Chengdu, China, Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Thank you for your warm welcome.

Let me begin by thanking President Xie and his colleagues for providing me with the opportunity to learn more about higher education in Southwest China.

I am delighted to be here at Sichuan University for this discussion on innovation and education.

It is also appropriate, given Canada’s long and fruitful relationship with this university and with Southwest China more generally.

As you may know, it was just over a century ago that today`s West China Center of Medical Sciences at Sichuan University was established through the joint efforts of Canadian, British and American missionaries. Its Faculty of Medicine was created in part through the efforts of many Canadian doctors and missionaries, such as Dr. Omar KilbornDr. William Reginald Morse, and Dr. Ashley Lindsay.

Our relationship is long-standing, and I am pleased to renew it with this visit and to pledge Canada’s commitment to deepening our people-to-people ties—particularly in the sphere of education.

As governor general of Canada, one of my great privileges is to undertake State visits on behalf of all Canadians. Since the beginning of my mandate three years ago, I have visited countries in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, North America, and, of course, here in Asia.

And I am happy to note that in my previous capacity as a University President, I have already visited three universities right here in Southwest China: Chongqing University, Chongqing University of Post and Telecom, and Yunnan Normal University. Today’s event, held on your beautiful and historically significant campus, allows me to add one more to the list.

For a number of reasons, my current trip to China is truly an exciting opportunity for our two countries.

It matters because the relationship between Canada and China is at an important juncture, and because our opportunities for co-operation are many.

This is true in so many ways, not least in our potential to innovate and learn together.

But before I move on to talk about all we can achieve together, let me tell you a little bit about my own perspective on learning and innovation.

Simply put, I love learning, and I have always strongly believed in the power of education and discovery to change lives—and our world—for the better.

In fact, prior to becoming governor general, I spent the bulk of my professional life in an academic setting, as a student, teacher and university administrator.

I think few people today in Canada or China would disagree that education can help us to expand our choices as human beings.

As university students and supporters, you know how important it is to be a creative, critical thinker in today’s world.

Similarly, I think few would argue that an educated nation is a civic and prosperous one, where people can lead dignified, productive lives.

In the interconnected world of the 21st century, where our social, economic and environmental ties are so important, I also believe there can be no true education in isolation.

Here at Sichuan University and at universities throughout Southwest China, you are well aware of this. That is why you are working closely with other people, including Canadians, to broaden, share and deepen your learning.

Let me share just a few instances of our collaboration:

• at Sichuan University, you have an active Canadian Studies Centre and a Canadian Studies Graduate program. You also have significant programs and joint initiatives with Western University and the Universities of Prince Edward Island and Ottawa , as well as Dalhousie University;
• the Electronic Science and Technology University of China and Southwest Jiaotong University in Chengdu have significant research agreements with Western University and the National Research Council, among others;
• Southwest University has numerous collaborations with Canadian universities, including the recently opened Canada-China Three Gorges and Teacher Education Research Centres in collaboration with the universities of Windsor, Toronto and Waterloo, as well as Wilfrid Laurier University.
• Chongqing Medical University recently inaugurated a Canada-China Child Development and Alzheimer's Research Center in collaboration with the University of British Columbia; in collaboration with the University of Alberta, it has also just inaugurated the International Pregnancy Research Alliance, combining expertise and bringing together scientists from Canada, China, and New Zealand to advance knowledge on this important topic.

This level of Chinese-Canadian co-operation is truly inspiring. These are wonderful examples of education and innovation between our two countries.

Now let me focus for a moment on the significance of our work together.

The benefits of education are clear enough, but the importance of innovation, as you know, can be a bit trickier. Sometimes it is difficult to pin down exactly what it means.

I see innovation as taking an existing idea, concept or product and looking at it in a new way, building on it, or combining it with a seemingly unrelated product or idea, to achieve a useful improvement or perhaps even create something wholly new.

So in essence, innovation is about crossing borders, because it requires us to enlarge our imaginations and push the boundaries of what is currently thought possible.

Innovation, therefore, is closely related to collaboration, partnership and working with others.

I often refer to this as “the diplomacy of knowledge,” by which I mean our ability, and willingness, to transcend borders and disciplines in our approach to learning and innovation.

Put another way, this simply means we must work together.

In today’s world, new ideas and discoveries are seldom made or brought forth in isolation. Rather, they are often the result of people working together, sometimes in very different fields and coming from different backgrounds or nations—from China and Canada, for example.

Rapid advances in communications technologies have made it easier for us to make initial connections, despite the physical distances that separate us.

Once those initial connections are made, however, we must take the next step and come together to work, live and learn. We must study together—face to face. Research together. Travel together. Socialize together. Talk informally together. Only then can we truly learn and innovate together.

It only makes sense that we adopt this kind of transnational approach. For the biggest challenges we face as individual nations are either global in origin or global in outcome.

That is why it is so important for both Canadian and Chinese students and scholars to work and study together. Through education, we gain wonderful possibilities to build shared understanding, create opportunities through innovation and promote greater prosperity for all.

Already, learning exchange is among the pillars of the Canada-China relationship. In 2012, there were over 84 000 Chinese students studying in Canada, and approximately 3 400 Canadian students in China.

I am pleased to note our two countries have renewed our agreement on the Canada-China Scholars’ Exchange Program, and that we aspire to have 100 000 students studying in each other’s countries within five years.

It is an ambitious goal, but one that has such great potential for students and for us all. 

I look forward to continued educational collaboration and innovation between Canada and China in the months and years to come.

I wish you the very best.