The granting councils were originally established to foster curiosity-driven research through the expansion of funding opportunities to faculty and graduate students. Yet the federal government's rush to commercialise university research is increasingly at odds with the councils' peer-reviewed and independent research projects.

Housed within Industry Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) provide public funding for basic and applied research. The Innovation Strategy placed significant pressure on the granting councils to increase ties with the private sector, causing greater focus being put on applied research. NSERC has been promoting the commercial side of its programs and has a directory of companies established from NSERC research funding.6 NSERC introduced a new program in 2006, "Idea to Innovation," to facilitate the creation of spin-off companies from its research projects through the funding of new enterprises.7

Support to the granting councils is increasingly disproportionate. Even though over 60% of students study in the Social Sciences and Humanities, SSHRC receives significantly less funding than other granting councils. Pressure to support industry-relevant research means that funding increasingly supports disciplines that are considered "natural" allies of business, such as health, applied science and technology. SSHRC's management team recognises the shift in thinking within Industry Canada, and it's strategic plan articulates the challenge this way: "The challenge for the social sciences and humanities is to expand the idea of `return on investment' to include benefits other than mere commercial ones. But even with a strong argument for the broader benefits of research there is never a guarantee that the government's support for [SSHRC's] research will continue to grow."8

Unlike SSHRC and NSERC, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), operates under Health Canada. CIHR's "Commercialization and Innovation Strategy" is oriented to conducting research with partners to move research discoveries to the market.9

The CIHR has rapidly integrated commercialisation into most of its research funding, forging relationships between biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies and researchers studying in the health and medical fields.

From University President to Executive Director of Marketing
University administrators have supported the commercialisation agenda by courting business and promoting market driven research. In response to the federal government's Innovation Strategy, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) secretly negotiated an agreement with the federal government to, among other things, double the amount of research performed by universities and triple research commercialisation by 2010.10 Despite this surprise move by university administrators, it could be a difficult goal to achieve because no consensus was sought from the people who actually conduct research: faculty members and graduate students.

In a recent submission to the Minister of Industry and the Minister of Finance on the Development of a Science and Technology Strategy for Canada the AUCC, among other recommendations, calls upon the government to continue supporting university partnerships with the private sector and facilitate more commercialisation initiatives.11

In order to meet the goals of commercialisation, universities have taken on several new responsibilities and administrative burdens. Most universities have created "technology transfer" offices to assist researchers identify possible commercial potential for their research and successfully develop research into marketable products. These offices focus on establishing partnerships with industry, licensing discovery, patenting knowledge, and forming spin-off companies.

It is becoming common for universities to advertise discoveries available through their research offices for licensing by private companies.