Two Canada-India summits, the first of their kind, were held to commemorate Carleton’s new Indian partnerships in June.
The Canada-India Education Summit, held June 17-18, was to engage collaborative efforts across educational institutions, while the innovation summit, which took place June 20-21, was to encourage and celebrate innovation in industry between the two countries.
The summits marked the opening of the new Canada-India Centre of Excellence in Science, Technology, Trade and Policy, a new institution to be housed in the River Building at the end of the year. The centre has been in the making for two years, since the Ontario provincial government and several Indian universities signed an agreement to work towards similar goals.
On June 16, it was announced that Sreedhar Natarajan, an Indo-Canadian entrepreneur based in Ottawa, would donate $1.5 million to the centre. The Ontario provincial government and federal governments of both Canada and India have also contributed.
Carleton president Roseann Runte, along with president of the Association of Colleges and Universities of Canada, Paul Davidson, and the High Commissioner of India, Shri S. M. Gavai, officially introduced the education summit. Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird also gave a speech at the summit.
The education summit was meant to bridge the two countries together, according to Runte.
“We need to increase collaboration, see what the obstacles are,” said Runte.
The innovation summit was another opportunity for Carleton to showcase its partnerships with India. The two-day event began with an address via video conference call from Governor General David Johnston.
The rest of the innovation summit had participants separate into several break-out sessions, for more in-depth discussion on topical issues like biotechnology, sustainable energy and environment, and venture capital.
The Centre for Trade Policy and Law (CTPL) also took part in the events with their Canada-India Free Trade Agreement Simulation from June 20-24. On June 22, Runte joined CTPL’s group of students and professionals to discuss the summits and Carleton’s future engagement with India.
“Innovation has been used as a buzz word recently, but innovation should be about breaking down barriers and changing people’s mindsets,” said Runte. “Innovation comes from people, and to make new discoveries we need to recombine what we have already.”
Runte spoke of how Carleton has an opportunity to make connections with international partners, and the importance of having networks between universities. She’s hoping the new centre will do just that.
“Bringing everyone together was the inspiration behind the summits,” she said. “There are reasons why Canada and India should be working together.”
