Category: Uncategorized

Foresighting Government Science and Innovation in the New Normal

By

Jeff Kinder, Executive Director, Science and Innovation, Institute on Governance

&

Brian Colton, Research Associate, Institute on Governance

Video

Update 1: here is the video of the presentation – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctweod141CU

Slides

Update 2: here are the slides

---

Zoom info:

Register in advance for this meeting: <deleted as event has passed>

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing 
information about joining the meeting.

Abstract:
In the closing months of the Second World War, US President Roosevelt asked his science advisor, Vannevar Bush, how the nation could continue to benefit from research in peacetime as it had during the war. Dr. Bush’s report, Science: The Endless Frontier, outlined a basic compact in which society supports science with public funds and assures the scientific community a great deal of autonomy in exchange for the considerable but unpredictable benefits that can flow from the scientific enterprise.  
Fast forward 75 years, many of the underlying social, economic, cultural, and political assumptions in The Endless Frontier are outdated. The social contract is showing strain under decreasing trust, rising concerns about scientific integrity, and calls for more inclusion and diversity as Canada grapples with systemic racism and meaningful reconciliation with Indigenous people. Science and engineering are still necessary to help address society’s grand challenges and disruptive opportunities, but our approaches to the governance of science and innovation, research funding and performance, and how new knowledge and innovations are put to use must evolve in a ‘post-truth’ / ‘post-trust’ Canadian context.  
In December 2020, the Institute on Governance (IOG) launched Government Science and Innovation in the New Normal (GSINN), as a first phase of a multi-year, collaborative research initiative Beyond Endless Frontiers: Rethinking the Social Contract between Science and Society. GSINN is designed to support medium-term planning for the federal science and innovation departments and agencies, and begin an in-depth examination of the evolving relationship among science, innovation and society. Building on a hindsight exercise and multiple foresight workshops, GSINN is exploring how science and innovation can remain relevant in the new reality.

Bios:

Jeff Kinder, PhD

Executive Director, Science and Innovation, Institute on Governance

Jeff has over 30 years of experience in government science, technology and innovation policy in the US and Canada.  His US experience includes the National Science Foundation, the National Academies and the Naval Research Laboratory.  

In Canada, Jeff has worked at Industry Canada, Natural Resources Canada and the Council of Science and Technology Advisors (CSTA), the external board that advised Cabinet on the management of federal S&T from 1998-2007.  With the CSTA, Jeff produced a series of key reports (SAGE, BEST, READ, STEPS, EDGE, SCOPE, LINKS and FOCUS) and held the pen on the Framework for Science and Technology Advice adopted by Cabinet in 2000.  In 2014, he supported the External Advisory Group on Government Science and Technology (the Knox Panel).  From 2015-2017, he led the Federal S&T Secretariat supporting the Minister of Science, the Deputy Minister Champion for Federal S&T and related initiatives, including the Federal S&T Infrastructure Initiative (now Laboratories Canada). 

He is now on interchange with the Institute on Governance where he leads IOG’s area of practice in science and innovation policy and governance. He has co-designed and co-delivers the Leadership Development Program in Science and Innovation (LDPSI) and co-leads the Government Science and Innovation in the New Normal (GSINN) collaborative research initiative.

At the University of Ottawa, Jeff is a Senior Fellow of the Institute for Science, Society and Policy (ISSP) and an adjunct at the Telfer School of Management where he co-teaches an executive-level course Managing for Innovation.  At Carleton University, Jeff has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in science, technology and innovation policy. Jeff is a member of the board of the Canadian Science Policy Centre, helped launch the Canadian Science Policy Conference and co-leads its Science Policy 101 workshops. He is a past member of the Advisory Council of the Mitacs Canadian Science Policy Fellows Program and a past co-chair of the Ottawa Science Policy Roundtable. 

He is author and co-editor with Paul Dufour of A Lantern on the Bow: A History of the Science Council of Canada and its Contributions to the Science and Innovation Policy Debate (Invenire, 2018), author of Government Science 2020: Re-thinking Public Science in a Networked Age (self published, 2013) and co-author with Bruce Doern of Strategic Science in the Public Interest: Canada’s Government Laboratories and Science-Based Agencies (U. Toronto Press, 2007). 

