Western Innovation and Strategic Partnerships
Partner With The Office of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships
Impact at a Glance
- $270M+ in annual research funding
- Top 1% of universities worldwide
- Generated over $57 million from licensing of inventions
- 65+ companies across Western Research Parks
- 750+ knowledge-based employees in the parks
- $56M+ estimated annual economic impact from Western Research Park
The Office of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships moves discoveries beyond the lab by fostering collaborations with industry, government, and community partners, offering tailored support in commercialization, intellectual property, and strategic partnerships.
We are your gateway to:
- Strategic research collaborations.
- Commercializing technologies and managing intellectual property.
- Scaling ventures and supporting start-ups.
- Western Research Parks, a thriving innovation district where researchers, entrepreneurs, and companies co-locate to drive discovery and commercialization.
Strategic Partnerships
Our dedicated Strategic Partnerships team builds bridges between the university and partners across public, private, and community sectors. We help translate research excellence into innovation, commercialization, and shared success.
Strategic Partnerships offers:
- Matchmaking between researchers and industry, not-for-profit, government partners.
- Foster long-term, trust-based relationships that strengthen innovation ecosystems across sectors, including support for co-development complex grant proposals.
- Facilities relationship-building and formal agreement that support long-term collaboration.
- Helps partners tab into Western's world-class labs, equipment, and expertise.
For Researchers and Innovators at Western:
- Expands access to external funding and resources by aligning faculty research with government, industry, and not-for-profit priorities.
- Help identifying potential industry/government collaborators.
- Creates experiential opportunities for students (internships, applied research, co-ops) by linking academic expertise to partner needs.
For Industry, Government and Community Partners:
- Navigate Western’s research ecosystem, making it easier to identify expertise, facilities, and talent algined with needs.
- Reduces risk and cost of innovation by co-developing project with academic experts and leveraging public funding programs.
- Build a future-ready talent pipeline.
Technology Transfer
Western's Technology Transfer Office collaborates with inventors and industry partners across diverse sectors to solve technical challenges, support R&D, and bring emerging innovations to market — creating meaningful outcomes for companies, communities, and society.
Western's technology transfer office offers:
- Intellectual property assessment and patent development.
- Licensing and partnership negotiation.
- Market analysis and commercialization pathways.
- Industry marketing of Western IP portfolios.
For Researchers and Innovators at Western:
- Report of Innovation (ROI) guidance.
- Patent filing support and costs covered for select cases.
- Spin-off creation support.
- Commercialization coaching.
- Marketing of Western IP portfolios.
For Industry, Government and Community Partners:
- Browse licensing-ready technologies
- Explore co-development or option agreements
Commercialization Training and Funding
Western’s Technology Transfer Office helps to bridge the gap between scientific discovery and real-world impact. We offer researchers training on essential commercialization skills, from market analysis to business model development. In partnership with the Morrissette Institute for Entrepreneurship, we offer a variety of commercialization training programs for researchers and students.
