recent session in a series of workshops aimed at addressing these challenges.

Representatives from the Canada Revenue Agency, including Rob Coelho (Director, Toronto West Tax Services Office) and Rob Musselman (Manager, Financial Review), spoke to an audience of over 90 Ryerson faculty and industry partners about the SR&ED program, encouraging Canadian businesses of all sizes and sectors to pursue research and development in Canada. The program is the largest source of federal support of this type, and participants were offered advice on how to use it to support eligible Research and Development investments. The workshop marked the first time that the Canada Revenue Agency held an outreach session with an academic institution.

“It is a great program, especially for small- and medium-sized businesses who might not ordinarily be able to realize the commercialization of their ideas through to completion,” says Jennifer MacInnis, Legal Counsel and Senior Director of Applied Research and Commercialization at Ryerson. “It is a program that helps companies bootstrap their research and development, leverage investments, and helps keep their innovation efforts in Canada.”

“Ryerson’s research is the fastest growing amongst Ontario universities, and it’s largely because of the strength of our partnerships,” said Dr. Wendy Cukier, Vice President, Research and Innovation at Ryerson University. “The SR&ED Workshop is part of a comprehensive suite of programs that are aimed at making it easier for industry partners to get support, to solve real world problems, and ideally to partner with the University. Ryerson is open for business and provides one stop shopping to support R&D in SMEs.”

In June, in partnership with the Ontario Ministries of Research and Innovation (MRI) and Economic Development, Trade & Employment (MEDTE), business owners met with government representatives, academics, and industry colleagues to exchange tips on expanding their businesses into international markets. A third workshop, which will take place in October, helps  industry partners navigate and exploit funding sources to support industry-university research partnerships.

For more information on these programs and other ways to partner with Ryerson,  please contact our Partnerships group at innovate@ryerson.ca\

More information can be found on the Canada Revenue Agency website, or by clicking this link: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/sred/

Microorganisms are found everywhere in the world—in the air, on land, and in both fresh and saltwater environments—and have the uncanny ability to thrive on all living things. That’s what makes them central to our existence and survival believes Gideon Wolfaardt, a professor in Ryerson’s Department of Chemistry and Biology, and Canada Research Chair in Environmental Interface and Biofilms. He has dedicated his research to raising awareness about the role of microorganisms and the ways in which they can be controlled and harnessed for future good.

Wolfaardt’s research on microbial biofilm ecology has applications in engineering, industrial, and clinical settings. “My interest lies in understanding why microorganisms are so successful,” he says. “They’ll be here long after we’re gone and it’s fascinating how they are able to continuously adapt to new environments and circumstances.”

Wolfaardt says despite concerns surrounding infection and disease outbreaks, microorganisms also play a key part in helping facilitate a cleaner environment. “If we didn’t have microbes we’d drown in our own waste,” he says. “The more we recognize the role they play, the more we can enhance the process of the good ones and control the bad ones.”

With more than 80 published peer-reviewed articles and book chapters under his belt, Wolfaardt has presented at various seminars in North America, Europe, and South Africa. His current work centres around topics such as water treatment and management, infection control, microbial conversion of biomass, and the management of mine tailings and nuclear waste.

One multi-year project investigates the long-term impact of microorganisms in the deep subsurface, given that agencies responsible for nuclear fuel management have selected deep underground storage as a safe, long-term solution for used fuel. Partnering with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO), he and his team are collaborating with the University of Saskatchewan to evaluate the presence and activity of microorganisms in bentonite clay, which will be used to surround fuel containers.

“We’re looking at the environment microorganisms create and what kind of metabolic activity they will have that may impact the long-term sustainability of the environment,” he says, noting that corrosion is one concern. “We need to figure out when this corrosion will occur under those conditions.”

Such knowledge is expected to ensure that Canadian deep geological repositories are able to mitigate microbial effects that may occur during the lifecycles of these storage facilities.  “We need to ensure that microorganisms will not impact the long-term sustainability of these systems,” says Wolfaardt.

Continuing on the theme of sustainability, Wolfaardt is also involved in the Global Sustainability Bioenergy Project, which seeks to tap into the potential of bioenergy on a very large scale. “I’m really interested in how to use microbes in the developing world to prevent food spoilage and optimize the use of plants and natural resources for fuel.”

Social innovation is on the rise in Canada and is integral to the country’s future prosperity. Ryerson is at the forefront of social innovation and changemaking, guiding future leaders, building community partnerships, and generating new approaches to address complex social needs. The University’s innovation strategy includes initiatives with both social and for-profit goals.

Recently, three well-known leaders joined the dozens of social innovation researchers and leaders who can be found across all programs of study and faculties at Ryerson.