Jeff holds a PhD in public policy, a Master’s in science, technology and public policy, and a BS in physics.

Brian Colton

Associate, Institute on Governance

Brian Colton had a successful 32-year career with both the federal government and the government of Ontario, where he was well known and highly regarded for his skills and knowledge, both within and outside of government. He has a strong track record and reputation as a “confident leader and facilitator, a strong team builder, and mentor who can reach across organizational boundaries to get things done”.  He is the recipient of numerous federal government (departmental and national) awards for his teamwork, and project development.

Brian’s federal experience at IC/ISED, HC, and CFIA focussed on S&T/emerging technologies (biotechnology, nanotechnology, and synthetic biology) primarily in the health, and food sectors involving federal and provincial departments and agencies, academia and industry stakeholders. During his federal career, he gas co-led numerous interdepartmental future-focused projects,  a number of them with Jack Smith and Jonathan Calof.  From 2013 to 2019 at the National Research Council (NRC),  he was the Manager/Senior Analyst of the S&T Outlook/Foresight office where he worked on over ten major projects. He retired from the NRC in August 2019.

Brian’s provincial career included providing clinical and community based developmental supports and services to adults and children with developmental disabilities, and autism. He co-led a 7-year research investigation on the future of community-based support services for those with special needs, and long term care health.   

Brian studied at the undergraduate and graduate levels focused on the areas of developmental psychobiology, neuropharmacology, and biochemistry. Brian also studied business administration and supervision management at the Canadian School of Management/Oxford-Brookes University (UK), and Algonquin College. He completed foresight training programs with the University of Ottawa (Telfer), and Houston, and is trained in Advanced Facilitation skills.

Computer and Network Security: How did we get here and is there a route out?

By

Peter Chapman

Founder and CEO, Haven Hardware AntiVirus Systems Inc.

Peter.Chapman2@sympatico.ca  

Slides

Update 1: here are the slides

Zoom Info.

Register in advance for this meeting: <deleted as event has passed>

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing 
information about joining the meeting.

Abstract

This webinar will be a slightly technical overview of how we allowed a totally insecure network with insecure computers to be created and on which we depend upon today.  We begin with a description of the basic principles on how computers work, while avoiding the subtleties of today’s performance enhancing features.  This will include a little history on how we got here based on 1940s economics compared to today’s.

We will then turn to discuss operating systems, application software, and browsers, among other examples, by addressing what they are and how they interact.  This will be followed by a discussion on how malicious software is introduced into network and computer systems.

Why did the software industry move from highly functional products necessarily tried and tested, to product development today where speed to market and sloppy functionality and hidden background activity are enabled?  This raises the issue of what software do we really need with a focus on the Internet, the World Wide Web, the Browser and the Search Engine.  All great concepts; but frequently corrupted by money and exploitation interests (e.g., personal data of users).

Freeware, shareware and other good things exist out in the wild, and many are designed and built by good and honest people.  Then there is the “Walled Garden” concept, promoted by numerous high tech firms.  We will explore what it is and consider its drawbacks.  

This will lead to a discussion about who controls the network and our computer architectures; before turning to the topic of who should control them and finally, pose the questions: can we fix the current situation and should we fix it?

Biography

Peter Chapman is an engineer who has spent his professional life in the semiconductor and telecommunications industries. He spent many years at Nortel and had responsibility for software security programs. He has worked extensively on network architectures dealing with security and resilience.

After retiring from the corporate world he created a company developing safe network security products that address the problem of malware intrusions across telecommunication networks and in computer systems with solutions that do not depend on software for their security.  

Mr. Chapman is a Chartered Engineer and a member of the IET (UK).  He studied Electrical Engineering at Imperial College, University of London under an industrial scholarship from the UK Atomic Energy Authority.

Update #2:

Seminar recording posted on YouTube: https://youtu.be/AvN2ad1oAJg

Here are the slides:

---

Update #1:

Please register to attend at the following link: <Deleted as event has passed>

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

---

Developing & Using Post-Pandemic Scenarios: Opportunities Abound!

by Greg MacGillivray, Arden Brummell & Alan Blue

Scenarios to Strategy Inc. (S2S) can be reached at: www.scenarios2strategy.com  

Introduction: S2S has been using Scenario Planning since 2005 and has applied a Foresight approach in the context of Scenario development to develop post-pandemic scenarios looking out to 2023 and beyond. This webinar will review and discuss the Scenario Planning process and will be followed by a lively discussion of the strategic implications the scenarios raise after this S2S’ presentation.

