The Short Report, October 16, 2019: Ecocities, fintech adoption, animal testing

The British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) opened an Ecocity Centre of Excellence for applied research and training in support of cities becoming ecologically sustainable. The Centre will be led by Dr. Jennie Moore, BCIT Director, Institute Sustainability, and founding coordinator of Vancouver’s EcoCity Network. - BCIT News

Accounting firm Ernst & Young published a new fintech adoption index that shows a dramatic spike in the use of financial technology by Canadian consumers, up to 50% from 17% two years ago. Despite the increase, Canadians lag behind the rest of the world in fintech adoption, across all age brackets. - Financial Post

The University of Windsor opened the Canadian Centre for Alternatives to Animal Methods (CCAAM), Canada's first research centre for alternatives to animal testing methods, with the help of a $1-million private donation—the largest single gift in the school's history—from Eric and Dana Margolis, whose family foundation supports Humane Society International/Canada. - The Windsor Star

Canada ranks at the bottom of OECD countries for creating unicorns (or tech startups that reach a $1 billion dollar market value), despite coming in third for absolute venture capital (VC) dollars invested, behind the U.S. and China but ahead of many more populous countries, according to a study from the University of Toronto’s Impact Centre. The study seems to put to rest the notion that Canada lacks venture capital, but highlights the failure to foster domestic scaleups. - IT World Canada

George Brown College partnered with Changzhou Health Vocation Technical College (CHVTC) to support exchanges and collaborative program delivery between George Brown's Centre for Health Sciences and the Chinese college. - George Brown College

HEC Montréal has launched an undergraduate distance-learning program for French-speaking students who want to learn how to start a business. The short, intensive program takes students through ten modules to design an entrepreneurial project and requires them to submit deliverables for each phase of their projects. - HEC Montréal

In a speech ahead of the province's fall economic statement, Ontario's Finance Minister Rod Phillips highlighted the importance of boosting the province’s competitiveness: “When we talk about Ontario, some of us will recall when we were a top 10 North American jurisdiction, on par with our neighbours to the south like New York, who today is number five. People are often surprised to find out we’re ranked 45th, one place ahead of Montana. We should be doing better and we can do better." Phillips noted that the province has underperformed in the global competition for talent. - The Star

Olds College and Zone Startups Calgary are collaborating to support early stage agriculture technology companies through the Olds College Smart Farm and Zone Startup Calgary’s program offerings. Olds College

THE GRAPEVINE

The Insurance Institute of Canada (IIC) created a new director role to lead technology-learning initiatives. The Toronto-based Director of Learning Innovation and Technology will recommend and implement learning technologies for IIC members. - Academica Careers

Toronto's Vector Institute will recruit three new tenure-stream faculty positions in deep learning. The announcement follows news that the Institute has cross-appointed eight new faculty members and 29 affiliate researchers at universities across Canada. - Business Insider