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ADM |
Assistant Deputy Minister |
ASPP |
Aid to Scholarly Publications Program |
ARLU |
Annual Reference Level Update |
ASU |
Aid to Small Universities (program) |
CASD |
Common Administrative Services Directorate |
CCV |
Common CV |
CFHSS |
Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences |
CFI |
Canada Foundation for Innovation |
CFS |
Canadian Forest Service |
CGS |
Canada Graduate Scholarships (program) |
CIC |
Citizenship and Immigration Canada |
CIHR |
Canadian Institutes of Health Research |
CISS |
Canadian Initiative on Social Statistics |
CMHC |
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation |
CPEA |
Corporate Performance, Evaluation and Audit (Division) |
CSTP |
Committee for Science and Technology Policy |
CURA |
Community-University Research Alliances (program) |
DF |
Doctoral Fellowships (program) |
DFO |
Department of Fisheries and Oceans |
DPR |
Departmental Performance Report |
ERA |
European Research Area |
ERA-CAN |
Canada-EU Science and Technology Office |
ERA-NET SAGE |
ERA Network on the Societal Aspects of Genomics |
ESD |
Electronic Services Delivery |
FPTT |
Federal Partners in Technology Transfer |
FTE |
Full-Time Equivalents |
GOL |
Government On-Line |
HRSDC |
Human Resources and Social Development Canada |
IC |
Industry Canada |
IM/IT |
Integrated Management/Information Technology |
INAC |
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada |
INE |
Initiative on the New Economy (program) |
ITCan |
International Trade Canada |
ITST |
Image, Text, Sound and Technology (program) |
KPM |
Knowledge Products and Mobilization (Division) |
LCC |
Law Commission of Canada |
MCRI |
Major Collaborative Research Initiatives (program) |
MOU |
Memorandum of Understanding |
MRRS |
Management, Resources and Results Structure |
NCE |
Networks of Centres of Excellence (program) |
NORFACE |
New Opportunities for Research Funding Cooperation in Europe |
NRC |
National Research Council Canada |
NRCan |
Natural Resources Canada |
NRDP |
Northern Research Development Program |
NRTEE |
National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy |
NSERC |
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada |
OECD |
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development |
OMRN |
Ocean Management Research Network (program) |
PA |
Program Activity |
PAA |
Program Activity Architecture |
Postdoctoral Fellowships (program) |
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PRE |
Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics |
PWGSC |
Public Works and Government Services Canada |
RBAF |
Risk-Based Audit Framework |
RDI |
Research Development Initiatives |
RIH |
[Ethical conduct in] research involving humans |
RMAF |
Results-Based Management and Accountability Framework |
RPP |
Report on Plans and Priorities |
S & T |
Science and Technology |
SIG |
SSHRC Institutional Grants (program) |
SO |
Strategic Outcome |
SRE |
Secretariat on Research Ethics |
SRG |
Standard Research Grants (program) |
SSH |
Social Sciences and Humanities |
SSHRC |
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada |
Ts & Cs |
Terms and Conditions |
TBD |
To be determined |
TBS |
Treasury Board Secretariat |
TCPS |
Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans |
TPP |
Transfer Payments Programs |
As Minister of Industry, I am proud to present this report on the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council's (SSHRC) anticipated achievements and results over the next three years. Through the efforts of SSHRC and its Portfolio partners, we are working to ensure that Canada has the necessary business and innovation environment to foster a culture of discovery and creativity to fuel economic success and support our enviable quality of life.
Today, we operate in a globalized economy where electronic commerce drives complex and interconnected supply chains from around the world and anyone can be our competitor. To thrive, we need a dynamic and adaptable economy-one with a highly trained work force and nimble businesses striving for competitive growth and development.
The Industry Portfolio:
(i) Federal Crown Corporations do not prepare Reports on Plans and Priorities. |
We are working to reduce barriers to and within our markets and to encourage more domestic and foreign investment. We are supporting and defending our industries. We are working to improve business and consumer confidence.