What: S2S has been working collaboratively with an ever evolving expert team to first build and then share the post-pandemic scenarios. With a focus on Canada and the post-pandemic future, we would like to share the scenarios to: (1) inform strategic decisions; and (2) build back better. Put another way, we want to (a) deliver real strategic value to Canadian organizations trying to make sense of an uncertain future organization; and (b) more broadly, inspire Canadians to embrace a renewed collective ambition of strengthening our social fabric and the communities where we live, work and play.

Who: S2S will be working collaboratively with (1) individual public, private and non-profit organizations; (2) multi-stakeholder groups and associations; and (3) member-based organizations (e.g., chambers of commerce, economic development agencies, chambers of voluntary organizations; etc.) to address these strategic opportunities. Here our aspiration is to help organizations not only survive but thrive post pandemic. More broadly, we will be engaging citizens in what ‘better’ looks like – better municipalities, better provinces (near-term focus on Alberta) and a better Canada. Our early thinking here is to develop a robust vision for each with strategies to achieve them.

How: The broad scenarios provide a head-start in the Scenarios-to-Strategy Process. We start by asking broad questions that explore what each scenario might mean to key stakeholders (e.g., specific public, private or non-profit organizations), specific variables (e.g., GDP, inflation, interest rates and oil prices) or important sectors (e.g., private, public, voluntary, energy, petrochemical, retail, services and travel). We then take a deeper dive into the specific implications for the organization(s) through a series of questions that bridge directly into the organization’s strategy. We deliver collaboratively designed, professionally facilitated online, face-to-face or hybrid sessions. The sessions are: (1) tailored to the specific audience and time they have available; (2) highly interactive and participatory conversations; and (3) designed to build shared understanding. S2S brings its design and facilitation experience and those with whom we collaborate with bring their expertise and knowledge of their focus/business and their community. S2S has a track record of success across a wide range of public, private and not-for-profit organizations and multi-stakeholder groups. Participants not only build a shared understanding of how the future could unfold, they build the ideas, relationships, alignment, engagement and performance that drive success.

You: We look forward to your thoughts, feedback and ideas on our work on August 27th.

Biographies:

Greg MacGillivray is Managing Director of S2S whose ‘why’ is Improving Organizations. After 20 years in the energy sector, where he fell in love with strategy, Greg founded S2S. With 15 associates across Canada, and in collaboration with many partners, S2S has developed effective ways for individuals, groups, organizations, multi-stakeholder groups and even jurisdictions to improve. Simple approaches that help people build the ideas, relationships, alignment, engagement and performance that drives success. Through the course of more than 100 engagements for more than 50 clients since 2005, S2S has earned a Net Promoter Score of 9.4/10 that is supported by generous client testimonials. S2S is also looking to take its practice global in 2021. Strategic conversation. Action. Success!

Greg believes that connection is the cure to what ails people, organizations, economies and the planet. He supports the shift to capitalism with purpose and his life’s work is creating a world where everyone is enough, has enough and contributes their best. He has supported more than 50 not-for-profits, was an active sports coach for 15 years, started an award-winning corporate volunteer program while at Suncor, and has sat on a variety of boards. He also enjoys outdoor pursuits and spending quality time with his wife Marilyn, son Michael and anyone who believes in better.

Arden Brummell is Managing Director of S2S, a firm that listens, then designs & facilitates strategic conversations that use scenario, strategic planning & facilitation processes to build the ideas, relationships & alignment that drive success.

Arden has over 30 years of experience in strategic management with a primary focus on the use of scenario planning to promote organizational learning and strategy development. After 5 years as a professor of urban economic geography, Arden joined Shell Canada. Arden participated on the original scenario development team at Shell, later became head of scenario and strategic studies and was seconded twice to London to Shell’s global scenario team, where he led studies on the future of the then Soviet Union, Africa and Latin America utilizing highly interactive and intensive learning workshop processes.

