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President Tom Traves on Dal's partnership in 'Ships Start Here'
Tom Traves - July 12, 2011
At Dalhousie, you can walk up the six flights of stairs in our Life Sciences Centre to an atrium and enjoy breathtaking views of the ocean. In one direction is the Northwest Arm, where long ago tall ships slipped into Halifax Harbour. Further over, are the naval dockyards and shipyards—strategic infrastructure during the Second World War and fueling our economy still today. And beyond is the Atlantic, stretching out as far as the eye can see.
From the top of the Life Sciences Centre, you can also look down on progress to Dal’s new Oceans Excellence Centre, which will house Halifax Marine Research Institute, the Oceans Tracking Network and the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Ocean Science and Technology. Fitting for a university located just 300 metres from the ocean, we have more than 100 faculty members engaged in oceans research—encompassing the sciences, law, engineering and management.
The Halifax Marine Research Institute, envisioned as a catalyst for innovation, officially set sail during Dalhousie Oceans Week. Could this collaborative body exist anywhere else? Nowhere but Halifax would you find such a collection of diverse expertise focusing on our oceans.
Through the Halifax Marine Research Institute, a dream has come alive with a unique alliance of researchers, post-secondary institutions, companies and government departments. By linking academic and public sector research with oceans industries, the HMRI seeks to generate long-term economic benefits for the province and the region.
And now we are on the cusp of something much bigger— a monumental step forward as represented by Irving Shipbuilding and its bid for one of the two National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy contracts. Irving Shipbuilding represents the best of Atlantic business: it has invested in its infrastructure, its skilled and specialized workforce and has a proven track record of delivering quality.
Dalhousie has a talent for bringing people together. We have helped make this region a knowledge powerhouse and the post secondary education network here plays a key role in building the region’s economy. We look forward to the opportunity to work closely with the Irving Shipyards on common research concerns and educational and career opportunities for students graduating from Dalhousie.
Tom Traves,
President, Dalhousie University
Nova Scotians are built to build. Show your support by helping ‘fill the map’ with Canadians. CanadianShipsStartHere.ca is live and has over 3700 pins of support from across Canada. Place your pin today and help fill the map."
Readers Say
July 12, 2011 10:33 AM
July 12, 2011 9:19 PM
July 12, 2011 9:20 PM
July 13, 2011 12:11 PM
Ships are inherently flexible – given the facts that they can be anywhere on water quickly, are adaptable, and can carry a lot of things, they can fulfill a lot of different functions. The navy therefore conceives its job as a broad trinity of functions: diplomatic, constabulary, and, yes, military.
So while the ships that roll out over the next few years will have combat capabilities, they’ll also be tasked to undertake a wider array of functions. On the diplomatic side, that includes humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, which our navy delivered when it brought water, first aid, and shelter to earthquake-stricken Haitians last year. On the constabulary side, that means ensuring the safe, sustainable, and lawful use of an ocean commons - for everyone, not merely corporations.
That’s for what the navy is planning.
So no, this isn’t planning and building for "war" – that’s only one very small slice of the pie that neglects the flexibility and options (many of them peaceful) that new ships provide.
July 13, 2011 2:37 PM
July 13, 2011 2:40 PM
As for your argument that this is only a short-sighted contract, also false. All vessels constructed will require routine maintenance and mid life refits. I participated in a complete overhaul the PSS Chemul that was over 20 years old. These overhauls, midlife refits, and significant maintenance require them to come to port, which will hopefully be Halifax.
All of you complaining that this will bring war, well, sorry to break it to you but Halifax was founded to act as a major base against the French (during colonial times). Halifax has always been and always will have ties with the military. This contract if awarded to Halifax will bring plenty of opportunity to the region. Canada is an active member of the UN and Nato, so without new equipment, we cannot fulfill our duty domestically and internationally without piggy backing other military forces (USA comes to mind). The ships are going to be built, whether it be here or elsewhere..... I'd prefer them here so at least we can reap the benefit of our tax dollars.
July 15, 2011 3:27 AM
July 18, 2011 12:38 PM
July 18, 2011 6:08 PM
September 12, 2011 11:55 AM
Canadians should be challenging, not cheerleading, the federal shipbuilding strategy. Instead of putting up signs "Ships Start Here," the public should be raising critical questions.
Last year, with little parliamentary debate and a lack of public consultations, the federal government announced the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS) as part of the Canada First Defence Strategy.
Why do we need combat vessels? What is the security threat assessment that justifies them? Who are our naval enemies? The NSPS does not adequately answer these fundamental questions. Protecting our sovereignty and settling maritime disputes can be more responsibly done through international law and diplomacy than combat. Patrolling our coastline can be done more economically by the Coast Guard and with new unmanned surveillance technology.
Why are warships even a national priority? The federal government is running an annual deficit and increasing the national debt. With these financial constraints and a limited budget, the government should be first investing in national social and environmental programs that meet the most pressing human security needs of Canadians, such as affordable housing, mental health, post-secondary education, childcare, achildcare, and renewable energy. The federal government could also spend money on caring for sick and homeless veterans and cleaning up the thousands of neglected Department of National Defence contaminated sites across the country.
Former U.S. President General Dwight Eisenhower’s 1953 critique of military procurement is still relevant today, "Every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its labourers, the genius of its scientists, and the hopes of its children."