Conference Report: Innovation In Canada's Resource Sectors ...

ConclusionThe portrayal of Canada’s resource industries as staid,traditional, and lacking in innovation is incorrect at bestand, at worst, threatens to disrupt the enormous benefitsthat this sector provides to the Canadian economy. Notonly does the sector contribute significantly to Canada’swell-being, but it does so in increasingly innovative andsustainable ways. A pan-Canadian dialogue is requiredon innovation and the resource sector in order to morefully understand the current state of innovation and todetermine how we can move forward in making thesesectors even more sustainable and competitive.Innovation in Canada’s Resource Sectors representsthe first national, multi-sectoral focus on the future ofinnovation in Canada’s resource industries. The eventattracted participants from a number of Canada’s resourcesectors, and from a variety of perspectives: universityand research institutions, industry, federal and provincialgovernments, and non-governmental organizations. Thiswas an important first step in addressing the challengesand opportunities faced by the resource sector. The PublicPolicy Forum proposes extending this dialogue througha series of roundtables across Canada, to deepen theengagement of Canada’s resource industries in a richerconversation on the future of innovation in Canada’sresource sectors. In particular, these roundtables willfocus on determining relevant metrics for capturing theunique elements of innovation at play in the resourcesectors, such as process innovation, outsourcedinnovation, and innovation in public engagement.As well, identifying Canadian strengths and bestpractices, such as newly created collaborative networkslike FPInnovations and the Canadian Mining InnovationCouncil, will allow for a more focused discussion, withthe objective of determining actionable recommendationsfor the future.13