In addition to founding Decision Futures Inc. and Global Business Network Canada, Arden joined Greg MacGillivray in establishing Scenarios to Strategy Inc. Arden has helped a variety of large and small organizations in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors understand change, focus on their priorities and implement better strategic decisions. He has been an active volunteer for several non-profit community organizations. http://www.scenarios2strategy.com S

Alan Blue is a Senior Associate of S2S, a firm that listens, then designs & facilitates strategic conversations that use scenario, strategic planning & facilitation processes to build the ideas, relationships & alignment that drive success

Alan has over 50 years’ experience in business. This includes 35 years in the Royal Dutch Shell Group of Companies in upstream, downstream, gas and power and heavy oil divisions. His positions included VP in Marketing, the President of a Shell subsidiary and Global Manager of another Shell business. Alan also brings a broad diversity of experience at the senior manager level.

After quickly failing retirement, Alan continues to work as a management consultant. He does so in industry, with various levels of government, and as an aspirational speaker. He also works as the head of North American marketing for the world’s largest air-cooled, industrial heat exchanger manufacturer and for a large Japanese conglomerate. Alan also worked as a consultant to Shell for some 15 years.

This experience has given Alan a passion to assist businesses in driving towards top-quartile performance. He emphasizes the importance of developing a commercial mindset and understanding how to set up teams that get results (e.g., skills needed, team norms, conflict resolution, etc.). He is also focused on building a shared understanding of how people (e.g., individuals, colleagues, third parties, supervisors, etc.) make decisions and how this information can be used to result in better decisions for your company.

Alan graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a degree in Economics and from the University of Life with a post-graduate degree in very real practical business experience. He has also served on the Board of Directors for two different enterprises.

FSN Seminar – July 30, 2021 via Zoom from 13:00 – 15:30 EDT

Update #1: Here are the slides

---

Please register to attend by [deleted as event has passed]

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Part 2 – How to develop the 6G mobile network that people need – Research and Standards

Speaker: Dr. Nigel Jefferies, Chairman, Wireless World Research Forum  

Email: chairman@wwrf.ch

Website: https://www.wwrf.ch/ 

Abstract

This is Part 2 of a two-part webinar on the topic of ‘next-generation’ wireless communications.  There’s always an assumption that every ten years or so, we need a new mobile generation, driven by significant increase in available bitrates. After the success of a global standard for 5G, currently being rolled out to consumers worldwide, thoughts are now turning to what the next generation should look like. Questions about the viability of the current business model, the demands of sustainability and affordability, the chance to deliver on global coverage, new and emerging technologies (including AI, quantum technologies, new materials and new device technologies) and new markets will all play a part.

Following Part 1, which gave a brief overview of the history of wireless radio communications and in particular the various ‘generations’ over the past 40 some years, Part 2 will discuss the ideas behind the global research efforts for 5G and 6G, with an emphasis on how 6G is being developed to meet the United Nations 2030 Sustainability Goals.   

Biography

Nigel, who is based in the United Kingdom, has many years of experience in the wireless communications industry, starting with the development of security technologies in 2G systems. He has worked as researcher and standards expert for Vodafone Group and for Huawei Technologies, and currently chairs the Wireless World Research Forum, which brings together industry and academia to develop the research agenda for future mobile systems. He is a Chartered Mathematician and Fellow of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, and a Senior Member of the IEEE.  

Update #2:

Here are the slides:

Here is the link of this seminar’s recording:
https://us02web.zoom.us/rec/share/LTf7Dgs8OL70GYOZGiakWe06TAO06zEBj6D6POfVQK894J2YLyiFA4uIQ7YDsadS.Hjzvsmum6gcQqDuA 
Please email foresightsynergynetwork@gmail.com for the password.

---

Update #1:

This event is a rescheduled webinar originally advertised for June 24th and will now be held Thursday, July 8th via Zoom from 1:00 – 3:30 pm EDT

Register in advance for this meeting [Link deleted]

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

---

Part 1: An Introduction & Overview of Telephony Standards Setting and the Emergence of 5G & 6G

Speaker: C. (Vino) Vinodrai, Telecommunications Engineer (Retired) & Steering Board Member, Wireless World Research Forum (WWRF).

Abstract:

This is Part 1 of a 2 part webinar on the above topic.  Mobile telephony has passed through a number of generations since its introduction in Japan in 1979 in the context of 1G, the first automatic analog cellular system.  Today, the majority of mobile phone users in OECD countries are at 4G with a global transition to 5G currently underway.  Each G has occurred in roughly 10 year intervals.  6G is on the horizon with standards currently under development.  The speakers in these two webinars are engaged in the 6G standards process. 

