September 27, 2001

Thursday, September 27, 2001

The billion-dollar university
Highlights of the economic benefits study
Actuarial prof heads professional body
Laptops in the library, and more

Editor:
Chris Redmond
credmond@uwaterloo.ca

Thanksgiving drive for the Food Bank of Waterloo Region

The billion-dollar university

The University of Waterloo is worth $1.1 billion a year to Waterloo Region and at least $1.5 billion to the province of Ontario, says a study that was made public last night.

[Region map] The "regional economic benefits study" was presented to Waterloo Regional Council -- the municipal governing body -- by David Johnston, UW's president, and other UW officials, as well as representatives of the accounting firm Pricewaterhouse Coopers. PwC was commissioned to do the study to provide background information for the university's planned Campaign Waterloo.

The report says UW is the leading university in Canada creating economic wealth through the transfer of technological resources -- accounting for 22 per cent of the country's "spinoff" companies, according to Statistics Canada data. Hundreds of them in Kitchener-Waterloo include Dalsa, Open Text and Waterloo Maple. Eighteen of the largest spinoffs, surveyed by PwC, account for more than $500 million a year in revenue.

During the research, business people and economic development representatives commonly credited UW as being the impetus for the development and growth of the region's technology cluster, the study says. "We are thrilled to see PwC documenting the key role UW plays in our region to move from the old to the new economy and build an even more civic community," Johnston said.

The study looks at university spending on capital projects, operations, maintenance and research. As well, expenditures by spinoff businesses on operations and capital projects, and student and visitor off-campus spending were tabulated.

Among the findings: one out of every 20 people in Waterloo Region has a job that can be attributed to UW.

As the region's economy evolves from one based on traditional manufacturing to one focused on information, communication and advanced manufacturing, UW plays an increasingly important role: "Our research has shown that the University of Waterloo is not only an engine that drives the local economy, it is the epicentre of the exciting new local economy," says Dennis Grimm of PwC.

"The University of Waterloo started and today fuels the growth the area now enjoys in the expanding information/communications and advanced manufacturing technologies sectors. UW clearly is the single-most significant factor contributing to the creation, retention and attraction of world-class, new-economy economic activity in Canada's Technology Triangle."

Highlights of the economic benefits study

The University of Waterloo accounts for more than $1.1 billion of economic activity (1999 figures) in the region and $1.6 billion province-wide. As well, UW is responsible for more than 23,000 full-time jobs in a region of half a million people.

Knowledge "spun off" from UW is multi-faceted and far-reaching, with the study listing 252 companies with some level of attribution to the university. It estimates a further $460 million in economic benefits in the region and $630 million more for the province thanks to spinoff companies.

A 1999 Statistics Canada report found UW responsible for 22 per cent of the 454 spinoff companies identified from 84 universities. UW's successful generation of spinoffs is attributed to its intellectual property policy giving the ownership of innovations or intellectual property to the researcher/creator.

The forging of significant linkages with industry and others in the region have facilitated partnerships, spinoff companies, technology transfers and co-op student and graduate placements, leading to enhanced economic benefits.

Intellectual capital produced at UW has had a profound impact on development of the region's "technology cluster" and is a crucial component for its continued prosperity.

Along with university education benefitting the community with greater productivity and higher employment levels by graduates, the scholarly achievements of students have heightened the international profile of Waterloo Region.

As a visitor destination, the university attracts more than 350,000 visitors each year from outside the region, with an estimated off-campus spending of $32 million.

Facilities and activities at UW serve to broaden the cultural base of the community, provide valuable research in cultural and social fields along with science, and offer numerous facilities for public events.

Students, staff and faculty are involved in many charitable activities, accounting for donations of more than $250,000 annually.

UW's impact extends well beyond the region to other areas of Ontario (including Toronto and Ottawa), Canada (including Montreal and Vancouver), North America (including California's Silicon Valley) and world-wide (with 78 formal academic exchanges in 40 countries).

UW provides "an extraordinary contribution to the overall quality of living" in the three cities and four townships of Waterloo Region.

The university and related activities generate more than $200 million a year in federal, provincial and local taxes.

Actuarial prof heads professional body -- from the UW news bureau

A University of Waterloo professor of statistics and actuarial science has been elected to the highest office of the Society of Actuaries (SOA).

[Panjer] Harry Panjer (right), a fellow of both the SOA and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, is also an honorary fellow of the Institute of Actuaries (London, England). Panjer will take office October 23 as president-elect for 2001-2002 at the SOA annual meeting in New Orleans. His term as president of the SOA will begin in October 2002.

