Higher education and regional innovation systems in Quebec
Universally, institutions of higher education are currently being solicited to become more involved in their respective areas of influence. For the institutions, this constitutes a third mission that, complementing their traditional teaching and research functions, is intended to better support innovative initiatives of various kinds. The data provided in this text illustrate that, over the past five decades, this progressive commitment in Quebec has already reached cruising speed for the five universities of Quebec and the thirteen colleges located in the regions. New tools are already being experimented with regarding knowledge transfer and business incubation. Moreover, educational programs have multiplied, diversified and become segmented, in addition to having been made accessible, notably through short, continuous and well-targeted training. Territorial targeting, in particular, has led to the emergence of a large number of applied research projects involving colleges and universities.