This webinar will provide a brief overview of the history of wireless radio communications and in particular the various ‘generations’ over the past 40 some years.  It also will include a review of how the standards for the latest generations of mobile telephony are developed today. 

Part 2 will be held on July 30th and will address global research efforts for 5G and 6G, with an emphasis on how 6G is being developed to meet the United Nations 2030 Sustainability Goals by by Dr. Nigel Jefferies, Chairman, Wireless World Research Forum (WWRF), Zurich, Switzerland and C. (Vino) Vinodrai, Telecommunications Engineer (Retired) & Steering Board Member, WWRF, Toronto, Canada. Details to follow the July 8th webinar.

Biography:

Vino is one of Canada’s leading experts in the mobile radio industry with more than 40 years of experience ranging from spectrum engineering, standards development, new wireless services and satellite communication.  

He launched his consulting business in early 2006 following his retirement from Bell where he worked for 16 years.  For the last three of those years he led Bell University Laboratories responsible for research at various Canadian universities in wireline, wireless, internet and portals across Canada.  For Bell Mobility he was responsible for advanced wireless technology research, standards work, future technologies, health-related applications and spectrum planning.  He also served on the Board of CITO.ca – Communications and Information Technology Ontario. Vino represented Canadian interest at the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU).  Since his retirement from industry, he volunteers his time with the WWRF based in Switzerland (www.wwrf.ch) and acts as advisor to WWRF on ITU matters.

For the last few years he has been involved with others in organizing a series of workshops across the world on “The Future of the Wireless Internet Communication in the 2020s” (Also known as 5G).  Please see www.wwrfhuddle.com for more information and note that the next Wireless World Research Forum Huddle 2021 global conference called 5G and Beyond – the Wireless World in 2030, will be held in Ottawa, September 29-30, 2021. 

Vino was Adjunct Faculty Member, Dofasco Centre for Engineering and Public Policy, McMaster University (2006 – 2019).

Vino obtained his degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of London, United Kingdom.  He is a Fellow of the U.K. Institute of Engineering & Technology (IET) and member of the Institute Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).  He also holds the qualification of Professional Engineer in Ontario (PEO) and the professional title of European Engineer (Eur. Ing). 

Also, add to the Future Events box the following. “FSN 5G/6G Seminar – Part 2: Global Research Efforts for 5G and 6G, with an emphasis on how 6G can help meet United Nations 2030 Sustainability Goals Friday, July 30, 2021 at 1:00 pm – 3:30 pm EDT via Zoom Details to follow.

Please Note [edit #2]: The FSN webinar of June 24th has been moved to July 8th starting at 13:00 EDT.  There will be no FSN webinar on June 28th for those who logged in on June 24th.  Details will be sent via email and posted to the FSN website over this weekend. Please re-register for July 8th if you wish to participate. Notice will follow in the usual way.

Also, note that Part 2 of this webinar event will take place on July 30th.  Details will be announced as part of the update noted above.  Sorry for any confusion

---

Please note [edit #1] The upcoming webinar titled An Introduction & Overview of Telephony Standards Setting and the Emergence of 5G & 6G, will be combined with Part 2 as noted in the Abstract.  It will now include more details on the global research efforts for 5G and 6G with an emphasis on how 6G is being developed to meet the United Nations 2030 Sustainability Goals.

---

Part 1: An Introduction & Overview of Telephony Standards Setting and the Emergence of 5G & 6G

Speaker: C. (Vino) Vinodrai, Telecommunications Engineer (Retired) & Steering Board Member, Wireless World Research Forum (WWRF).

Abstract

This is Part 1 of a 2 part webinar on the above topic.  Mobile telephony has passed through a number of generations since its introduction in Japan in 1979 in the context of 1G, the first automatic analog cellular system.  Today, the majority of mobile phone users in OECD countries are at 4G with a global transition to 5G currently underway.  Each G has occurred in roughly 10 year intervals.  6G is on the horizon with standards currently under development.  The speakers in these two webinars are engaged in the 6G standards process. 

