RAS/NSA - Le Réseau d’analyse stratégique / The Network for Strategic Analysis

What RAS/NSA - Le Réseau d’analyse stratégique / The Network for Strategic Analysis does

RAS/NSA — Le Réseau d'analyse stratégique / The Network for Strategic Analysis — is a Canadian non-profit research network founded in 2020 and headquartered at Université Laval in Québec City, with a secondary office at Université du Québec à Montréal. Its core function is to mobilize Canadian academic expertise for the defence and security policy community, producing rapid-turnaround analyses, strategic reports, and policy forums on geostrategic topics including great power competition, multilateral defence cooperation, capacity building, and climate-linked security. The network operates as a bridge between academic researchers and government decision-makers, with the Department of National Defence as its primary funding partner through the MINDS (Mobilization of New Ideas in Defence and Security) program.

The network's product set is content-led rather than technology-led. It includes structured research publications (Analyses, Strategic Reports, Policy Forums), two podcasts (the English-language Battle Rhythm and the French-language Le Nord Stratégique), video presentations, expert panels, and an interactive Military Deployment Index infographic. NSA distributes all outputs free of charge through its bilingual website (ras-nsa.ca), podcast platforms, and academic and mainstream media. The organization has no proprietary technology platform; its value is the curated expert network across Canadian universities (Laval, UQAM, Queen's, Ottawa, UBC, Waterloo, Sherbrooke, Trent) and its privileged access to Canadian defence policy stakeholders.

Operationally, NSA is a 25-person network led by Professors Jonathan Paquin (Laval) and Justin Massie (UQAM), supported by a coordinator, publications coordinator, and communications coordinator. Its business model is grant-funded non-profit: revenue derives from government research funding (DND/MINDS) and academic institutional support, with no commercial pricing or paywall. The strategic risk is dependence on a single primary funder and the cyclical nature of Canadian defence research grants.

Name

RAS/NSA - Le Réseau d’analyse stratégique / The Network for Strategic Analysis

Legal name

Network for Strategic Analysis (NSA)

Website

https://ras-nsa.ca

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RAS/NSA is a Canadian non-profit research network, founded in 2020, that mobilizes academic expertise to produce publications, podcasts, and policy analysis on defence and security for the Canadian government, primarily funded by DND through the MINDS program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Defence Policy Research and Strategic Analysis

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172), International Affairs (928120)

SIC

International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Intelligence (Strategic, Tactical & Technical) (BPAIAHAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE)

Keywords

• Defence policy research
• Strategic analysis network
• Geopolitical publications
• Security think tank
• Academic policy briefs

Headquarters

HQ city

Québec

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government research funding: NSA operates as a funded research network, receiving support from the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) through programs such as the MINDS (Mobilization of New Ideas in Defence and Security) initiative, which provides grant-based funding to defence and security research networks in Canada. The organization also benefits from academic institutional support through its host universities (Université Laval and Université du Québec à Montréal).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Network for Strategic Analysis (NSA/RAS) is a non-profit, university-based research network that mobilizes Canadian and international academic expertise to produce in-depth, real-time analyses of geostrategic events. It delivers structured research outputs—Analyses, Strategic Reports, and Policy Forums—alongside multilingual podcasts (Battle Rhythm in English, Le Nord Stratégique in French), expert panel events, and an interactive Military Deployment Index. Its work focuses on great power competition, multilateral defence cooperation, capacity building, and climate-linked security transformations for Canadian defence policymakers.

Product overview

The Network for Strategic Analysis (NSA/RAS) operates as a unified knowledge mobilization platform offering research publications (Analyses, Strategic Reports, Policy Forums), podcasts (Battle Rhythm and Le Nord Stratégique), the Military Deployment Index infographic tool, and access to an expert network. The organization focuses on geostrategic analysis, particularly great power competition, multilateral defence cooperation, capacity building, and climate-related security transformations. Rather than a modular software platform, it functions as a thought-leadership and knowledge-dissemination organization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Battle Rhythm Podcast: Podcast covering defense and strategic analysis topics
• Le Nord Stratégique
• Military Deployment Index

Quantifiable outcome

• 91 published analyses, strategic reports, and policy forum contributions produced and publicly accessible on the website
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSA's Montréal office is located within the Université du Québec à Montréal campus. UQAM is one of the institutional hosts for the network, providing office infrastructure and academic institutional affiliation.
• Université LavalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSA's primary headquarters and Director (Jonathan Paquin) are based at Université Laval in Québec City. Laval is the principal institutional host, providing office space (Pavillon Charles-De Koninck) and hosting the core coordination team including the Coordinator and Communications coordinator.
• Queen's UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSA publications coordinator Émile Lambert-Deslandes is a doctoral candidate at Queen's University. The university is one of several academic institutions represented in NSA's expert network, contributing researchers to the network's outputs.
• North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAADSN is a related Canadian research network focused on North American and Arctic defence. NSA expert Magali Vullierme is a post-doctoral researcher with NAADSN at Trent University. The two networks share expertise and co-produce research on Arctic security issues.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• RAND Corporation: Global policy research organization with substantial defence and security work for government clients. Comparable as a federally funded, policy-relevant research network producing strategic analyses that influence government decision-making.
• International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS): Global leader in strategic and defence analysis with a long-running think-tank, journal, and convening operation. Comparable in research-product mix (analyses, podcasts, expert networks) but at vastly greater scale and global scope.
• Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI): Larger Canadian think tank focused on global governance and international affairs. Comparable as a policy-research organization receiving Canadian institutional funding and producing strategic analysis for government audiences.
• Canadian International Council (CIC): Canadian foreign-policy research network producing international affairs analysis. Comparable as a knowledge-mobilization organization linking academia to policy, with similar SSHRC-adjacent positioning.
• Macdonald-Laurier Institute (MLI): Larger, well-funded Canadian public-policy think tank with a foreign policy and defence stream. Comparable in policy-research output and Ottawa-facing orientation but with a broader agenda across multiple policy verticals.

Direct peers

• Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI): Canadian defence and security policy think tank producing analysis, events, and commentary for the same federal policy community and DND stakeholder set that NSA serves. Highly comparable as a Canadian-knowledge-mobilization competitor for the same MINDS-style funding pool.
• North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN): SSHRC-funded Canadian research network on North American and Arctic defence. Directly comparable as a federally funded defence research network with overlapping talent (NAADSN post-doc Magali Vullierme is also an NSA expert) and co-produced Arctic security outputs.
• Conference of Defence Associations Institute (CDAI): Long-standing Canadian defence and security research organization focused on defence policy analysis, publications, and convening. Overlaps directly with NSA on DND-facing analysis, francophone engagement, and emerging-scholar programming.

Peers

• Centre for International and Security Studies at York (CISY): York University research centre producing policy-relevant work on security, defence, and international affairs. Comparable as an academic-to-policy bridge with defence and security expertise similar to NSA's network.

Regional players

• Institut de recherche stratégique de l'École militaire (IRSEM): France's Ministry of Defence strategic research institute producing policy-relevant strategic analysis. Comparable as a defence-ministry-facing strategic research organization, particularly given NSA's French-language mandate and French-affiliated experts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tweet
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCFT5pryi_T-HJQkulqntnag
• Facebookfacebook.com/sharer.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ras-nsa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about RAS/NSA - Le Réseau d’analyse stratégique / The Network for Strategic Analysis