Fostering innovation in a mid-sized city: Queen’s University’s regional and global engagement

Introducing our new Accelerator Member, Queen’s University. Based in Kingston, Canada, Queen’s is a research-intensive institution with bold ambitions to strengthen its socio-economic impact locally, nationally, and globally. As Jessie Kubes, AVP Economic Development in the Vice-Principal Research Portfolio, shared with us, Queen’s is focused on expanding entrepreneurship training, boosting support for startups, deepening industry engagement, and drawing on global best practices to drive inclusive economic development across the region.

Strengthening startups, talent, and impact through UIIN

Queen’s will continue strengthening its entrepreneurship training programs and nurturing a stronger entrepreneurial mindset among both faculty and students. The university will also enhance supports for university-based startups and spinouts, particularly within the context of a mid-sized city like Kingston. These efforts aim not only to boost local economic development and enrich the research ecosystem, but also to retain top talent in the region.

To support these ambitions, Queen’s is looking to learn from global best practices in regional economic development – something UIIN is well placed to provide. Through UIIN’s events, training, workshops, and research on high-impact practices, Queen’s hopes to enhance its institutional capacity and accelerate its journey towards greater societal impact.

By learning from global best practices in regional economic development, Queen’s will be positioned to drive even more meaningful, sustained impact.

Harnessing research and partnerships to tackle global challenges

Queen’s is stepping up its efforts to forge deeper, more impactful collaborations with industry, using its research expertise, homegrown talent and innovation ecosystem to tackle some of the world’s most urgent challenges. With over 1,300 faculty and clinician faculty, including 48 Canada Research Chairs, Queen’s researchers are at the forefront of cutting-edge research that spans disciplines and borders. The university is actively building strategic partnerships with industry and community stakeholders to turn knowledge into action, spark innovation, and drive inclusive economic growth. These efforts are not only grounded in Queen’s institutional priorities around research impact and engagement, but also strongly aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), reflecting a commitment to making a difference both locally and globally.

Our goal is to deepen and expand Queen’s engagement with industry by leveraging our research excellence, talent, and innovation ecosystem to address global challenges and drive socio-economic impact.

To strengthen its ties with industry and the wider community, Queen’s is developing a new Economic Development Strategy that taps into the university’s core strengths – research excellence, outstanding student talent, and expansive alumni network. As part of this strategy, Queen’s will roll out new initiatives focused on innovation, research, and economic development, designed to unlock fresh opportunities for collaboration and impact.

Driving innovation and startup growth in Kingston

Queen’s University plays a pivotal role in Kingston’s innovation ecosystem, having directly supported over 700 startups and entrepreneurs, more than 600 of them within the local region. This thriving ecosystem is rooted in a powerful combination of research talent, cutting-edge facilities, and training programmes that together support discovery, innovation, and knowledge mobilisation.

At the centre of this is Queen’s Partnerships and Innovation (QPI), which supports researchers through securing IP protection, commercialisation services, as well as facilitating partnerships with industry and other external organisations. QPI also leads initiatives like the WE-CAN Project, which builds capacity among women-identifying entrepreneurs through targeted programmes and resources.

Empowering students and building global connections

Entrepreneurship at Queen’s is also deeply embedded across campus. The Dunin-Deshpande Queen’s Innovation Centre (DDQIC) has helped launch over 200 startups—many of them student-led—and, through a partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, offers virtual training to over 1,200 students and recent graduates from universities in Africa.

The Centre for Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Social Impact (CEISI) at Smith School of Business gives students hands-on venture experience with a focus on sustainability and social good. Queen’s also offers an Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Creativity Certificate through the Faculty of Arts and Science, accessible to all students on campus. This interdisciplinary certificate program trains students in communication practices, design thinking, and market and user experience research.

CEISI provides students with opportunities to gain business venture experience while focusing on sustainability, corporate social responsibility, and community impact.

Queen’s also works closely with regional partners like the Kingston Economic Development Corporation (KEDCO) on joint innovation initiatives. KEDCO leads the Kingston-Syracuse Pathway, a cross-border research network, and a new life sciences innovation project providing infrastructure, funding, and validation support for health sciences companies in Eastern Ontario.

Navigating challenges in a mid-sized innovation ecosystem

As a mid-sized city, Kingston offers a vibrant community but fewer resources and opportunities than larger metropolitan centres, particularly for entrepreneurs and startups looking to scale. The region lacks a strong presence of large corporations, and while medium-sized industries exist, they’re not yet equipped to fully harness or support the growing innovation potential emerging from Queen’s University.

One of the crucial challenges Queen’s University faces in driving university-industry engagement is its location in a mid-sized community, which can sometimes offer fewer resources and opportunities compared to larger metropolitan areas.

Additionally, many Queen’s alumni leave Kingston after graduation due to limited local opportunities, making talent retention a persistent issue. To address these challenges, Queen’s has focused on developing strategic collaborations with regional partners, including KEDCO and other local post-secondary institutions, to co-create a collective vision for regional economic development. These efforts aim to strengthen the local innovation ecosystem, enhance support for startups, and provide the resources and opportunities needed to encourage alumni and entrepreneurs to build their futures in the region. Together, they’re building a stronger innovation ecosystem, expanding support for startups, and creating the conditions for alumni and entrepreneurs to build their futures in the region.

Queen’s invitation for collaborative impact

Looking ahead, Queen’s is eager to join forces with like-minded institutions and organisations to tackle some of the world’s most pressing societal challenges. By leveraging its strengths in research, innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic development, the university aims to drive meaningful, lasting impact.

We invite other institutions and organisations to reach out and connect with us to discuss collaboration and partnership opportunities.

Looking to strengthen your university’s industry partnerships?

Discover how to move beyond ad hoc collaboration and build long-term, strategic alliances in our brief Building Strategic and Sustainable University–Industry Partnerships. Drawing on insights from over 15 UIIN consulting projects, this piece offers practical guidance to help university leaders create more resilient, impactful, and future-ready partnerships.

Tasha Day (author) is a former Project Officer at UIIN, where she undertook research activities and created content on a wide variety of topics including entrepreneurship education, sustainability and research valorisation..