The Canada Research Chairs Program enables Canadian universities, together with their affiliated research institutes and hospitals, to foster research excellence and enhance their role as world-class centres of research excellence.

Since its inception in 2000-2001, the program has offered research and salary support for outstanding researchers at the peak of their careers, as well as for those whose careers are ready to take off. It is expected that there will be 2000 Chairs by 2005. Excellence in research is of paramount importance in the selection of Chair holders. Chairs are selected in priority areas as identified in the university strategic research plan.

As part of a Chair nomination, universities, together with their affiliated research institutes and hospitals, have the opportunity to include a request for infrastructure support from the CFI. The CFI criteria and partner contributions requirements apply for the infrastructure portion of the nomination.

The program is administered by the Canada Research Chairs secretariat at the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council on behalf of the three federal granting agencies and the CFI.

How much funding is available for the infrastructure portion of the Chair?

Each eligible institution has a maximum allocation to be used for infrastructure needs associated with the Chairs. Please refer to the Canada Research Chairs website at www.chairs.gc.ca for institutional allocations. By the end of 2005, the CFI will have provided up to $250 million in research infrastructure needed by the Chair holders to carry out world-class research.

With the exception of smaller universities, the CFI will contribute a maximum of 40% of the total cost and the institution is responsible for securing the remaining funding. Within their maximum allocation, smaller universities (those that receive less than 1% of total granting agencies funding) may choose one of two options for each infrastructure project associated with a nomination:

• For projects with a total eligible cost not exceeding $75,000, CFI may provide 100% of the costs.
• For projects with a total eligible cost exceeding $75,000, CFI may provide funding for up to 40% of the eligible cost of the project.

The CFI has also agreed to allow institutions to draw directly from their New Opportunities Fund allocation to finance an infrastructure project submitted under the Canada Research Chairs Program, provided that the candidate also meets the eligibility requirements of the New Opportunities Fund. To take advantage of this increased flexibility, an institution must have the necessary resources in its New Opportunities Fund allocation and be able to draw from it. Current restrictions will remain in effect: an institution whose 2002 additional allocation is greater than $1 million must retain 50% of this amount for the period from 2006 to 2010.

The existing assessment process for infrastructure projects under the Canada Research Chairs Program will be followed. As well, although a project under the Canada Research Chairs Infrastructure Fund is financed by an institution’s NOF allocation, an institution may not use its Infrastructure Operating Fund allocation to pay the operating costs of a Canada Research Chairs infrastructure project.

We ask institutions to officially notify the CFI of their intention to take advantage of this opportunity when they submit a project and to specify the date when the candidate will take up his or her Chair and first full-time academic appointment in a Canadian university.

For general eligibility regarding partners, contributions, and costs, see Section 2.

Who is eligible to apply?

Canadian universities together with their affiliated research institutes and hospitals are eligible to seek infrastructure support as part of their application for a Chair.

What projects are eligible?

In addition to meeting general CFI eligibility requirements (see Section 2), eligible infrastructure items for Canada Research Chairs must be:

• essential to the infrastructure project described in the application;
• specifically for the Chair(s) included in the application;
• purchased or received as an in-kind contribution no more than six months before the date of appointment of the Chair(s).

In exceptional circumstances, the CFI may accept eligible infrastructure purchased or donated outside the eligible six-month period provided the institution demonstrates that such infrastructure is clearly attributable to the recruitment and research of the particular Chair(s). The CFI will make such decisions based on the merits of each case.

What is the application process?

Eligible institutions can apply three times a year to the Canada Research Chairs secretariat. They must submit two documents:

• A strategic research plan including a summary of their strategic research plan
• A nomination proposal for the individual researcher which includes the CFI infrastructure component

Institutions may also choose to submit a single request for infrastructure support to be shared by a cluster of Canada Research Chairs. A cluster may include two or more nominees submitted in the same cycle who will be sharing the infrastructure or, alternatively, a nominee or nominees and Chair holder(s) for whom no infrastructure support had been requested at the time of original submission.

For more information please refer to the Canada Research Chairs website at www.chairs.gc.ca.

What are the assessment criteria?

The CFI infrastructure component of the Chair is assessed based on the excellence of the candidate, the integration with the strategic plan, and, the following criteria:

• Appropriateness of the infrastructure
• Research collaborations
• Potential benefits of research to Canada

A proposal must satisfy all three criteria to a degree appropriate to the size and complexity of the infrastructure project in order to be funded.

How will the CFI assess proposals?

The Canada Research Chairs Secretariat uses a number of internationally and nationally leading experts from all disciplines to participate as members of a “College” of reviewers. Please visit www.chairs.gc.ca for more information on the review process.

Who will make the decisions and when?

The Canada Research Chairs Program is governed by a Steering Committee made up of the presidents of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and the Canada Foundation for Innovation, as well as the Deputy Minister of Industry Canada. The Steering Committee makes the final decisions on the Chair nominations.

The CFI Board makes final decisions on the infrastructure request for the successful Chairs nominations.

The review process takes approximately four months.

When and how will institutions find out competition results?

Institutions will be informed of competition results shortly after the decisions of the CFI Board of Directors. Institutions will also be informed of any conditions related to a project and of comments pertaining to unsuccessful projects. Lists of successful applications will be published on the CFI website.

The Canada Research Chairs Secretariat provides reviewer comments directly to institutions. It is the responsibility of the recipient institution to submit to the CFI the documents necessary to finalize the award amount and the payment schedule for each approved project (see Section 7.2).

Are any public announcements planned?

The CFI makes a national public announcement of the Board decisions jointly with the Canada Research Chairs program. These announcements take place three times a year following the Chairs decision dates. Events are organized in various locations across Canada at an institution that has been awarded funds. Institutions are not to make these decisions public until the announcement is made. The CFI joins the Canada Research chairs program in supporting local/regional announcements related to awards to institutions, following the national event.