Panjer has served the SOA in many capacities, including as a member of the board of governors from 1987-90 and as vice-president from 1990-92. He has served on a variety of SOA committees, including those on actuarial education and examinations, research, academic relations, reinsurance, and continuing education.

A frequent seminar presenter and contributor to professional publications, Panjer has published many scholarly papers and books. He is editor of the text Financial Economics -- with Applications to Investments, Insurance and Pensions. He currently serves on the editorial board of the North American Actuarial Journal, a refereed scholarly publication of the SOA.

Panjer is also a past president of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries (1997-98). He has served the institute's numerous committees, including those on education, and authored several papers under its auspices. He has spent most of his professional career as an academic in Canada and the United States. He is a frequent speaker on actuarial matters in many countries.

During the election process, Panjer said: "Knowledge is power. Advancing actuarial knowledge is critical in our rapidly changing financial services sector, and in our globalizing economy. Let's make sure the SOA leads knowledge development in making financial sense of the future."

It's the second time that one of UW's faculty members has been elected to head the SOA. Rob Brown, also statistics and actuarial science, is its current president. The SOA is a professional, educational and research organization with more than 16,400 members in Canada and the United States. Its members practice primarily in the fields of life and health insurance, pensions, employee benefits, and investments.

Laptops in the library, and more

The UW library now has places available for students and researchers to connect their laptops to the Internet, says the new issue of the electronic newsletter "news @ your library". There are eight networked ports in Dana Porter and the Davis Centre libraries, it says. "These ports are located in some of the group study rooms as well as some individual study carrels. The University Map and Design Library has two networked ports. Funds donated to the Library's Information Technology Fund have been used to provide this service that students have been requesting for quite some time. To use these laptop connections, you must be a UW student, faculty, or staff member with valid user identification that will be used for authentication."

The student Math Society will hold a council meeting at 5:00 tonight in Math and Computer room 2035. "Anyone is welcome," says council speaker Stephen Skrzydlo, "and an item of particular interest on this meeting's agenda is the budget for this term."

It would be hard to get to all the intellectual and cultural events that UW is offering this evening. First of all, at 4:30 there's an introduction to Amnesty International, "its history, methods and goals, followed by the video "Light in the Darkness". Amnesty International was started by a British lawyer in 1961 as a campaign for the freedom of five prisoners of conscience; it was decided to make the campaign permanent, and since then Amnesty has grown into the world's largest human rights organization. Recent developments include increased campaigning on gay and lesbian issues; more emphasis on economic, social and cultural rights; and Amnesty's new secretary general, Irene Khan from Bangladesh, the first female and the first Asian to take the post. This presentation is aimed at members of the general public, as well as people who intend joining the AI group on campus." The meeting will be held in the Waterloo Public Interest Research Group office, on the upper level of the Student Life Centre above Brubakers.

Then comes "Gardens: A Reflection of Spiritual Beauty", a talk by Jaellayna Palmer about the gardens on Mount Carmel surrounding the world headquarters of the Baha'i faith, where Palmer was formerly a volunteer. The event is sponsored by the Spiritual Heritage Education Network, and starts at 7:00 in Math and Computer room 4021.

Also at 7:00 is this week's talk in the "24 Academic Positions" series sponsored by the school of architecture. Today's speaker is Val Rynnimeri, professor and coordinator of the third-year design studio in architecture, speaking on "The Huron Natural Area: Towards an Ecosystems Approach to the Design of Urban Landscapes". The lecture will be given in the "green room" of Environmental Studies II.

"Islam in Focus" is the title of a talk to be given at 8:00 by Mohamed Elmasry, who is both a professor at UW (of electrical and computer engineering) and president of the Canadian Islamic Congress. "The speaker," an announcement says, "will address the historical and contemporary misunderstandings about the Islamic faith. A question-and-answer session will follow." The event takes place in Davis Centre room 1351; everyone is welcome.

Here's a reminder that a programming contest will be held at UW on Saturday, the second of two this fall, in preparation for Waterloo's involvement in the the international ACM programming contest this winter. "We will send two teams of three to the East Central Regional competition on November 10," says Gordon Cormack of the computer science department, who coaches the UW teams, perennial contenders in the ACM contest.

Saturday also brings the annual UW open house for distance education students, including a "course fair and departmental displays" in the Davis Centre and lunch in South Campus Hall.

Looking ahead a little further, word has arrived that Bartha Maria Knoppers, who's receiving an honorary degree from UW in October, will be back on campus in February for a special purpose. Knoppers is a professor of law at the Université de Montréal and president of the International Ethical, Legal and Social Issues Committee of the Human Genome Organization, among more than a few other things. It's just been announced that she will give this year's Pascal Lectures on Christianity and the University, scheduled for February 6 and 7. There will be more details as the dates get closer.

CAR