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Montreal’s cash-strapped universities have a wealth of notable and famous alumni who got their start at one of our local universities before leaving their mark on this province and beyond. Across the fields of business, science, politics and the arts, there are countless examples of notable alumni who earned a degree at a Montreal university before making it big. The list from Université de Montréal reads like a veritable Who’s Who of Quebec leaders, while McGill University has an embarrassment of riches, with bragging rights to the longest list of notables across all fields and by far the most prestigious prize winners. Here are some examples of those famous alumni (with apologies to the many accomplished graduates we didn’t have space to include). We have also included Nobel Prize winners and the number of Rhodes Scholars to round out the list of distinguished alumni. Montreal universities have bragging rights to many famous alumni | Montreal Gazette

With a goal to make John Abbott College a leader in health-related fields, a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony took place Tuesday for the CEGEP's new science and technology building. The new five-storey, $30-million project will house facilities to train nurses, ambulance technicians and pharmaceutical technicians. "This will train students in English in areas where we have a shortage of qualified workers," said Education Minister Line Beauchamps. To be completed in 2012, the building, equipped with geothermic heating, will benefit from $8 million in financing from federal and provincial governments. http://montreal.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100831/mtl_JAC_100831/20100831?hub=Montreal

Per this article in The Gazette: http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Montreal+picked+five+hubs+Future+Earth+project/10008798/story.html Montreal has been selected as one of five global hubs for a United Nations project called Future Earth, an ambitious 10-year initiative to build and connect international research on the environment and sustainable development — and to find ways to intensify and accelerate the impact of that research. It is a united, international effort to create sustainability and advance scientific study on questions of environmental impact, to merge science and public policy — and to address urgent environmental challenges. Future Earth’s globally distributed secretariat will also have hubs in Paris, Tokyo, Stockholm and Boulder, Colo. Those involved in petitioning to get the hub here — there were at least 20 competing bids — believe that Montreal’s star will definitely shine brighter on the international stage now. While the project will involve all of Montreal’s universities, Concordia University will house the local hub that will bring together Quebec researchers to contribute to this major scientific initiative. It is news that has Concordia president Alan Shepard smiling these days, although he is primarily focused on what a coup this is for Montreal and the opportunities he believes will emerge from it. “This is great for Montreal and very good for Concordia,” Shepard said in an interview on Monday. “We’ll be the host but it’s collaborative, an intersection for all the universities in Montreal to work together on climate change and the health of the Earth.” The universities came together to work on a joint proposal to lobby for the hub at the urging of Montréal International, which acts as an economic driver for Greater Montreal. Montréal International vice-president Stéphanie Allard is also convinced that Montreal’s involvement in the project can only be a boon to its universities and to the city itself. “It’s a very big opportunity for all the universities and for Montreal,” said Allard, who oversees international organizations. “It will increase our visibility in the world, it will establish us as an international city and it will certainly make us more attractive to researchers.” Future Earth is the result of a commitment made in 2012, at the United Nations conference Rio+20, to develop a new international network to advance sustainability. It is being overseen by the International Council of Science, a non-governmental association with a goal to strengthen international science for the benefit of society. The project is committed to developing the knowledge for responding effectively to the risks and opportunities of global environmental change and for supporting transformation towards global sustainability in the coming decades. It will mobilize tens of thousands of scientists while strengthening partnerships with policy-makers and other stakeholders in the quest for a sustainable planet. “Solutions to the major sustainability challenges facing humanity require integrated science and a closer relationship with policy-makers and stakeholders than we have seen to date,” said Yuan-Tseh Lee, president of the ICSU. “Future Earth has been designed to respond to these urgent needs, and I am impressed by the innovative consortium that has come together to drive the program forward.” In making its pitch, Montréal International cited that Montreal has a rich, diverse and high quality research network already in place, that it is multicultural and multilinguistic, that it is very well-positioned to be a hub and that office space is cheaper here than in many cities. Shepard said it’s hard to say what financial benefits there could be for the city, but he said having the secretariat will certainly bring UN resources, international visitors, research opportunities, graduate students and lots of attention. “Montreal becomes a neuronetwork and it’s glowing really bright,” he said, adding that the project meshed well with Concordia’s “intellectual values” of integrating different academic disciplines. An added bonus is that it also fits well with a preoccupation of the university’s students, namely sustainability and environmental science. “Future Earth clearly recognizes Montreal’s research capacity and the valuable contribution we will make in developing solutions to global environmental challenges,” said Shepard. “It’s a beautiful thing to have in your city; it will bring great intellectual leadership and passion and opportunity.” kseidman@montrealgazette.com Twitter: KSeidman

