Newsletter
In this edition:
- From Ocean Science to Public Impact: What Canada’s Experts Are Grappling With
- We’re hiring!
- Remembering Juliet Daniel
- In the News
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From Ocean Science to Public Impact: What Canada’s Experts Are Grappling With
Despite Canada’s considerable expenditures and impressive capacity and expertise, research does not always translate into durable public benefit. That tension was at the centre of a recent expert workshop convened by the CCA at the request of the Marine Environmental Observation, Prediction and Response Network (MEOPAR).
The premise was straightforward, but consequential: strong science does not automatically lead to strong outcomes. Rather than revisiting what ocean-related topics Canada should be exploring, the workshop focused on what enables research to shape decisions—across policy, communities, industry, and environmental management—and why those pathways sometimes break down.
The workshop was organized around four core themes: experiences where ocean research has delivered tangible benefits, and where it has not; recurring barriers that impede beneficial impacts; strategies and enabling conditions that support more effective impact; and emerging forces—from geopolitics to digital technologies—that are reshaping the context within which ocean science leads to economic, social, or environmental impacts.
Participants brought diverse perspectives from across the country and across sectors, including academic research, all levels of government, industry, and civil society. Discussions explored how research impact can be generated—or constrained—by systems: governance arrangements, incentives, coordination across jurisdictions, data and knowledge flows, and long-term relationships with rights holders and end users.
This work arrives at a strategic moment. As geopolitical dynamics, climate pressures, and Arctic access reshape global attention toward the oceans, Canada has a window to strengthen its role as a leading ocean nation—but only if its research enterprise can be fine-tuned to better support decision-makers. Leadership in ocean science today is not defined solely by discovery, but by the ability to align research with public priorities, coordinate across jurisdictions, and apply knowledge to support decisions at speed and scale. Clarifying how impact is generated—and where the system currently falls short—is therefore central to Canada’s ability to realize its ambitions at home and credibly exercise influence abroad.
A CCA authored report synthesizing these discussions will be released in June.
Love creating engaging content that communicates complex evidence clearly and accurately? We’re looking for a bilingual communication specialist with strong initiative, creativity, and a collaborative spirit to help convey the value of evidence in informing public policy. We’re a small, mighty team doing big, meaningful work—perfect for someone who’s organized, adaptable, and always ready to learn something new.
Send your CV, a cover letter, and three writing/content samples to careers@cca-reports.ca on or before May 10. Details on our website.
Remembering Juliet Daniel
It is with deep sadness that the CCA team learned of the passing of Juliet Daniel. We had the privilege of working closely with her as a member of the Expert Panel on EDI in the Post-Secondary Research System, and her loss is felt profoundly by all who had the honour of collaborating with her.
“Juliet Daniel brought her candour and energy to the EDI panel and a strong voice for the importance and necessity of equitable and inclusive practices in the post-secondary research system,” said Anita Melnyk, Director of Health and Life Science at CCA. “She was an inspirational collaborator who willingly and generously shared not only her knowledge but her experiences to advocate for a better future for all.”
Daniel brought exceptional depth and lived authority to the panel’s work. A distinguished cancer biologist, co-founder of the Canadian Black Scientists Network, and a Black woman who had navigated the highest levels of Canadian academia, she understood inequity in the research system from the inside—she had experienced it, challenged it, and dedicated her career to dismantling it.
Her contributions to the panel were invaluable. She helped ensure that the report captured the genuine consequences of systemic barriers for researchers from underrepresented groups, grounded in rigorous evidence, including lived experience.
The CCA is deeply grateful for her commitment to this report and to the broader principles she advanced. Her influence will endure through the many doors she opened.
“Juliet Daniel was an accomplished scientist, a mentor to students and colleagues from across the country, and a dear friend,” said Maydianne Andrade, chair of CCA’s Scientific Advisory Committee, Dean of Science at York University, and co-founder of the Canadian Black Scientists Network. “Her mentorship changed lives and her advocacy changed systems. She was an inspiration and she will be deeply missed.”