Looking ahead, we see the need to enhance Canada's business environment, including improving the critical ground rules that ensure stability, equitable conduct and competition for consumers, investors and businesses. Used strategically, these efforts can encourage investment in innovation, afford easier access to capital, support risk-taking and entrepreneurship, and ensure the efficient and productive allocation of resources.
And we are supporting science, technology, research and development to encourage our industries, our businesses and our workforce to keep pace with technological change and drive innovation throughout our economy. And the demand for innovation across the Canadian economy - including in the areas of health care, climate change, productivity and the competitiveness of Canadian firms - continues to rise.
As presented in this report, SSHRC's initiatives will help make Canada a better place to innovate and do business.
It is my pleasure to present the Report on Plans and Priorities for SSHRC.
Maxime Bernier
Minister of Industry
I submit, for tabling in Parliament, the 2006-2007 Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP) for the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
This document has been prepared based on the reporting principles contained in the Guide to the Preparation of Part III of the 2006-2007 Estimates: Reports on Plans and Priorities and Departmental Performance Reports:
Janet E. Halliwell
Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) is the federal agency that supports and promotes social sciences and humanities research and research training in Canada. The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Act (1977) mandates SSHRC to:
SSHRC funds research in more than 30 disciplines: Anthropology, archaeology, business and administrative studies, commerce, classics, communication and media studies, criminology, economics, education, environmental studies, ethics, fine arts, geography, history, industrial relations, inter- and multidisciplinary studies, law, linguistics, literature, management, medieval studies, modern languages, native studies, philosophy, political science, psychology, religious studies, social work, urban and regional studies, women's studies |
SSHRC's raison d'être is to build knowledge, expertise and understanding by:
SSHRC's main clientele are university-based researchers and students: 19,000 full-time professors (53 per cent of all full-time faculty) and 49,000 full-time graduate students (55 per cent of all full-time graduate students). Researchers in community colleges and not-for profit organizations with a research mandate are also eligible to receive funding from selected Council programs.
Finally, SSHRC plays a leadership role in the development of research and science policy. The Council monitors emerging research trends in the social sciences and humanities and, through its strategies and programs, helps to structure the national research effort. SSHRC also advises the Minister of Industry and the Government of Canada on future directions in the social sciences and humanities.
Table 1 below summarizes SSHRC's mandate, raison d'ûtre and planned resources.
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190 FTE |
190 FTE |
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To build knowledge, expertise and understanding by:
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Budget 2006 allocated an additional $6 million per year for SSHRC, which brings its total budget for 2006-2007 to $327.2 million. Budget 2006 also announced an additional $40 million per year for the Indirect Costs program, which brings total annual funding of this program, which SSHRC administers on behalf of the granting agencies, to $300 million. Finally, Budget 2006 indicated that the Minister of Industry will be developing a science and technology strategy, in collaboration with the Minister of Finance, that will encompass the broad range of government support for research, including knowledge infrastructure. In addition, the Government will undertake a review of the accountability and value for money of the granting councils' activities.
SSHRC delivers on its mandate through a variety of programs which award grants, scholarships and fellowships in open, independently peer-reviewed, national competitions. Overall, the Council's programs support:
In addition to its own programs, SSHRC administers, through the Canada Research Chairs Secretariat, and on behalf of the three granting agencies, the Canada Research Chairs and the Indirect Costs of Research programs. Finally, while the Council is involved in many partnership programs and initiatives with other federal departments and agencies, it does not participate in horizontal initiatives* (as defined by Treasury Board) with federal counterparts.
SSHRC's Program Activity Architecture (PAA) is reproduced in Table 3 and Table 11, broken down into strategic outcomes, program activities (PA), and program sub-activities. The PAA shows how the Council delivers on its mandate; it also lists the programs which SSHRC administers on behalf of all three granting agencies.
