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It appears that history is repeating itself.

Doctors, scientists, teachers and tech specialists in the U.S. have recently shown a heightened interest in relocating to Canada.

They are frustrated with the Trump administration鈥檚 attacks on academic freedom, government cuts of university funding, and rising fears of deportation.

This obviously is an opportunity for Canada to enlarge its workforce of highly talented people, at a time when Canada still struggles with shortages of skilled workers in most fields and acutely so in health care and medical research.

But so far, at least, this celebrated 鈥渂rain gain鈥�聽remains more anecdotal than real.

There are scattered reports of Americans expressing a desire or committed intention to move to the Great White North. But so far, no flood of American newcomers has been detected by immigration officials.

To make the most of this moment, Canada must make itself irresistibly attractive to talent from abroad.

We have the political stability, multicultural harmony and robust R&D activity in our world-class universities, teaching hospitals and networks of entrepreneurial tech startups to attract top talent from beyond our borders.

But Canadian universities聽鈥� epicentres of advanced research in a multitude of fields, and the intended destination for many potential U.S. immigrants聽鈥� are coping with a funding crisis after Ottawa鈥檚 deep cuts to the intake of foreign students.

International students and their steep tuition fees came to be the financial underpinning of Canadian higher education. The loss of much of that revenue has comprised the financial stability of higher education.

Canada is also beset with housing and cost-of-living crises, and our vaunted Medicare聽鈥� among of our most powerful calling cards聽鈥� is under tremendous strain.

And many of the potential U.S. 茅migr茅s find Europe to be as attractive an alternative to the U.S. as Canada.

In the global competition for talent, Europe is striving to be the first choice of relocating high-skill Americans.

On March 20, the science ministers of 13 European Union (EU) countries called on the EU to make Europe as attractive as possible to 鈥渂rilliant talents from abroad who might suffer from research interference and ill-motivated and brutal funding cuts.鈥�

Germany last year launched its Skilled Immigration Act to expedite the granting of work visas to professionals from abroad, a process that can take three years in Canada.

And despite Brexit, which was fuelled in part by xenophobia, Britain鈥檚 intake of global talent, notably foreign-born startup entrepreneurs, has significantly increased since the pandemic.

France鈥檚 Aix-Marseille University is one of several top European schools embarked on outreach to potential U.S. emigres.

In recruiting U.S. researchers, 鈥渢he core of our program is indignation and shock at witnessing the policies of the Trump administration,鈥� Eric Berton, president of Aix-Marseille, recently told the Economist.

To compete for global talent, Canada must provide much more affordable housing in proximity to colleges and universities, research centres and teaching hospitals. Some Canadian campuses have already made that a priority, but it needs to be a goal of all research centres with help from targeted federal and provincial funding.

And the hoped-for dismantling of internal trade barriers should include the creation of innovation networks in which a breakthrough medical therapy or device, for instance, is tested in just one jurisdiction and then made readily available nationwide.

Canadian higher education also needs an infusion of additional capital from Ottawa and the provinces to restore its financial stability. Otherwise, we risk a relapse to the 鈥渂rain drain鈥� of talented Canadians who leave the country for better-funded research programs elsewhere.

And, of course, to welcome talent from abroad.

The first Trump administration tightened eligibility criteria for H-1B visa in 2017. The following year, visa applications for moving to Canada jumped by 30 per cent. Canadian admissions of Indian citizens alone almost tripled, to 26,340.

That was of lasting benefit to Canada, wrote researchers Agostina Brinatti of Yale University and Xing Guo of the Bank of Canada in a 2023 report.

鈥淲e find that Canadian firms that were relatively more exposed to the inflow of immigrants increased production, exports and employment of Canadian workers,鈥� .

Some U.S. firms, including Microsoft, opened Canadian offices so their employees not born in the U.S. could avoid being hassled by U.S. immigration officials. And that kicked off a trend of U.S. tech firms moving high-skill personnel and R&D to Canada, making 海角社区官网the third-largest tech hub in North America.

Let鈥檚 hope that history is indeed playing out again.