A Basis for Action - Commission de l'éthique de la science et de la ...

Position Statement of the Commission de l'éthique de la science et de la technologie
Estimate of R&D investments by central governments, according to the National
Science Foundation (in M$ U.S.)
Region 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Europe 126 151 179 200 ~225 ~400 ~650 ~950 ~1,050
Japan 120 135 157 245 ~465 ~720 ~800 ~900 ~950
United States 116 190 255 270 465 697 862 989 1,081
Others 70 83 96 110 ~380 ~550 ~800 ~900 ~1,000
Total 432 559 687 825 ~1,535 ~2,350 ~3,100 ~3,700 ~4,100
Source: Mihail C. Roco, National Science Foundation 29
However, this data essentially concerns investments in national strategies implemented in the countries
indicated; it excludes investments made by various American states (one billion U.S. dollars for the city
of Albany, New York alone), for example, and does not include government investments made in
Canada, which does not yet have a national nanotechnology strategy. Note that such a strategy was
planned for late 2005 30 and should therefore be implemented soon. For the time being, it is difficult to
draw up a quantitative portrait of Canadian investment in nanotechnology. The infrastructure required
for nanotechnology development is largely housed in universities 31 ; university research is funded
through the budgets of national granting agencies (like the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research
Council of Canada [NSERC] and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research [CIHR]), and
multidisciplinarity makes an overview of nanotechnology funding impossible. As a guide, note that
research on the subject in 2004 32 showed that approximately $200 million Canadian was granted
annually for nanotechnology through NSERC budgets (team and individual funding).
With 38.6% of the country’s nanotechnology enterprises, Québec holds an enviable position in this
industry in Canada. 33 With the creation of NanoQuébec in 2001, it became a leader in nanotechnology
promotion with a view to increasing Canada’s economic development.
Nanoscience and nanotechnology research was marginal in the 1990s, but is now part and parcel of
education 34 and research programs at all universities; private enterprises (SMEs often created at
universities) are also increasingly present. Research is varied and focuses on the four main sectors
considered below: nanomaterials, nanoelectronics, nanobiotechnology, and nanometrology. Most
29 From Mark ROSEMAN, An Overview of Nanotechnology in Canada. Report 2: A Review and Analysis of Foreign
Nanotechnology Strategies, developed for the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council on Science and Technology
(PMACST), Canada, October 14, 2005, p. 2 and 3 [available on request] http://acst-ccst.gc.ca/back/
home_f.html.
30 See http://www.infoexport.gc.ca/science/india_techsummit_thprof-fr.htm.
31 David J. ROUGHLEY, Victor JONES, and Aaron CRUIKSHANK, An Overview of Nanotechnology in Canada. Report 3:
The Canadian Industrial Capacity to Absorb Nanotechnology, developed for the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council
on Science and Technology (PMACST), Canada, October 31, 2005, p. 13 [available on request] http://acstccst.gc.ca/back/home_f.html.
32 Peter GRÜTTER and Mark ROSEMAN, A Study of Canadian Academic Nanoscience Funding: Review and
Recommendations, NSERC/CRSNG NanoIP/PIC, June 2004 [online] http://www.physics.mcgill.ca/
NSERCnanoIP/e/Canada_Nano_Funding.pdf.
33 For a detailed discussion of the subject, see David J. ROUGHLEY et al., op. cit. Appendixes also provide
information on patents, entreprises, and research by Canadian province.
34 Several Québec cégeps also offer technical programs.
12 Ethics and Nanotechnology:
A Basis for Action