*Treasury Board defines "horizontal initiative" as "an initiative in which partners from two or more organizations have established [a] formal funding agreement (e.g., Memorandum to Cabinet, Treasury Board submission, federal/provincial agreement) to work toward the achievement of shared outcomes. Examples of horizontal initiatives include the Climate Change Initiative, Canada's Drug Strategy, and the Youth Employment Strategy." Cf. Treasury Board Secretariat, Guide for the Preparation of 2006-2007 Part III of the Estimates: Reports on Plans and Priorities and Departmental Performance Reports, Ottawa, Treasury Board Secretariat, November 2005, 121 pages, p. 54, http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/est-pre/20062007/p3-eng.pdf; cf. Treasury Board Secretariat's Horizontal Results Database at http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/rma/eppi-ibdrp/hrdb-rhbd/profil-eng.asp.
The Council's transformation*, outlined in its recently published Strategic Plan, 2006-2011, will be an ongoing priority of the highest importance over the next five years. The strategic plan charts SSHRC's transformation from a traditional granting agency which focuses on funding peer-reviewed research, to a "knowledge council", which seeks to maximize the benefits of research for Canadians through more intense and sustained connections among researchers and users of research and through more widespread and effective mobilization, transfer and application of knowledge created through research.
Building on initial investments made in 2005-2006, SSHRC plans** to allocate, over the next three years, respectively $3.3, $5.4 and $5.5 million to the implementation of its Strategic Plan. The scope and speed with which transformation is implemented will depend on SSHRC's budgets between 2006-2007 and 2010-2011. It should be noted that, while transformation affects all Council programs, it does not affect programs that SSHRC administers on behalf of the three federal granting agencies.
SSHRC has ongoing commitments in addition to transformation. These are summarized in section 1.4.1 Delivering on SSHRC's Core Mandate. Finally, Table 13 in the Appendix provides a digest of the activities and initiatives to which the Council commits itself in this Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP).
*For background on transformation, see Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, 2003-2004 Estimates, Part III-Departmental Expenditure Plans: Report on Plans and Priorities, Ottawa, March 2003, pp. 9-10, http://publiservice.tbs-sct.gc.ca/est-pre/20032004/SSHRC-CRSHc/SSHRC-CRSHcr34-eng.asp; 2004-2005 Estimates, Part III-Departmental Expenditure Plans: Report on Plans and Priorities, Ottawa, October 2004, pp. 10-12, http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/est-pre/20042005/SSHRC-CRSHC/SSHRC-CRSHCr45-eng.asp; 2005-2006 Estimates, Part III-Departmental Expenditure Plans: Report on Plans and Priorities, Ottawa, March 2005, pp. 5-9, http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/est-pre/20052006/SSHRC-CRSHC/pdf/SSHRC-CRSHCr56-eng.pdf. See also http://www.sshrc.ca/web/whatsnew/initiatives/transformation/index-eng.asp.
**Approved by SSHRC's Board in June 2006.
Since 1997, the Government of Canada has made significant investments in academic research as part of an overall strategy to enhance Canada's capacity to innovate and compete, regionally and globally. The Canada's Performance report shows how SSHRC's activities and programs contribute to the Government of Canada's outcome, "an innovative and knowledge-based economy" as part of a "sustainable economy." More specifically, the Council's promotion and assistance of research and scholarship contribute to:
Broken down by strategic outcome and based on its current budget, Table 2 summarizes SSHRC's ongoing, previously committed, and new priorities for 2006-2007 and the following two fiscal years.
