(05/26/21) The STC meeting usually takes place every two years, alternating between Ottawa and Berlin. Due to the pandemic, this year’s meeting was held virtually, though this by no means detracted from the event. On the contrary, some 70 attendees from German-Canadian stakeholder groups in the areas of politics, science, and business took part. In addition to the relevant ministries of the two host countries – the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Canadian partners Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and National Research Council (NRC) – research and funding organizations from both countries were given the opportunity to report on future planned activities and initiatives. The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) joined forces with its partner organization, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), to report on over ten years of cooperation in the area of Research Training Groups, as well as the plan to include funding for individual projects. The wide range of reports and planned activities pursued by the participants confirmed once again that German-Canadian scientific relations continue to be extraordinarily solid, based on mutual appreciation and close partnership. The reference to the unexpected culinary synergy of combining Canadian Timbits – a kind of doughnut – with German sparkling wine of the Riesling variety also went down very well with all concerned.

The virtual kick-off event entitled “50 Years of German-Canadian Cooperation in Science and Technology” took place the following day. The welcoming speeches by Federal Research Minister Anja Karliczek and Mary Ng, Canada’s Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, looked back on the success of the last 50 years, emphasizing the importance of close cooperation in science and technology in in shaping the future together. The remainder of the program brought together leading representatives of the academic communities of the two countries, giving them the opportunity to highlight German-Canadian cooperation in various live formats. Here, too, the close work between the DFG and NSERC shone through.