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CFI announces #IAmInnovation Twitter contest winners

OTTAWA, ONTARIO — Canada is full of young, curious researchers who are working hard to help solve some of our most pressing issues. Today, the Canada…

OTTAWA, ONTARIO — Canada is full of young, curious researchers who are working hard to help solve some of our most pressing issues. Today, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) announced that three of these talented young researchers have won its #IAmInnovation Twitter contest, which aimed to showcase how their work in CFI-funded labs is helping them and
their research.

The three winners are:

  • PhD candidate Nicole Lerminiaux of the Department of Biology at the University of Regina, who is discovering how our natural environment influences antibiotic resistance in bacteria,
  • PhD student Alex Szojka of the Department of Surgery at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, who is developing lab-grown knee meniscus replacements for people with non-healing injuries to prevent development of osteoarthritis; and,
  • PhD student Anna Cooper Reed of the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto, who is exploring health care services for Canada’s aging population.

For the contest, the CFI invited student and post-doc researchers nationwide to tweet an image or video demonstrating their work in state-of-the-art facilities and with cutting-edge equipment funded by the CFI.

“This contest gives young researchers an opportunity to show Canadians how important the right tools and spaces are for their research,” says Roseann O’Reilly Runte, President and CEO of the CFI. “From tracking infectious diseases and improving ocean conservation to understanding brain injury in victims of domestic violence, this next generation of leaders in science is committed to making a difference.”

The contest ran from December 2 to January 31 and drew submissions from across the country. Winners will travel to Ottawa to attend a science communications workshop and be the CFI’s guests at a special event in Ottawa, where they will have an opportunity to discuss their research with MPs, Senators and senior government officials.

The CFI wishes to acknowledge and thank postsecondary institutions for their help in promoting the contest to their students.