Strategic Outcomes |
Planned Spending |
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Priorities |
Type |
PA – Expected Result |
2006-2007 |
2007-2008 |
2008-2009 |
1: People - A First-Class Research Capacity in the Social Sciences and Humanities |
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Priority 1: Support advanced, high-quality research training. |
Ongoing |
Successful training of highly qualified personnel and promising new scholars. |
N/a |
N/a |
N/a |
2: Research - New Knowledge Based on Excellent Research in the Social Sciences and Humanities |
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Priority 2: Expand the diverse knowledge base in the social sciences and humanities through a “continuum of re-search funding”. |
New |
Opportunities for scholars to apply for small, medium and larger grants in investigator-framed programs. |
N/a |
N/a |
N/a |
Priority 3: Enhance the connections of Canada’s research community nationally and internationally. |
New |
Competitions of the Strategic Knowledge Clusters and the International Opportunities Fund (IOF) programs. |
2.3 |
4.4 |
5.5 |
3: Knowledge Mobilization - The Transfer, Dissemination and Use of Social Sciences and Humanities Research |
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Priority 4: Mobilize knowledge for greater impact. |
New |
Competition for the one-time pilot Knowledge Impact in Society (KIS) program. |
1.0 |
1.0 |
N/a |
Total |
3.3 |
5.4 |
5.5 |
*SSHRC, Strategic Plan, 2006 - 2011, p. 14 (priorities 1 and 2), pp. 15-17 (priorities 3 and 4).
SSHRC's investments contribute to significant advances in knowledge and expertise in the social sciences and humanities and to the development of a first-class research capacity. These investments also help shape a well-defined overall science policy. The Council's ongoing commitment is to support social sciences and humanities research and research training, develop culturally and socio-economically relevant, research-based knowledge, help shape the research enterprise, and contribute to innovation. SSHRC honours this commitment by:
Through extensive consultations with stakeholders and a range of commissioned studies, SSHRC examined how it could transform itself and renew the social sciences and humanities research enterprise in order to better serve the needs of Canadians. In particular, SSHRC asked its stakeholder communities how social sciences and humanities research and research training could be more effectively carried out and applied for the benefit of all.
As part of the "transformation" initiative, the Council also proposed a significant extension of its current role as a "granting council" that focuses on promoting and supporting research to the broader role of a "knowledge council" that is also concerned with connecting researchers and with the influence and impact of research findings. This strategy would lead to a much expanded role for SSHRC: the Council's core business would include a much stronger focus on supporting active linkages among researchers and between researchers and research users, as well as the mobilization, dissemination and application of research-based knowledge. Transformation is the logical extension of the Council's increasing emphasis, in recent years, on the integration within society (among individuals and organizations, in public discourse) of knowledge created through social sciences and humanities research. "Transfer" and "mobilization" of knowledge—which correspond to "commercialization" in the natural sciences—target the impact on and the integration into society of social sciences and humanities knowledge at various levels, from policy- and decision-making to organizational practices and public debate.
Staff analyzed the input received during the 2004 transformation consultations and made related recommendations to senior management. SSHRC's board approved the new Strategic Plan, 2006 - 2011 in June 2005. As appropriate and in accordance with operational planning, the Council incorporated key elements of the Strategic Plan into the present RPP.
SSHRC's new vision* is "to engage Canadians in building knowledge through research and in using that knowledge to create a just, free, prosperous and culturally vibrant world." As a "knowledge council", SSHRC will:
More specifically, the Council will transform itself into a "knowledge council" by
*Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Strategic Plan, 2006 - 2011, Ottawa, p. 5, http://www.sshrc.ca/web/about/publications/strategic_plan-eng.pdf.
The Council has already taken significant measures to implement transformation in incremental steps. These include launching the following:
Another initiative concerns the possibility of establishing a "continuum of research funding" for social sciences and humanities researchers. This would involve SSHRC providing scholars with a broader range of funding opportunities than is presently available in order to better respond to varying needs for research support throughout their careers.
Further steps at the organizational level include creating a second vice-president in the Programs Branch to oversee SSHRC's strategic and partnership programs—the very programs which are the spearhead for making partnerships and knowledge mobilization mainstream Council activities.