Marc Saner

Marc Saner
Marc Saner in 2020
Born	Marc Albert Saner 1961 (age 64–65)
Alma mater	University of Basel, Carleton University
Occupations	Professor, Advisor, Speaker, Author
Years active	1982-present

Marc Saner (born 1961) is a full professor at the University of Ottawa, Canada. From 2022 to 2025, he served as Departmental Science Advisor to Natural Resources Canada. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]}

Education

Saner studied biology at the University of Basel, Switzerland (PhD, 1991) and philosophy at Carleton University, Canada (MA 1999). ^{[6] [7] [8] [9]}

Career

Upon completion of his doctorate, he served as a regulatory scientist at the Pest Management Regulatory Agency. He then obtained a graduate degree in philosophy and became the managing director of the Ethics and Policy Issues Centre (EPIC) at Carleton University. ^{[10] [11] [12]}

He served as a director at the Institute on Governance from 2003 to 2006 ^[13] and as the Executive Vice-President and Director of Assessments at the Council of Canadian Academies (CCA) from 2006 to 2007 ^{[14] [15]} and the executive director of the Regulatory Governance Initiative at the School of Public Policy and Administration at Carleton University from 2008 to 2010. ^{[16] [17]}

In 2010, Marc Saner became the Inaugural Director of the Institute for Science, Society and Policy (ISSP) at the University of Ottawa. He developed the ISSP from 2010 to 2015 and established a network of fellows, advisors and faculty, as well as the institute's first graduate program. ^{[18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24]} From 2018 to 2024, he was Chair of the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics. ^[25] From 2022 to 2025, he served part-time as Departmental Science Advisor to Natural Resources Canada. ^[5]

He is currently a professor at the University of Ottawa, Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics. ^{[26] [27] [28]}

Media presence

On March 16, 2012, Marc Saner appeared on The Agenda with Steve Paikin (TVO), discussing “The Coming of Technopolitics” alongside guests Elizabeth May, John Duffy, and Darin Barney. ^[29]

Event organization

On February 10, 2014, Marc Saner hosted David Willets, then Minister of State for Universities and Science of the United Kingdom, for a panel discussion on science policy and diplomacy. ^[30]

On June 3, 2015, he hosted the symposium "Technological Unemployment and the Future of Work" with keynote speaker Nick Bostrom of Oxford University. ^{[31] [32]}

On January 13, 2020, he hosted the Alex Trebek Forum, “How Do We Know It’s True? Can We Mobilize All Forms of Knowledge?”, featuring a video introduction by Alex Trebek. ^{[33] [34]}

Selected works

Book chapters

• Saner M. (2013) The Role of Adaptation in the Governance of Emerging Technologies in Marchant, G. E., Abbott, K. W., and Allenby, B. (eds.), Innovative Governance Models for Emerging Technologies, (Edward Elgar Publishing, Northampton, Massachusetts), pp. 92–107.
• Saner M. & Geelen J. (2012) Identity in a Technological Society: Governance Implications, Chapter 37 in Luppicini, Rocci (ed.), Handbook of Research on Technoself: Identity in a Technological Society, (IGI Global, Hershey, Pennsylvania, 2012), pp. 720–741.
• Saner M. (2008) Ethics, Governance and Regulation and the Environmental Aspects of Aquaculture in Culver, Keith and David Castle (eds.), Aquaculture, Innovation and Social Transformation (Springer, International Library of Environmental, Agricultural, and Food Ethics Vol. 17), pp. 115–121.
• Saner M., D.R. Clements, M.R. Hall, D.J. Doohan & C.W. Crompton (2005). The Biology of Canadian weeds. 105. Linaria vulgaris Mill. in P.B. Cavers (ed.), The Biology of Canadian Weeds (The Agricultural Institute of Ottawa), Vol. 5. pp. 16–29.
• Saner M. (2002). Real and Metaphorical Moral Limits in the Biotechnology Debate in Ruse, M. and David Castle (eds.), Genetically Modified Foods (Prometheus Books, New York), pp. 77–79.

Monographs

• A Primer on Scientific Risk Assessment at Health Canada by Marc Saner (2010), Health Canada Catalogue number: H22-4/3-2010. ISBN   978-1-100-15377-3
• International Approaches to the Regulatory Governance of Nanotechnology by Jennifer Pelley and Marc Saner (2009), School of Public Policy and Administration, Carleton University. ISBN   978-0-7709-0530-9
• A Primer for Scientists: Ethical Issues of Environmental Biotechnology Research by Marc Saner (2001), Environment Canada Catalogue number: En40-645/2001E-IN. ISBN   0-662-31136-1

Affiliations

• Adjunct Research Professor, Department of Philosophy, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada ^[35]
• Fellow, Balsillie School of International Affairs, Waterloo, Canada ^[36]
• Faculty Fellow, Center for Law, Science and Innovation, Arizona State University, Phoenix, USA ^[37]
• Member, Science and Democracy Network, Harvard Kennedy School, Boston, USA ^[38]
• Member, Departmental Science Advisors Network, Office of the Chief Science Advisor, Ottawa, Canada ^[39]
• Advisory Committee Member, AI Insights for Policymakers, Mila, Montreal, Canada ^[40]