This webinar will provide a brief overview of the history of wireless radio communications and in particular the various ‘generations’ over the past 40 some years.  It also will include a review of how the standards for the latest generations of mobile telephony are developed today. 

Part 2 will be held in the second half of July and will look into more details on the global research efforts for 5G and 6G, with an emphasis on how 6G is being developed to meet the United Nations 2030 Sustainability Goals. 

Biography

Vino is one of Canada’s leading experts in the mobile radio industry with more than 40 years of experience ranging from spectrum engineering, standards development, new wireless services and satellite communication.  

He launched his consulting business in early 2006 following his retirement from Bell where he worked for 16 years.  For the last three of those years he led Bell University Laboratories responsible for research at various Canadian universities in wireline, wireless, internet and portals across Canada.  For Bell Mobility he was responsible for advance wireless technology research, standards work, future technologies, health-related applications and spectrum planning.  He also served on the Board of CITO.ca – Communications and Information Technology Ontario. Vino represented Canadian interest at International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU).  Since his retirement from industry, he volunteers his time with the WWRF based in Switzerland (www.wwrf.ch) and acts advisor to WWRF on ITU matters.

For the last few years he has been involved with others in organizing a series of workshops across the world on “The Future of the Wireless Internet Communication in the 2020s” (Also known as 5G).  Please see www.wwrfhuddle.com for more information and note that the next Wireless World Research Forum Huddle 2021 global conference called 5G and Beyond – the Wireless World in 2030, will be held in Ottawa, September 29-30, 2021. 

Vino was Adjunct Faculty Member, Dofasco Centre for Engineering and Public Policy, McMaster University (2006 – 2019).

Vino obtained his degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of London, United Kingdom.  He is a Fellow of the U.K. Institute of Engineering & Technology (IET) and member of the Institute Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).  He also holds the qualification of Professional Engineer in Ontario (PEO) and the professional title of European Engineer (Eur. Ing). 

Title: Propaganda, Technology and Human Freedom: Jacques Ellul’s Vital Relevance Today

Abstract
Jacques Ellul (1912-1994) was an inspirational voice in the USA of the 1960s. His sociological writings drew attention to the growth of technology and techniques, such as advertising and propaganda. All these things created profit for many, but there was little reckoning of the deleterious effects on humans. What makes Ellul more relevant than ever today is the enormous depth and scope of his thinking. His sociological writings give insights into politics and the problem for liberal democracies regarding the use of propaganda. He wrote about “the political illusion” to draw attention to how political decision-making was being determined by forces fostering technological growth, rather than by the people and the politicians they elected.

Ellul claimed that his writings were like chapters in one big book, and it is true that his perspective is richly historical as well as contemporary. His biblical studies and his deep investigation of the history of institutions complement his observations about social action today. What is left as problematic in one text often finds resolution in another.  There are now many scholars around the world who appreciate Ellul’s insights and are engaged in exploring, discussing and developing his ideas in the light of current events and newly published or newly translated works. Problems such as privacy in today’s surveillance society, or the communications problems connected with Covid-19 would benefit from his perspective.

In my presentation I will focus on Ellul’s profound study of propaganda, my specialty since 1980 following a year spent following his courses and meeting with him at the Université de Bordeaux. But I will also make links to his other writings.

Here is a link to a brief article by Randal: https://ellul.org/current-drift/dynamic-tension-for-pandemic-times/

Reference: ellulsociety.org

Bio

FSN seminar is on May 14th on Propaganda by Randal Marlin, a recognised authority on the topic.  Here is his bio for the FSN posting for his talk.
Randal Marlin is Adjunct Research Professor in the Philosophy Department at Carleton University. His current focus of research activity is communication ethics, in particular the study of ethical dimensions of persuasion and propaganda. His most recent publication is Propaganda and the Ethics of Persuasion (Broadview: Second Edition, 2013). A fellowship from the Department of National Defence facilitated a sabbatical year in Bordeaux with Jacques Ellul, in preparation for his course on Truth and Propaganda. This has been given regularly at Carleton since 1980, most recently in 2020. He is a Board member and former Vice-President of the International Jacques Ellul Society, and member of the Association Internationale Jacques Ellul. He has also published articles on free speech issues and is active in civil liberties, having served as a president of Civil Liberties Association, National Capital Region.

