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This week we joined many of our members at the 2023 OBIO Investment Summit in Toronto as they presented to global investors. BC was well-represented in all areas of programming and kicked off the 3-day event with a panel discussion on pharma licensing trends featuring our Board Chair, Ali Ardakani of Novateur Ventures, and members Christopher Tan of Merck & Co., Jung-Kay Chiu of Norton Rose Fulbright, along with Julia Pomoransky of Turnstone Biologics.
Former Premier John Horgan has announced that he will be stepping down as MLA for Langford-Juan de Fuca on March 17. We thank Mr. Horgan for his service to our province, for his supportive role in the growth and development of the life sciences sector, and for helping establish BC as an innovation hub.
Member News
BioTalent Canada has released its 2023 National Compensation Guide for the bio-economy, providing employers with updated compensation data for more than 50 roles within the biotech sector.
Digital Supercluster is accepting applications to fill up to 12 positions on its Board of Directors. They seek diverse experiences and perspectives from industry sectors, organizational size, geography, and demographics from across the country.
adMare BioInnovations invites early-stage Canadian therapeutics ventures to apply for the adMare National Tx Accelerator, which provides up to $150K in value of integrated services, including access to turn-key wet lab facilities and office space, scientific, regulatory and commercialization expertise, access to funding, and more. Applications are due March 1.
Lumira Ventures invites students interested in a career in the life sciences to apply to their Venture Innovation Program as a Summer Analyst or Venture Fellow, exposing them to life sciences venture capital and start-ups.
Dr. Ger Brophy, Executive VP of Biopharma Production at Avantor, joined the GENcast podcast to discuss issues related to the rapid growth in single-use systems in biopharma manufacturing.
Pfizer has announced it will make its entire portfolio of drugs and vaccines available to 1.2 billion people in 45 lower-income countries on a not-for-profit basis. Learn more.
Industry News
The Governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island have announced a $50M investment in the BioAccelerator. This new 75,000 sq. ft. biomanufacturing centre of expertise is unique in Canada in its design and service delivery components and is the largest single investment in economic development infrastructure in PEI history.
The Government of Canada has announced an investment of $196.1B in healthcare over the next 10 years, including $46.2B in new funding for provinces and territories to improve healthcare services for Canadians.
The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade has released a new jobs report, highlighting life sciences as an emerging sector, with recommendations to address existing BC labour challenges, including the high number of expected job openings in the coming decade.
Life Sciences BC is partnering with Acetech to promote their 2023 Leadership Summit taking place in Whistler from April 19-21. This event helps CEOs and leadership teams take their companies to the next level by leveraging expert knowledge and peer learnings. LSBC members may use the code acetech-lsbc for special pricing.
The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame has issued a call for nominations for Canadian health leaders from diverse backgrounds and experiences whose outstanding leadership, integrity and contributions to medicine and the health sciences, in Canada or abroad, have led to extraordinary improvements in human health. Nominations are due June 12.
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research seeks individuals to join their CIHR HIV/AIDS and Sexually Transmitted and Blood-Borne Infections Research Advisory Committee. They are looking for experts and researchers, particularly those with experience in virology, immunology, or microbiology, and members who self-identify as Indigenous Peoples.
The MedTech Conference taking place from Oct 9-11 in Anaheim, is seeking session proposals that are relevant, timely, and practical to the medical device, diagnostic, and digital health industries. The deadline for submissions is Feb 24.
Biotech companies with fewer than 25 employees are invited to apply to be one of 16 companies to present in front of key global biopharma companies and leading Canadian life sciences ecosystem stakeholders at Sweet Biopharma Day on April 12 in Quebec. The submission deadline is March 8.
Kudos
UBC Faculty of Medicine researchers Dr. Kevin A. Hay and Dr. Srinivas Murthy, have been awarded more than $5M in federal funding as part of The Canadian Institutes of Health Research Clinical Trials Fund.
UBC Evolutionary biologist, Dr. Dolph Schluter, has been awarded the Crafoord Prize in Biosciences by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (RSAS) and the Crafoord Foundation for his research into the role of natural selection in adaptive radiation and the origin of species.
Dr. Tim Kieffer of UBC has been awarded funding for a project, "Designing stem cell-derived islets for diabetes therapy," through the JDRF-CIHR Partnership to Defeat Diabetes as part of a total of $4M over five years to accelerate diabetes research.
Congratulations to our members listed as Canada's Best Employers of 2023 by Forbes.
People on the Move
Cathy Ulrich, CEO of Northern Health, will retire this year after spending 20 years as a member of the health authority's leadership team and 16 years as CEO.
The Government of Canada has appointed Iris Almeida-Côté and Amber Batool to the College of Patent Agents and Trademark Agents board of directors.
Having served as interim CEO since Sept 2022, Doug Gentilcore of ARTMS Inc. has been appointed Chief Executive Officer.
WEX Pharmaceuticals has appointed Walter Korz as their CEO and Abner Yong to the position of CFO.
The Last Word
Tickets are nearly sold out for our upcoming Access to Innovation Conference on Feb 23, so don't delay your registration. The conference welcomes top sector leaders and stakeholders for an engaging day of dialogue and thought leadership focusing on BC's life sciences sector, followed by a networking reception. See the list of sessions and speakers and get your tickets here.
Until next week,
Wendy and the LSBC team
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