As the inaugural Chair in Social Innovation in Ryerson’ Faculty of Community Services, Marilyn Struthers’ focus is to embed innovation and entrepreneurship into social, cultural, and political systems to effect positive change in the lives of at-risk youth and their families and communities.

Over the next four years, Struthers will work closely with students and faculty in Ryerson’s School of Child and Youth Care and collaborate with faculties across the University.

“Innovation is about being alert to opportunities generated at Ryerson, as well as those in the non-profit, philanthropic, and business communities,” says Struthers. “I am looking forward to working with students and faculty at Ryerson to build connections with community partners who have done highly innovative work with marginalized children and youth.”

Struthers’s career in non-profit services spans more than 40 years. She has worked in organizations that provide services in child and adult mental health, arts, First Nations communities, and violence against women. As a program manager in the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s province-wide granting program, Struthers was responsible for major investments supporting new concepts, networks, and collaborations to build the capacity to innovate in Ontario’s services sector.

Also new to campus is widely-known trailblazer, social activist, and scholar, Dr. Alison Kemper, assistant professor of entrepreneurship and strategy at the Ted Rogers School of Management. 

Kemper’s academic credentials are complemented by an impressive career in advocacy and NGO management, leading organizations devoted to social and environmental change. She served as the policy chair of the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, and also worked within environmental advocacy at Greenpeace. In her role as co-chair to the City’s Homeless Advisory Committee, Kemper worked to improve services to homeless Torontonians. Together with her partner, Kemper also fought and won two charter challenges, resulting in the recognition of the rights of same gender couples to be parents together and to marry.

Kemper is keenly interested in the roles of companies in making and resisting social and environmental change. She researches the behaviour of companies under pressure from activists, the creation of "markets for virtue," and the incentives that will allow businesses to achieve sustainable operations. 

“The breadth of social innovation in Ryerson’s curriculum, faculty and research as well as in the student-based start-ups created to effect a positive change is incredible,” said Kemper. “I am looking forward to collaborating with faculty, students, and community and corporate partners to achieve even more.”

A driving force for corporate citizenship and social change, Eric (Ric) Young joins Ryerson as distinguished visiting professor in the Faculty of Community Services. As co-founder of Canada’s first dedicated social marketing agency, he was the architect of numerous national campaigns for government, non-profit, and private sector clients that addressed societal challenges such as climate change and AIDS. He has also worked extensively with blue-chip companies to develop their corporate citizenship strategies. Today, as founder and president of the Social Projects Studio, a “transformation start-up shop,” Young is involved in a diverse range of activities focusing on achieving breakthrough social impact.

“Community-based well-being and community-led innovation constitute one of the most important developmental areas for social innovation,” said Young. “Ryerson University has the potential to be one of the most significant breeding grounds for the next generation of social innovators.”

Young currently serves on the board of Ecotrust Canada and the Canadian advisory board of Right To Play. He is a fellow of The Royal Society of the Arts, a Quadrangle Society Member of Massey College, and a SiG (Social Innovation Generation) fellow at the University of Waterloo.

Struthers, Kemper, and Young are welcome additions to Ryerson’s leading scholars on social innovation and change across faculties and at Ryerson’s Centre for Voluntary Sector Studies, Institute for Corporate Social Responsibility, Diversity Institute, and Digital Media Zone.

For more information, please visit www.ryerson.ca/socialinnovation

RightsWatch Conference 2013 - Civil Liberties and Democracy in the Digital Age: Privacy, Media and Free Expression

Sep 20-21, 2013  

Ted Rogers School of Management, Ryerson University, 55 Dundas Street W., Toronto, ON

Organized and co-hosted by: Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA), Office of the VP Research & Innovation, Law Research Centre & Journalism Research Centre

Ryerson University partners with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association's (CCLA) on the RightsWatch Conference, bringing together a wide variety of stakeholders and community members, including scholars, public officials, lawyers, students and interested members of the public for an intimate conference on important topics and issues regarding our civil liberties. This year, there will be a series of discussions on the impact that new technologies and modes of communication have on legal and societal understandings of privacy, freedom of expression and the media. 

Click here for full details of the program.
Click here to register.

2013 MLeague International Symposium: ‘The Media City’

Oct 31 – Nov 2, 2013

Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada

Organized and co-hosted by: International League of Higher Education in Media and Communication (MLeague), Communication University of China (CUC) & Faculty of Communication and Design (FCAD)

The International League of Higher Education in Media and Communication (MLeague) is an alliance of over 61 media studies programs around the world, originally founded and now headed by the Communication University of China (CUC). At this year’s symposium, MLeague partners from across the world will have the opportunity to share and discuss key issues affecting the social, cultural and economic impact resulting from the pervasive mediatization of cities. 

Click here for more details