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CITO Research Investment – Better Technology
CITO Research Investment is dedicated to supporting high-calibre
researchers in Ontario's universities and colleges, with the aim of
generating marketable technologies and skilled people – the foundations of
success for Ontario's communications and information technology sectors.
Overview
Each year, CITO - A Division of OCE Inc. invests over $7 million through
CITO Research Investment, supporting innovation in Ontario's universities
and colleges. This funds a range of research, from highly advanced
projects dedicated to generating disruptive technologies (breakthrough
innovations that fundamentally change the way things are done) to more
applied endeavours aimed at answering a specific market challenge.
Many of these investments are made in partnership with an industrial
collaborator, who brings additional financial support to the table. These
research partnerships represent dynamic connections that help new ideas
flow from the lab to the marketplace.
Through consultation with industry and academia, CITO has developed a
framework to create and manage these connections, building a foundation
for strong, productive partnerships. Using this framework, CITO has
fostered over 40 collaborative partnerships annually.
CITO Research Investment also supports the development of highly skilled
researchers, enhancing Ontario's ability to generate new innovations. It
funds the work of hundreds of graduate student researchers – tomorrow's
technology leaders.
Programs
– invests in Ontario academic researchers who have been selected for
their proven ability to generate world-class, leading-edge research with
high potential to have widespread impact on an entire industrial sector.
CITO invests in these innovators, supporting them in the development of
disruptive technologies.
CITO Research Partnerships
Program –
invests in advanced research partnerships between academic institutions,
researchers and businesses in Ontario. The program seeks to support only
excellent research partnerships – those that are truly innovative,
highly relevant, and have the goal of generating new knowledge, skilled
people, and advanced communications and information technologies for the
benefit of Ontario.
College Partnerships Program
– invests in applied research and development partnerships between
colleges and businesses in Ontario. The program is specifically tailored
to the needs of Ontario colleges, where research and development
projects are usually more applied in nature.
Connections Program
– provides an opportunity for undergraduates in their final year in a
faculty of engineering or computer science (possibly in collaboration
with students from the business school or other faculties) to undertake
a research or problem solving project defined by an industry partner and
of specific relevance to the industrial participant’s needs. While the
program does provide research support, through practical industrial
experience, its primary mandate is soft skills development including
problem solving, relationship and team building, communications and
presentation skills.
CITO Student Internship Program
– invests in research partnerships between companies and Ontario
graduate student researchers conducting industrially relevant thesis
research. The program provides an ideal way for companies – including
small and medium-sized enterprises – to gain access to talented young
researchers and leverage their research and development budgets. CITO
student interns also offer companies a dynamic conduit into the academic
research community.
For graduate students, the program provides an opportunity to enrich
their research and broaden their contacts, creating a foundation for
future success. The program offers enhanced investment funds for their
research, access to industrial equipment, tools and test environments,
and accurate, "real problems" data. Co-supervision and mentoring by an
industrial researcher and CITO provides valuable input that helps ensure
that the students' research responds to significant challenges.
CITO Joint Initiatives – CITO is also engaged in a number of
targeted activities through its Joint Initiatives. CITO partners with
other complementary organizations to take advantages of new
opportunities as they arise. These focused programs and projects aim to
achieve a specific strategic outcome.
Through CITO Joint Initiatives, CITO has partnered with organizations
such as the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
(NSERC), Precarn Incorporated, the Ontario Media Development
Corporation, and Ontario Emergency Management to undertake specific
initiatives designed to answer challenges in areas as diverse as
security and intelligent systems
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