Montréal accueillera le 23e Congrès mondial de science politique 23/11/2010 10h29 Le Palais des congrès de Montréal accueillera le 23e Congrès mondial de science politique, du 19 au 25 juillet 2014. On s’attend à ce que cet événement génère des retombées économiques de plus de 8 millions $ pour la métropole. Près de 3500 délégués provenant de plus de 80 pays sont attendus ainsi qu'une cinquantaine d'exposants. Selon le secrétaire général de l'Association internationale de science politique, le professeur Guy Lachapelle, le choix de Montréal reflète la vitalité de la collectivité des politicologues québécois et canadiens. «Montréal est devenu un pôle incontournable de la science politique comme discipline scientifique sur la scène internationale», a-t-il déclaré. En 2006, l'Association internationale de science politique avait d'ailleurs choisi d'établir son secrétariat permanent à l'Université Concordia, grâce aux efforts de Montréal International. http://www.24hmontreal.canoe.ca/24hmontreal/actualites/archives/2010/11/20101123-102951.html

Montreal projects get $17M The Gazette Published: Monday, June 16 International Science and Technology Partnerships Canada Inc. today announced $17 million in research and development funding to support three Montreal-based projects involving Canadian and Indian companies. Beneficiaries include CAE Inc., Pratt & Whitney Canada Corp. and McGill University, according to an announcement today by Foreign Affairs Ministers David Emerson. The three projects include the application of biofuels for aviation, the design and development of a new generation of regional transport aircraft and an improved system for storing dangerous materials in aboveground tanks. "Our government understands the importance of establishing international research partners and the critical role science and technology plays in the new economy," said Emerson. "These joint projects will enhance the collaboration between our scientists and commercialize their discoveries." http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/business/story.html?id=d92f9f3c-9ed2-48f3-a340-ded06146a499

En science Les élèves canadiens sont les 3e meilleurs du monde La Presse Canadienne 04/12/2007 17h37 En science - Les élèves canadiens sont les 3e meilleurs du monde © Rob Melnychuk/Corbis Les étudiants de la Finlande seraient les meilleurs au monde en science, d'après une étude publiée ce mardi par l'Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques (OCDE). Les élèves de 15 ans de Hong Kong et du Canada se sont respectivement classés en deuxième et en troisième positions. L'Alberta a obtenu le plus haut score des 10 provinces canadiennes, suivie dans l'ordre par la Colombie-Britannique, l'Ontario et le Québec. Les élèves de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador, de l'Ile-du-Prince-Edouard, de la Nouvelle-Ecosse, du Nouveau-Brunswick, du Manitoba et de la Saskatchewan ont un rendement égal ou supérieur à la moyenne de l'OCDE, mais celui-ci est significativement inférieur à la moyenne du Canada. L'Alberta est la seule province à afficher un rendement significativement supérieur à la moyenne canadienne. L'OCDE a évalué pour cette étude plus de 400 000 élèves dans 57 pays. L'évaluation s'intéressait principalement aux sciences, mais les élèves étaient aussi interrogés sur leurs connaissances en mathématiques et sur leur habileté à la lecture. La Grande-Bretagne a terminé en 14e place, tandis que la France s'est classé 25e et que les Etats-Unis ont obtenu le 29e meilleur score. Les élèves du Canada se sont en moyenne classés parmi les meilleurs des pays étudiés dans toutes les matières à l'évaluation. Entre 2003 et 2006, le rendement des élèves canadiens s'est maintenu au même niveau en lecture et en mathématiques, mais davantage de pays devancent désormais le Canada dans ces domaines. Les Québécois se classent au-dessus de la moyenne canadienne en mathématiques et obtiennent la moyenne en lecture, tandis que l'Ontario, le Manitoba, l'Alberta et la Colombie-Britannique ont un rendement égal à la moyenne canadienne en lecture comme en mathématiques. Les autres provinces sont en-deça de la moyenne nationale dans les deux matières. Au Canada et dans la plupart des autres pays, aucune différence entre les sexes n'est constatée en sciences, ni sur l'échelle globale, ni sur l'échelle du sous-domaine de l'utilisation des faits scientifiques. Cependant, les garçons ont de meilleurs résultats pour ce qui est d'expliquer les phénomènes de façons scientifiques, tandis que les filles devancent les garçons lorsqu'il faut identifier des questions d'ordre scientifique. «Les garçons semblent avoir plus de facilité à maîtriser les connaissances scientifiques, tandis que les filles semblent avoir une meilleure vue d'ensemble, qui leur permet d'identifier les questions d'ordre scientifique dans une situation donnée», lit-on dans un document d'analyse conjoint de Ressources humaines et Développement social Canada, de Statistique Canada et du Conseil des ministres de l'Education du Canada. Si on se réjouit des résultats globaux de l'étude de l'OCDE dans le document d'analyse, on y identifie malgré tout certains points préoccupants, notamment le fait que le pays en tête de liste dans chacun des domaines évalués devance largement le Canada sur le plan du rendement des élèves. «En outre, des écarts provinciaux considérables subsistent dans plusieurs domaines», poursuit le document.