Update: Here are the slide –

---

Next FSN seminar, March 30, 2021 via Zoom from 13:00 – 15:30 EDT

Please register to attend.

Title: Some Reflections on the Pandemic

Speaker: Robert Hoffman

Abstract:

This presentation challenges the now conventional wisdom that the novel coronavirus is so deadly that extreme public health measures such as lockdowns and stay-at-home orders are warranted, at least until vaccines have been developed and the population immunized. It poses questions about how well the pandemic is understood and how appropriate is the public policy response. The first question that came to mind while locked down on the Spanish coast of the Mediterranean in March 2020, was ‘What information would be needed to understand the parameters of the pandemic?’ It became clear that case-counts and deaths attributed-to-covid were not only insufficient as indicators, but by themselves were wildly misleading. To date there has been little concerted effort to measure the missing parameters.  Consequently, public policy has been flying blind and the hypothesis that covid is just another influenza, perhaps a little more serious than some, cannot be rejected

Bio:

Robert Hoffman, Principal and Founder whatIf? Technologies Inc.

Economist by training and systems modeler by vocation, Robert Hoffman has been active in integrated socio-economic and biophysical systems modeling for four decades, first as an analyst and research program director at Statistics Canada, then as Research Associate Professor at the University of Waterloo, and since 1990 as founder and principal of whatIf? Technologies Inc.

After receiving an MA degree in economics from the University of Western Ontario, he joined the team at Statistics Canada that pioneered the development of commodity-by-industry and multi-regional input-output analysis and a succession of dynamic socio-economic resource systems models for Canada, taking inspiration from Leontief’s activity analysis and Forrester’s system dynamics. From this work emerged the ‘design approach’ to modelling, that focuses on the stocks and flows of materials, energy and information among the Earth system processes that open to radiant energy from the sun and consequently to unpredictable evolutionary change. 

At whatIf? Technologies Robert Hoffman, in collaboration with Bert McInnis and Michael Hoffman, oversaw the creation of the whatIf? software platform for dynamic systems modelling and the development of models in problem domains including urban and regional planning, integrated energy systems, natural resource management, and sustainability at global and national scales that are used for strategic planning, scenario analysis and policy development. 

Robert Hoffman was a visiting researcher at both the Harvard Economic Research Project and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, a participant/contributor at international conferences, and a consultant to United Nations agencies in the field of energy analysis. He is author or co-author of articles and professional papers published in scholarly journals and books. His work in global systems modeling has been recognized by the United States Association for the Club of Rome for which he received a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Robert Hoffman is an active participant in Club of Rome related activities.  Since 1990, he has served the Canadian Association for the Club of Rome as member, director and officer, including secretary-treasurer and chairman. He became Associate Member of the Club of Rome in 2009 and Full Member in 2014 and has contributed to the ‘decoupling’ and  ‘circular economy’ initiatives. In 2016, he was recognized as Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science and is active in the Working Group on New Economic Theory, pursuing the development of an evolutionary systems approach to a new economics that would encompass biophysical processes and technologies as they are influenced by the behavior of economic agents. He is a member and Trustee of the American Society for Cybernetics.

Abstract and Bio of Derek Ireland for FSN Session on “Behavioral Ethics, COVID, and the Wicked Problem of Lockdown Fatigue”

Date, Time and Location Webinar on March 19 at 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM [Ottawa – EDT]

Abstract

As indicated in previous FSN presentations, Derek Ireland is able to find wicked problems virtually anywhere, including the COVID-19 pandemic crisis.  COVID in many ways represents the goliath of all the wicked problems of our lifetime and is making many other wicked problems even more complex and difficult to tame.  About 7 months ago, Derek prepared and placed on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) a working paper on the behavioral ethics challenges of the COVID-19 crisis to recovery.  The major argument of this article is that the insights from the behavioral ethics literature on bounded ethicality, ethical blind spots, ethical fading, erosion, corrosion, numbing, and fatigue and good people acting badly and doing unethical things, can be readily extended to the behaviour of individuals and organizations during the Covid-19 pandemic crisis of 2020/2021.

