February 13, 2008, Ottawa (ON) – The National Research Council (NRC), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) have implemented a joint strategy to accelerate the commercialization of publicly-funded research that builds upon the individual strengths and complementary roles of these organizations.

NRC, NSERC and BDC have identified a series of initiatives to meet this goal. A Steering Committee, with representatives from each Partner organization, is implementing these initiatives.

Through this cooperative initiative, ultimately the results of publicly funded research and technology development will be more effectively transferred to market, thus benefiting the 3 Partners' clients, colleagues, and the Canadian economy.

Some of the initiatives include:

• NRC, NSERC, and/or BDC personnel in shared partner offices across Canada;
• Joint projects with shared due diligence for clients;
• Workshops to increase understanding of Partner programs;
• Formation of Regional Hub Committees to deliver these initiatives within the appropriate regional context.

This article originally appeared February 13, 2008 on the Government of Canada News Centre.