The Royal Canadian Institute for Science (RCIScience), known also as the Royal Canadian Institute, is a Canadian

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

dedicated to connecting the public with Canadian

science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

History

The organization was formed in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

as the Canadian Institute on June 20, 1849, by

Sandford Fleming Sir Sandford Fleming (January 7, 1827 – July 22, 1915) was a Scottish Canadian engineer and inventor. Born and raised in Scotland, he immigrated to colonial Canada at the age of 18. He promoted worldwide standard time zones, a prime meridian, ...

, Kivas Tully, and Hamilton Hartley Killaly. It was conceived of originally as an organization for surveyors, civil engineers, and architects practising in and about

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

.The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Makers of Canada: Index and Dictionary of Canadian History, by Various 2010
/ref> It quickly became more general in its scientific interests. A

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

was granted on November 4, 1851, in which the objects of the organization are declared to be "the encouragement and general advancement of the physical sciences, the arts and the manufactures".History of the Royal Canadian Institute for Science
/ref> It is now the oldest scientific society in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Presidents

Notable past presidents include John Charles Fields (1919–1925; founder of the Fields Medal), William Edmond Logan, Daniel Wilson, John Henry Lefroy, John Beverley Robinson, George William Allan, William Henry Draper, Oliver Mowat and Henry Holmes Croft.

Museum

Its first museum collection consisted mostly of archaeological and ethnographic items from native groups in Canada. Its first curator was David Boyle. During 1896, needing more room for the museum, the collection was transferred to the Toronto Normal School (The Museum of Natural History and Fine Arts or Ontario Provincial Museum); Boyle cared for it until his death during 1911. Its collection was later transferred to the

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

Journal

The Institute regularly published a journal, 'the Canadian Journal', by various titles 1852–1878, as Proceedings 1879–1890 and later Transactions 1890–1969. 'Early Days of the Canadian Institute' by Sandford Fleming was published during 1899. The Royal Canadian Institute Centennial Volume, published in 1949, summarizes one hundred years of science in Canada and the history of the Royal Canadian Institute, 1849–1949. Since 2018, RCIScience has published an annua
magazine
for the public, featuring interviews and articles with scientists across Canada.

Activities

RCIScience first started hosting public lectures on the University of Toronto campus starting in 1913. Since then, RCIScience has expanded its activities to include in-person and online events, and novel initiatives such as Science is a Drag (winner of the Special Award for Inclusive Science Engagement at the 2022 Falling Walls Summit Science Breakthrough of the Year, Science Engagement category. In 2021, RCIScience received th
NSERC Award for Science Promotion
which honours individuals and groups who make an outstanding contribution to the promotion of science in Canada through activities encouraging popular interest in science or developing science abilities

Awards

Every year since 1982, RCIScience has awarded the Sandford Fleming Award to a Canadian who has made major contributions to the public understanding of science. The Sir William Edmond Logan Award was created in 2015 as a companion to the Fleming Medal to recognize the contribution that an organization (rather than an individual) has made to increasing science culture in Canada through communication of science. It is presented to an organization operating in Canada that demonstrates continued passion, aptitude and expertise in science communication to the public.

References

External links

Official website
Organizations based in Canada with royal patronage {{canada-org-stub