Waterloo, Sunday, June 5, 2011

Let me begin by saying how glad I am to be here for the opening of this summit, among so many friends and former colleagues.

It was my privilege—during my time as president of the University of Waterloo—to have played a role in the launch of this exciting initiative. The aim was, and remains, to take a long-term, global view of some of the most pressing social, environmental and economic issues of our time, and to stimulate new ideas and solutions for the future.

And so it is with great delight that I see this conference come to fruition.

Our subject is energy, perhaps the defining resource of our modern civilization. I think everyone here would agree that our ability to solve the challenges associated with energy use and production will be critical to our future well-being, in Canada and around the world.

That is why this gathering is so important. For inspiration as we begin, we might draw on the words of Ken Dryden, who in his book Becoming Canada wrote of the need to think globally and to work together for a better future:

“To think about Canada, we need to think about the world. And the world’s future, it is clear, will depend on learning and getting along.”

And so, to the theme of my speech today: the importance of learning, innovation and the sharing of knowledge in Canada and the world.

As you may know, one of my priorities as governor general is to reinforce learning and innovation in this country. In 2017, we will celebrate the 150th anniversary of Confederation, and I have been inviting Canadians to think about ways to build a smarter, more caring nation as we approach this wonderful milestone.

I believe that one of the best ways to build the smart and caring Canada of the future is to encourage a citizenry that values lifelong learning and innovation. A smart nation is one that learns from the past, embraces the future and looks to the world with confidence and respect.

In the caring nation we envision, excellence and equality of opportunity coexist, and the value of knowledge always depends on its ability to help others. That includes the disaffected and marginalized among us.

Citizens of a smart and caring nation work collaboratively, and I want to commend the participants and organizers of this conference for coming together this week to discuss the future of energy. I can think of few ways in which our interdependence is more total, and I would like to take this opportunity to challenge all of you to continue to explore new avenues for co-operation.

This conference looks ahead to 2030, and I know that an important part of your work is to benchmark key aspects of our energy use and supply, and to set targets for the future. As we approach Canada’s 150th birthday celebration in just a few short years, we must similarly ask ourselves: what are our goals, and what are the mechanisms by which they can be reached?

For all Canadians, your talent, ingenuity and compassion are essential to our common future. Canada is blessed with a wealth of minerals, timber and fresh water, but our greatest resource by far is our collective ingenuity.

Canadians have long been innovators, partly in response to the challenges posed by our vast geography. Think of railway building in the late 1800s, or the introduction of new communications technologies that followed. Or, consider the more recent example of Waterloo’s Research In Motion, which applied the laws of physics articulated in the 20th century and made great leaps forward in mobile communications technology.

Innovation, in essence, is about crafting new ideas to improve the way we do things. It is about seeing things differently and imagining that which could be. There is nothing new about innovation and discovery—indeed they are as old as humanity itself. But what is new and unprecedented is the speed and scale of change in the world today.

We live in an era of profound globalization, where the frontiers of knowledge have eclipsed those of land and sea as the outermost reaches of human endeavour. Far from abstract, these knowledge frontiers represent a new paradigm, where our quality of life will be determined by our ability to think creatively and to solve problems. Simply put, our well-being will hinge upon our ability to innovate.

History reminds us that successful societies are driven by innovation, and that knowledge is the key to discovery.

Allow me to take a moment to look back at one of the most dynamic moments in the history of Western civilization: Renaissance Florence in the 15th century. This was a period of creativity and intellectual ferment that led to incredible activity in the arts, sciences, politics, religion and scholarship. The names Da Vinci, Donatello, Michelangelo, Machiavelli and Medici come down to us from this period.

The legacy is nothing if not mixed—after all, these remarkable individuals were also products of their time—but their influence on the future course of Europe is undeniable. Through the power of ideas, the people of Florence moved out of the Middle Ages and into a new era—the Renaissance—where the best of classical antiquity was paired with advances in humanism and science.

We must ask ourselves: what was it that enabled this Italian city state of approximately 50,000 people to achieve such remarkable heights? The reasons are many, and include the wealth of Florence as a merchant city, its political independence and civic pride, the existence of a large middle class, competition among artists and craftsmen, and the widespread system of apprenticeship between generations. Today, we might call these preconditions prosperity, civil society, equality, competition, learning and the sharing of knowledge.

The cluster of activity in 15th century Florence brought these elements together, with results that were innovative and sometimes surprising. Let me give a specific example.

In his book Brunelleschi’s Dome, art historian Ross King tells the story of the building of the great dome of Santa Maria del Fiore, completed in 1436. In designing this engineering marvel, the Florentine architect Filippo Brunelleschi fused elements of classical design with innovations in science and technology, and reinvented architecture in the process. That much is fairly well-known.

Less renowned is one of the unexpected side effects of Brunelleschi’s innovation: an advance in astronomy that had far-reaching applications for ocean navigation.

This development came about after Brunelleschi’s friend, the mathematician and astronomer Paolo Toscanelli, climbed to the top of the great cathedral and placed a bronze plate at the top of the dome. As King explains:

“Santa Maria del Fiore was thus transformed into a giant sundial. This instrument would prove vital to the history of astronomy. The height and stability of the dome allowed Toscanelli to gain a superior knowledge of what were then thought to be the sun’s motions . . . which in turn enabled him to calculate with a much greater accuracy than anyone previously the exact moment of both the summer solstice and the vernal equinox.”

I want to stop for a moment to consider this remarkable development. An entirely unanticipated spinoff of Brunelleschi’s great dome led to an advance in celestial navigation, which in turn allowed mariners and mapmakers to plot their positions more accurately. Thanks to this innovation and many others like it, the great age of ocean navigation was about to begin.

My point in sharing this story is to emphasize the fruitful and often unexpected results of innovation and knowledge sharing. One of the best ways to enhance knowledge is to share it, and new discoveries are seldom the work of an individual.

With this in mind, I encourage you to continue to work together and to engage all parts of society to address the challenges we face and catalyze solutions for the future. Imagine it is now 2030, and the people of the world are thankful for this moment in time when you, the scientists, advisors and future leaders, gathered at the Equinox Summit to share strategies, ponder new technologies and explore big ideas.

The world needs this summit, and your presence in this auditorium proves your belief in the power of collaboration. I want to applaud your efforts to envision our energy future, and I look forward to reading your observations and seeing the outcomes of this important event.

Let us imagine ourselves creating a renaissance of our own in Canada, where we learn from the past, embrace the future and above all work together for a smarter, more caring world.

Thank you.