Spring 1938 - Committee on Research in the Social Sciences
Eager to create a more robust infrastructure for social scientists in Canada, a group of scholars led by Harold Innis, John Robbins, R.G. Trotter and R.H. Coats form a committee to research the state of affairs in the disciplines across the country. Each of the members writes a short report on the state of research in his field (the members were all men). The group uses that information, as well as consultations with Social Science Research councils in the UK and especially the United States, to evaluate the feasibility of establishing a council of their own, and the best methods for doing so. While the outbreak of the Second World War gives them some pause, they decide to continue with their efforts and begin organizing their new council.