Halifax, Friday, October 7, 2011

I want to thank you for inviting me here today for this unique and important conference. Many of you know that I strongly believe in the power of collaboration, so it is with great optimism that I join you for these discussions on Atlantic Canada’s place in our changing world.

Allow me to begin by recalling that which has not changed—namely, Atlantic Canada’s enduring connection to the wider world. This region has had a global outlook since at least the 16th century, when transatlantic traders operated seasonal fishing stations in the Maritimes. And we all appreciate the significance of this gathering at Pier 21—one of Canada’s most historic gateways to opportunity.

With this heritage in mind, let us view our challenge today in a similar vein to those early, intrepid Canadians. Now, as then, we seek to open up new horizons. And now, as then, our success will hinge upon our ability to work together and to innovate.

And we must do so on a global scale, as never before.

There is no doubt that we live in transformative times. The communications revolution brought about by the Internet is profoundly changing our world, much as the arrival of the printing press in 16th-century Europe changed the course of civilization. In fact, I believe that the story of the printing press can provide us with a starting point for our discussion on innovation today.

Why? Because the printing press would never have seen the light of day were it not for the cluster of innovators who came together to make it happen. In Western Europe, it took Johannes Gutenberg, Martin Luther and Frederick the Elector of Saxony—John, Martin and Fred, I’ll call them—to come together to transform a feudal society. John invented the printing press around 1450, and promptly went bankrupt. It took Martin’s translation of the Bible three quarters of a century later, as well as Fred to shield him from Rome, to truly bring the printing press to Western Europe’s attention by launching the Protestant Cultural Revolution.

Europe was in fact late to “invent” the printing press—the Koreans had moveable type as early as the 3rd century AD, and Marco Polo saw printed books in China in 1215. But those civilizations had only John. They missed their Martins and their Freds. The point is that all three were necessary to bring forth the printing press, which led to the tradition of learning through reading, critical thinking and discussion, and to the transformation of the individual’s role in society.

And so Europe advanced out of the Middle Ages.

Today, we need new clusters—especially ones that embrace new research and exploit modern communication technologies. I want to speak for a moment about the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, a world-class organization based in Waterloo, Ontario. This institute, which was driven by the generosity of Mike Lazaridis of Research In Motion, arose in an environment of close collaboration between universities, governments and the high-tech sector, which exploits and feeds the process. Innovation in this dynamic cluster is propelled by the continual exchange of ideas, research, needs and information among all parties.

And the sights are set high. The Perimeter Institute aims to explore the world around us at the subatomic level, where our understanding of the laws of physics currently breaks down. In the realm of quantum computing alone, for example, the Institute’s research could have implications for Moore’s Law, which predicts the doubling of computing power every two years.

At the quantum level, all bets are off. This helps explain why Stephen Hawking—who just cut the ribbon on his own centre at the Perimeter Institute—calls Waterloo a potential global leader in 21st-century physics in the manner of Germany and Cambridge, England, in earlier times. Numerous high-tech and innovative firms and institutions are gathering in this region, including the just-opened digital media institute in the small city of Stratford that brings together students, researchers and entrepreneurs to study and create opportunities in the realm of digital media.

I share these stories with you not to focus unduly on achievements elsewhere but to introduce the theme of new frontiers, and to emphasize that you do not need to be in a large centre to lead. Historically, Atlantic Canadians have been innovators in exploiting the natural advantages of land and sea, and in investing in people through education. Today, I believe we must gather our existing strengths, talents and resources, and be bold in moving towards new, previously unimagined horizons.  

As governor general, I have been privileged during the past year to visit a number of communities in Atlantic Canada that are drawing from their roots, implementing clusters and breaking ground in new and exciting ways. And they are doing so here in Canada and around the world. Let me take a moment to share some of these stories with you.

One such story takes place in the Middle East, where last February I visited Newfoundland’s College of the North Atlantic-Qatar during a visit to the State of Qatar. Thousands of students from around the world have gathered to study and learn at the College’s campus in Doha. The school employs more than 600 Canadians, and many Qataris have been trained there for jobs in the region’s dynamic and growing economy. This remarkable Newfoundland-based college is now Qatar’s leading comprehensive technical school. 

Thanks in part to this collaboration, the links between the Middle East and Atlantic Canada are growing, and the College is at the centre of an extraordinary cluster of research, knowledge and innovation. More and more students from Newfoundland have an opportunity to study and gain practical experience abroad, and Qatari students are coming to Canada in exchange. It is a wonderful partnership, and it did not happen by accident or by default—the College of the North Atlantic was only one of a number of schools worldwide that sought to partner with Qatar, a nation that places great value on education.

How did it happen? Two reasons stand out.

First, the College made a strategic commitment to continuous innovation in research and education, and to exceptional collaboration and fully integrated partnerships with the State of Qatar and industry. This high degree of integration and focus on learning helped to ensure the College’s responsiveness to the needs of students, employers and the State.

Second—and this I find so wonderfully inspiring—it turns out that Qataris and Newfoundlanders make fast friends. The personal relationship mattered. Decision makers in Qatar were impressed with the College’s extensive ties to local communities and with its ability to collaborate with partners. These qualities, along with the flexibility and practical skills of Newfoundlanders, were deciding factors in the deal.

This partnership reminds us that success is entirely within our grasp, if only we can clearly define our strengths, gather and build upon them, and demonstrate them to the world. As the College of the North Atlantic has energetically shown, one of Atlantic Canada’s great strengths is the value you place on learning and on working together.

I can think of a number visits I have made in the past year, where I have seen Maritimers thriving in new and remarkable ways. One of these was to Provincial Aerospace Limited in St. John’s, which has grown from its origins as a small flight school to being a world leader in maritime and airborne surveillance. The company now employs 800 people, sells to 30 countries and has operating bases in the Caribbean and the Middle East.

Again, success is rooted in local strengths and global demand. In this case, Provincial Aerospace built upon its hard-won expertise in flying and navigating in difficult Maritime weather conditions to develop leading-edge aerospace engineering. The local know-how was the basis for a global service, with the value-added by innovation.

And that is a key point—the importance of adding value. Think of the famous Nova Scotia blueberry, to which our friend and colleague John Bragg applied three important innovations: (1) freezing, which enabled (2) worldwide shipping and sales, which (3) increased significantly after researchers discovered the berries’ wondrous antioxidant properties. Each advance added value.

These insights resonate in our contemporary context. Despite the challenges posed by demographics and the shifting global economy, Atlantic Canada can compete with any region in the world. As the authors of the Canadian International Council’s Global Positioning Strategy note, success in today’s world depends above all on our position at the centre of the network, rather than at the top of the hierarchy. Innovation often happens at the intersections between communities, universities and businesses, and all three exist in abundance in Atlantic Canada. The quality is very high. Come together and good things will happen.

This ecosystem approach, as it has been called, also speaks to the dynamic, non-static nature of innovation. The discovery of new horizons is not linear—innovation can be messy, slowed by false starts, dead ends and failed experiments. Recall the story of the printing press. Often, a great deal of synchronicity lies behind our findings, as the history of so many scientific and technological advances makes clear.

And yet, a successful cluster or ecosystem proves resilient and innovates, thanks to the continuous push and pull of ideas and forces from within and without. The trick is to identify and broadly share specific needs and goals, and to constantly, relentlessly, communicate.

As I often say, the most practical thing in the world is a good general theory, when continuously tested and refined against reality.

Let our theory be that Atlantic Canada can again be renowned as a gateway to opportunity, one that flows inward and outward between Canada and the world. And let us work together to test that notion, and to embrace new horizons. I am confident that we can.

Thank you.