On Friday, 13 research teams from the city's two universities were on the receiving end of attention from the Ontario Research Fund that will help enhance Internet security and build the next generation of smart, green vehicles.

Friday's announcement was part of the Ontario Research Fund - Research Infrastructure program. The funding will provide for equipment and other resources for the researchers' labs.

Pictured above are ORF funding recipients from the University of Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University with Minister John Milloy, Member of Provincial Parliament for Kitchener Centre and Government House Leader, George Dixon, vice-president, university research for uWaterloo and Abby Goodrum, vice-president research at WLU.

 

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WatITis issues call for papers

Members of the university community are being invited to actively participate as a speaker/presenter or panelist at the 10th annual WatITis (Waterloo Information Technology and Information Systems) conference, which will be held on Tuesday, December 3 in the Quantum-Nano Centre.

That's the gist of a notice being circulated by the WatITis 2013 Committee members this week.

Topics include, but are not limited to, teaching, research, institutional support, new projects, “green” initiatives, future developments or general interest for uWaterloo staff, in the area of IT. The committee is also inviting staff members to submit their ideas for session topics that they feel would be of interest to other IT professionals.

"From last year's attendee survey, we heard a strong desire to see presentations about tools and techniques that some of you have developed that may not have had wider campus exposure and may be of use to the rest of us," says the committee's memo. "There was also an expressed desire to have higher level technical presentations on current projects and future developments in the IT area, both on campus and abroad."

Program Committee Chair Jenn Brewster is accepting synopses of topics or session ideas for the first round of submissions via email, and will do so up until May 17. A second round of submissions, if required, will be announced in September.

Co-chairs Kevin Paxman and Jenn Brewster can be contacted for more information, and an email list exists for those who want to learn more and get updates about the conference.

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Waterloo at Saudi Arabia education fair

by Marta Bailey,

Lynne Wight, Manager, Graduate International Agreements, Recruitment and Admissions, Graduate Studies Office will be attending the 4^th annual International Exhibition and Conference in Higher Education (IECHE)  in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from April 16 to April 19. University of Waterloo representatives have attended the IECHE since its inception, including President Feridun Hamdullahpur in 2012. 

Joining Lynne at the University of Waterloo booth will be Tony Munro, Manager, Strategic Partnerships, Marketing and Undergraduate Recruitment and Ralon Nazareth, Marketing and Recruitment Specialist, English Language Institute, Renison University College.  

The group is also very pleased to have 3 alumni and 1 co-op student assist.  Attendance is expected to exceed 300,000 visitors, including students and their parents.  Additional information about this event can be obtained from Lynne Wight. 

 

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Conference to explore leadership in innovation

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and BlackBerry Co-founder Mike Lazaridis will headline a University of Waterloo-hosted conference aimed at building a plan for economic growth and prosperity for Ontario and Canada – with Waterloo’s model for innovation at its heart.

The Leadership Innovation Conference, taking place April 22 and 23, will bring together leading entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, academics and policy-makers from across North America that will help shape Canada’s economic future. The conference will explore new approaches to supporting entrepreneurial ventures that are key drivers of economic prosperity in Canada.

“International competition faced by Canadian companies is at an all-time high.  The need for innovation in this country is critical,” said Feridun Hamdullahpur, president & vice-chancellor. “We believe that we have created an ecosystem in Waterloo Region that mixes basic research, entrepreneurialism and venture capital successfully. Waterloo’s Leadership Innovation Conference will look for ways in which we can sustain this vibrant ecosystem and use it as a model for prosperity nationwide.”

Premier Wynne will deliver a keynote speech on the first day of the invitation-only event. Sukhinder Singh-Cassidy, CEO of JOYOUS, will join her with a keynote speech addressing the challenges of hyper-growth and Kevin Lynch, chairman of the Waterloo’s Board of Governors, will review the Ontario Prosperity Report.

Mr. Lazardis, inventor of the smartphone and co-founder of the recently announced Quantum Valley Investment Fund, headlines a second day session that reviews the model for innovation that has become the engine for the Quantum Valley in the Waterloo Region. As part of the session, experts explain why the selection of quantum information as a focus gives the region a unique opportunity to be one of a handful of centres globally that will lead the coming quantum technology revolution. 

“I believe Ontario and Canada, as a whole, have tremendous potential for economic growth through technological innovation. In history there are many examples where brilliant minds have been brought together to collaborate on a specific area of focus. Breakthroughs and opportunities for innovation and value creation almost always follow,” said Mr. Lazaridis, speaking about the conference. “The investments that we have made in this region to establish the world class capability in quantum information science is based on this historically proven model for innovation.”

Other speakers at the conference include:

• Anamitra Banerji - Partner, Foundation Capital
• Alfred Lin - Partner, Sequoia Capital
• Jon Gertner – Editor, Fast Company
• Tom Jenkins – Executive Chairman and Chief Strategy Officer, OpenText Corporation
• Prashant Pathak - Managing Partner, ReichmannHauer Capital Partners
• Bill Tatham - CEO, NexJ Systems
• Amar Varma - CEO & Co-founder, Xtreme Labs
• Helge Seezten - CEO, Tandem Launch

Research, entrepreneurialism and venture capital all have a vital role to play in fuelling economic growth and prosperity for Ontario, Canada and the world. The Leadership Innovation Conference promises high-impact analysis and policy-relevant ideas from top-tier thought leaders.

 

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