Personal life

Marc Saner is married to Canadian artist Lorena Ziraldo. ^[41] He holds a black belt in Taekwondo. ^[42]

References

1. "Saner, Marc, Chair, Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics, University of Ottawa". issp.uottawa.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
2. "Who we are | Institute for Science, Society and Policy | University of Ottawa". issp.uottawa.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
3. "Marc Saner | University of Ottawa | Université d'Ottawa - Academia.edu". uottawa.academia.edu. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
4. "Marc Saner - Google Scholar Citations". scholar.google.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
5. Government of Canada, Innovation. "Departmental Science Advisors Network - Science.gc.ca". www.ic.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
6. Saner, Marc. "(1991) Interactions of Linaria vulgaris Mill. and L. dalmatica (L.) Mill. (Scrophulariaceae) with Insect Herbivores [PhD Biology]". PhD Thesis, University of Basel, Switzerland.
7. "CAB Direct". www.cabdirect.org. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
8. "Suchergebnisse - Marc Saner". baselbern.swissbib.ch (in German). Retrieved 2017-07-29.
9. Saner, Marc. "Environmental Ethics and Biotechnology: A Test of Norton's Convergence Hypothesis" (PDF).
10. "EC / INGSA Conference on Science and Policy Making (2016)" (PDF).
11. "Marc Saner | Canadian Science Policy Conference". cspc2013.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
12. "Social Responsibility in Science From the Inside Out". AAAS - The World's Largest General Scientific Society. 2017-03-08. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
13. "Institute On Governance (IOG)". www.nira.or.jp. Archived from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
14. "History of the Creation of the Council of Canadian Academies" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-03.
15. "Research Money Inc". researchmoneyinc.com. Retrieved 2023-07-18.
16. "Nanotechnology policy and regulation timeline". 2020 Science. 2010-04-30. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
17. "Nanotechnology Policy and Regulation Timeline for Canada, US, Australia, UK, and Europe | FrogHeart". www.frogheart.ca. 3 May 2010. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
18. "À la croisée de la science et de la politique - Il est devenu possible de faire de la biotechnologie à la maison". Le Devoir (in French). 2011-09-17. ISSN   0319-0722 . Retrieved 2017-07-29.
19. "Université d'Ottawa - Le futur est parmi nous". Le Devoir (in French). 2013-11-02. ISSN   0319-0722 . Retrieved 2017-07-29.
20. "British scientists' advice welcomed by government, minister says". Ottawa Citizen. 2014-02-11. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
21. The Agenda with Steve Paikin (2012-03-16), The Coming of Techno-Politics , retrieved 2017-07-29
22. BUCK, NAOMI (2014-05-11). "Could WiFi in schools be harming our kids?" . Retrieved 2017-07-29.
23. "Federal science hobbled by cuts and policies, poll says". CBC News. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
24. Jones, Nicola (2015-11-12). "Canada creates science-minister post". Nature. 527 (7577): 146. Bibcode:2015Natur.527..146J. doi: 10.1038/nature.2015.18739 . PMID   26560279.
25. Saner, Marc (June 4, 2025). "LinkedIn Profile". LinkedIn. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
26. Proximify. "uOttawa UNIWeb". uniweb.uottawa.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
27. "Anyone can make GMOs at home with kits from Canadian company". CBC News. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
28. Proximify. "uOttawa UNIWeb". uniweb.uottawa.ca. Retrieved 2017-07-29.
29. "The Politics of Technology". TVO. Archived from the original on 2012-03-30. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
30. "Wayback Machine" (PDF). issp.uottawa.ca. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-10-26. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
31. ISSP (2015). "SSP News April 2015" (PDF). Retrieved Jan 8, 2026.
32. "Technological Unemployment and the Future of Work | FHSS". www.federationhss.ca. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
33. "Forum for Dialogue past events". Research and innovation. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
34. ISSP UOttawa (2020-01-17). How do we know it’s true? Can we mobilize all forms of knowledge? (Alex Trebek) . Retrieved 2026-01-12– via YouTube.
35. "Marc Saner". carleton.ca. Retrieved 2025-06-04.
36. "Marc Saner". Balsillie School of International Affairs. 2025-06-04. Retrieved 2025-06-04.
37. "Center for Law, Science and Innovation | ASU | Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law". law.asu.edu. Retrieved 2025-06-04.
38. ISSP (June 2015). "SSP News" (PDF). Retrieved June 4, 2025.
39. Government of Canada, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, Office of the Deputy Minister, Communications and Marketing Branch (2023-08-15). "Departmental Science Advisors Network". science.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2024-05-17. Retrieved 2025-06-04.
40. "AI Insights for Policymakers | Mila". mila.quebec. Retrieved 2025-06-04.
41. "Marc Saner auf Twitter: "Vernissage for new art by my lovely wife Lorena Ziraldo. She will be at Orange Gallery Saturday noon onwards"". 2020-10-30. Archived from the original on 2020-10-30. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
42. "BLACK BELTS". C.E.T.F. Retrieved 2024-02-19.

External links

• University of Ottawa
• Publication Archive