Sign up to be notified!
Want to stay updated on the work CABHI is doing with its partners to advance the aging and brain health innovation ecosystem?
< Back to all News
Strengthening Canadian innovation with strategic science policies
CSPC’s Stéfanie Tremblay in conversation with CABHI’s Dr. Allison Sekuler
In November 2025, the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI), powered by Baycrest, had the pleasure of attending and sponsoring the Canadian Science Policy Centre (CSPC) Conference—a jam-packed three-day event filled with rich discussions, bold ideas, and meaningful connections. It offered valuable opportunities to engage with partners and leaders who are shaping Canada’s science, research, and innovation policy landscape.
At the conference, Dr. Allison Sekuler, President and Chief Scientist of CABHI and the Baycrest Academy for Research and Education (BARE), sat down with Stéfanie Tremblay, Post-Doctoral Researcher and CSPC volunteer, to discuss research and innovation in Canada, and how Canadian science policies can support sustainable growth and ultimate success. Below is a summary of the key discussion points and takeaways:
Innovators need to be purpose-driven and care about improving the lives of older persons and care partners.
Co-design is a critical ingredient in innovation.
Researchers and innovators need funding and support throughout the entire innovation journey.
Innovators face real barriers to getting their ideas off the ground.
Equity and inclusion must be at the core of innovation.
Investing in brain health makes our economy stronger.
Key components for a thriving innovation ecosystem
Dr. Sekuler first sets the stage by explaining the necessities for a thriving innovation ecosystem, which is comprised of three key elements:
Purpose-driven innovators
An innovation community that values co-design
Funding programs that support the journey from idea to impact
A successful innovation ecosystem requires successful innovators. People need to be really passionate about what they're doing. The most successful innovators are people who have a sense of purpose; they are really trying to make a difference in the world.
Dr. Allison Sekuler, President and Chief Scientist of CABHI and BARE
Helping innovators overcome barriers
After outlining the ingredients for a successful innovation ecosystem, Dr. Sekuler breaks down the challenges innovators face—and how organizations like CABHI can help address them. The concept of co-design re-emerges as a point of difficulty, in addition to being vital for success. Dr. Sekuler explains that “if [innovators] want to succeed, [they need to] start with co-design as early as possible”. However, one of the most common pitfalls is lack of engagement with end users. By actively involving end users from the outset through development, validation, spread, and scale, innovators can tackle this frequently faced challenge.
Innovators also grapple with navigating the pathway to market. To support the progression from development through to spread and scale, they need broader teams with diverse skillsets. Through innovation capacity building opportunities and connections to advisors and coaches, CABHI helps fill this critical gap.
Centring equity and inclusion within innovation
Séfanie Tremblay and Dr. Sekuler also cover the importance of equity and inclusion within the innovation ecosystem. With aging and brain health being a historically under-supported area of study, CABHI—an innovation catalyst specifically focused on aging and brain health—has equity and inclusion at its core. With innovation themes like Women’s Brain Health and FemTech that encourage solutions to be designed with and for underserved communities, along with an emphasis on co-design with end users, equity and inclusion are woven throughout CABHI’s operations to ensure innovations are accessible and impactful for older persons and care partners everywhere.
We need to make sure that every Canadian is contributing to the best of their ability, and to do that, I don't think of it as spending on brain health—I think of it as investing in brain health. If you are investing in people's brain health and brain skills, it will be giving back to the economy. We need to build not just with bricks, but with brains as well.
Dr. Allison Sekuler, President and Chief Scientist of CABHI and BARE
Investing in brain health for a stronger economy
Building on a discussion of how CABHI supports innovators, Stéfanie and Dr. Sekuler shift focus to how these investments in aging and brain health drive Canada’s economy. This concept, known as the brain economy, is built upon brain capital: the combination of brain health and brain skills. When people are supported to maintain both components, the economy benefits. When brain capital declines, the impact is widespread: individuals directly affected and those providing care are often forced to withdraw from the workforce, reducing overall productivity. Current estimates predict that by 2050, the estimated economic burden of dementia is set exceed $110 million annually. As Dr. Sekuler emphasizes, to strengthen Canada’s economy, “[we] must build not just with bricks, but with brains as well.”
Positioning Canada as a leader in brain health innovation
With the ongoing work in the sector, it is evident that Canada has emerged as a global leader in aging, brain health, and neuroscience. Dr. Sekuler goes a step further, sharing that, to sustain our country’s competitive edge, we must believe in ourselves and work collectively to fuel research and innovation here at home. The CSPC creates a space for sector leaders to make that happen through regular meetings and its annual conference.
CABHI offers a full suite of funding, support programs and acceleration services to help researchers and innovators turn their ideas into reality. Our CABHI Science CollaborativeCABHI Science Collaborative connects researchers, innovators, scientists and end users, creating new opportunities for collective impact and capacity for agetech innovation. Through these and other initiatives, and alongside our international network of partners, CABHI is strengthening Canada’s role as a leader in aging and brain health on the global stage.