TORONTO, Ontario (May 12, 2011): After serving for 12 years as Canada’s premiere Network of Centres of Excellence in the mathematical sciences, Mitacs announced today that it is transforming itself into two separate organizations that will work, each in their own way and focus, on supporting the country’s innovation agenda.
Mitacs Inc. will concentrate on developing and supporting a suite of unique programs geared toward collaborative industry/academic research projects that address attraction, retention and training the talent Canada needs to be competitive in the global knowledge economy.
At the same time, a new organization known as Mprime Network Inc. is being launched to continue the fulfillment of one of the original Mitacs mandate as Canada’s Networks of Centres of Excellence in the mathematical sciences. Dr. Allen Eaves, President of Stemcell Technologies has been appointed as Chair of the Board of Mprime. University of British Columbia mathematics professor Dr. Nassif Ghoussoub will serve as its new scientific director.
“One of the characteristics of successful knowledge-based economies is their ability to incorporate sophisticated mathematical tools and methodologies in their innovation effort,” said Ghoussoub. Dr. Eaves added “We are fortunate to have someone of Dr. Ghoussoub’s calibre at the helm. I’m confident he will ensure that the mathematical sciences remain a key component of Canada’s future innovation strategy.”
Mitacs is also very pleased to welcome Brad Bennett, President of McIntosh Properties, as its new Chair of the Board. UBC Computer Science Professor Dr. Arvind Gupta will continue to serve as the scientific director for Mitacs Inc.
“Re-launching Mitacs with such a broader mandate will help ensure that we are working even more closely with our federal and provincial partners to develop knowledge-intensive and innovative economies” says Bennett. “Mitacs remains committed to working with over 600 business partners who form an integral part of our industrial network across the country.”
Mitacs also announced a new strategic partnership with over 40 research organizations from across Canada. Some of the new research members include the Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, the Ontario Centres of Excellence and NanoQuébec.