Special emphasis in the paper was placed on the behavior and misconduct of normally good people when jurisdictions are moving from the crisis to the recovery stage of the pandemic after a long lockdown period and other periods that restricted our behaviour and “personal freedoms”.  This presentation will summarize and update the insights from that article, and will then extend the insights to the behaviour of other often “not-so-good” people including governments, politicians, business people and the media who at times are acting even more badly and opportunistically (consistent with the wicked problem concept) because of their own forms of lockdown fatigue including frustration and boredom.  For those of you who are interested, the earlier article dated August 5 2020 is available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=3667699

Brief Bio

Dr. Derek Ireland has been a senior economist and manager in the Canadian public and private sectors for well over five decades.  He has a BA in Economics and Asian Studies from the University of British Columbia in 1968, an MA in Economics from Carleton University, which he received in the mid-1970s; and he returned to university in the Fall of 2003 as a student in the PhD program in Public Policy at Carleton University in Ottawa Canada, and received his PhD in February 2009.  His area of specialization over the last two and a half decades has been the interactions between law and economics with emphasis on competition policy and law; regulatory reform and impact analysis; consumer policy and consumer protection law; trade policy; intellectual property and innovation policy; urban, regional, rural and infrastructure development; and public administration.

His international experience includes more than 30 major consulting assignments in China, as well as research and policy development work in several other developing countries such as Nepal, Malaysia, Yemen, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, the Mongolia Republic, and in Botswana working with the Secretariat of the Southern Africa Development Community on competition and consumer protection policies and laws in the SADC Member States.  He has been a member of FSN for well over a decade and has made previous presentations on: marketing foresight to the boundedly rational; uncertainty, novelty, innovation, Canada’s innovation challenge and the consumer; and foresight, behavioral economics, disruptive technologies, the crisis of democratic capitalism, and other problems with wicked characteristics including the wicked challenge of developing the Nepal economy.

---

We should trust Artificial Intelligent (AI) to make moral decisions under certain preconditions – A foresight view on Artificial Intelligent Systems of tomorrow

Abstract

The presentation will begin by providing an introduction to some contemporary technological issues around Artificial Intelligence (AI).  This will be followed by an examination of the following thesis about the future of AI in the context that “we should trust AI to make moral decisions under certain preconditions”.

A brief review of selected literature related to the thesis statement will follow along with a discussion about some present unresolved ethical and moral issues.  We will then discuss the ‘promise’ of artificial intelligence in serving society.  This will be coupled to the observation that we are living in an emerging technological environment that is going fully digital and in so doing is creating vast quantities of data that can be further exploited.  We will then show how the philosophy of information impacts our understanding through the exploitation of AI.

Next, we will look at the human moral cognition process that helps us understand the differences between right and wrong and good and bad.  We will then see if we can apply the human concept of “good” to AI systems.  This will be undertaken by considering the philosophy of the Canadian Jesuit priest, philosopher, and theologian Bernard Lonergan and his Generalized Empirical Method (GEM), as an ideal moral practice that could be used in developing moral AI systems.

Finally, we will show through further analysis, as per the use of GEM, a way of doing self-evaluation.  The seminar will end with conclusions and recommendations for future work.

Biography Richard Viger, CD, BSc., MA

After completing high school Richard spent one year studying electronics at the Collège Lionel-Groulx.  He then joined the Canadian Armed Forces in the late seventies, where he was trained as an Air Force Communications and Radar Systems Technician.  He then spent a number of years applying his skills in the NavCom lab at Canadian Forces Base Comox, in British Columbia.

Richard was selected to participate in the Canadian Forces University Training Program.  He completed his Bachelor of Computer Science (BSc.) from the University of Victoria.  Upon graduation Richard received his military commission in the Air Force wing of the Canadian Forces as a Communication Electronics Engineering Officer.  He was then posted to Ottawa to manage various computer systems and act as a communications and security engineer in a number of Defence Headquarters’ offices until his retirement in 2001 after 22 years of service in DND.

Two months after 9/11, Richard joined the Canadian Communications Security Establishment (CSE), where he held a number of positions in various business areas of the Establishment.  He spent his last few years in the Research Coordination Office within the Research Directorate.

In 2020, Richard graduated with a Master of Arts (MA) in Public Ethics, with a focus on Science & Technology from Saint Paul University in Ottawa. Then in the fall of 2020, Richard retired from CSE after 41+ years of service in the Government of Canada.  Today, Richard continues his research in the fields of AI and ethics.