Article

CFI awards close to $14 million in research infrastructure to support Canada Research Chairs

Funding partnership helps universities attract and retain top talent

OTTAWA, ON — At a time of intense international competition, it is critical that Canadian universities have the research equipment and laboratories they need to be attractive career destinations for the very best of today’s and tomorrow’s researchers. The John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF) is a valuable strategic investment tool designed to help institutions do just this. The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), in collaboration with the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Program, developed the JELF-CRC partnership to create competitive packages for the funding of infrastructure and research support at institutions.

Today, the CFI has provided close to $14 million to 57 Canada Research Chairs at 27 universities for the cutting-edge equipment they need to carry out their important work. The funded projects include a community-based research program to reduce rates of breast cancer in rural communities, in particular; improving cybersecurity to protect critical infrastructures such as power grids and water supply; increasing the resilience of Canadian forests to climate change, and to improve predictions of future forest conditions globally; and reducing the environmental footprint of electronic devices.

The CRC Program is investing approximately $195 million towards 259 new and renewed Chairs at 47 institutions across Canada.

Quotes

“Our government is taking action to attract and retain the world’s brightest and most distinguished researchers. For over 20 years, the Canada Research Chairs Program has been mobilizing Canada’s most esteemed academics to train and mentor the next generation of researchers and pursue groundbreaking research that responds to society’s economic, social and health needs. Congratulations to the new and renewed Canada Research Chairs! I look forward to seeing where your research and innovation leads us.”

– The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry

“The Canada Foundation for Innovation was created to attract and retain excellent researchers in Canada. Supporting these Chairs coincides precisely with one of our foundational goals. We are very pleased to contribute to enhancing the research environment and to enable new talent to join the vital research underway in universities across the country.”

Roseann O’Reilly Runte, President and CEO, Canada Foundation for Innovation

“The Canada Research Chairs Program is committed to excellence in research and research training.  Such excellence can only be achieved in an environment that fully respects and promotes the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion, and by advancing knowledge across a variety of research disciplines—from developing new technologies to help clean and protect our oceans, to creating better and more inclusive education systems for our youth, and to applying machine learning to the field of biomedicine.  In this way, the program provides an outstanding platform for creating the conditions necessary for Canada to respond to global challenges, now and in future.”

Ted Hewitt, Chair, Canada Research Chair Program Steering Committee and President, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council

Quick facts 

  • The total investment of $13,815,890 includes $3,188,282 awarded under the CFI’s Infrastructure Operating Fund which assists institutions with the incremental operating and maintenance costs associated with the new infrastructure. 
  • The JELF enables a select number of an institution’s excellent researchers to undertake leading-edge research by providing them with the foundational research infrastructure required to be or become leaders in their field.  
  • In turn, this enables institutions to remain internationally competitive in areas of research and technology development, aligned with their strategic priorities. 

Quick links

John R. Evans Leaders Fund
The Canada Research Chairs Program
The CFI Research Facilities Navigator: An online database of labs and facilities that are open to working with business

About the Canada Foundation for Innovation

For more than 20 years, the CFI has been giving researchers the tools they need to think big and innovate. Fostering a robust innovation system in Canada translates into jobs and new enterprises, better health, cleaner environments and, ultimately, vibrant communities. By investing in state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in Canada’s universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions, the CFI also helps to attract and retain the world’s top talent, to train the next generation of researchers and to support world-class research that strengthens the economy and improves the quality of life for all Canadians.

Contacts

Malorie Bertrand
Media Relations and Social Media Specialist
Canada Foundation for Innovation
C: 613-227-0198
malorie.bertrand [at] innovation.ca
John Power
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry
O: 343-550-1456
john.power [at] canada.ca
Media Relations
Innovation, Science, and Economic
Development Canada
O: 343-291-1777
ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic [at] canada.ca
 

CUMULATIVE TOTALS

John R. Evans Leaders Fund / Fonds des leaders John-R.-Evans

 

Institution / Établissement

Projects approved / Projets appuyés

Brandon University

1

Dalhousie University

4

École Polytechnique de Montréal

3

Emily Carr University of Art + Design

1

McGill University

1

McMaster University

1

Mount Royal University

1

Mount Saint Vincent University

1

Nipissing University

2

Ontario College of Art and Design University (OCAD University)

1

Ryerson University

4

Simon Fraser University

2

Trent University

2

Université de Montréal

2

Université de Sherbrooke

3

Université du Québec - École de technologie supérieure

1

Université du Québec - Institut national de la recherche scientifique

1

Université Laval

7

University of British Columbia (The)

3

University of Guelph

2

University of Ottawa / Université d’Ottawa

2

University of Prince Edward Island

1

University of Regina

1

University of Saskatchewan

2

University of Toronto

2

University of Victoria

3

York University

3

Total  27  institutions / établissements

57

 

John R. Evans Leaders Fund / Fonds des leaders John-R.-Evans
Funding for infrastructure associated with a Canada Research Chair /
Financement de l’infrastructure liée à une Chaire de recherche du Canada

 

List of approved projects by institution / Liste des projets appuyés par établissement


Chairholder/
Chaire de recherche

Project title / Titre du projet

Maximum CFI contribution /
Contribution maximale
de la FCI

Brandon University

Majumder, Mousumi

Genotoxicology Research in Breast Cancer

$457,197

Total

1

$457,197

Dalhousie University

Koleilat, Ghada

Advanced Materials for Energy Applications

$100,000

Musgrave, Ruth

Observing Oceanic Turbulence using an Autonomous Glider

$125,000

Nasiri, Ali

Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing of Large-Scale Parts from Stainless Steels and Corrosion Resistant Alloys

$100,000

Thompson, Alison

Pyrrole Chemistry for Chemical Biology and Energy

$700,000

Total

4

$1,025,000

École Polytechnique de Montréal

Brochu, Myriam

Fatigue for Improved Durability of Advanced Materials

175 000 $

Claveau-Mallet, Dominique

Decentralized Water Treatment Laboratory

159 381 $

Santato, Clara

Sustainable Organic Electronics: Materials, Processes and Devices

175 000 $

Total

3

509 381 $

Emily Carr University of Art + Design

Hill, Richard

Modernism in the First Person: Researching Lived Experiences of Modernist Art, Architecture and Design

$74,968

Total

1

$74,968

McGill University 

Seifitokaldani, Ali

Electrocatalysis for Renewable Energy Production and Conversion

206 500 $

Total

1

206 500 $

McMaster University 

Xiao, Naiqi

Laboratory for the Study of Early Perceptual and Social Development in Infancy

$210,000

Total

1

$210,000

Mount Royal University

Asmussen, Michael

The Unstable Ankle: Uncovering the Mechanisms of Foot-ankle Stability

$319,693

Total

1

$319,693

Mount Saint Vincent University

Khoury, Jennifer

An Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Approach to Reducing the Burden of Early Life Stress

$87,611

Total

1

$87,611

Nipissing University

Bruner, Mark

Expansion of the Groups for Youth Development (G4YD) Laboratory

$74,403

Greer, Kirsten

On the CUSP-Mobile: Reparations in Motion

$67,976

Total

2

$142,379

Ontario College of Art and Design University (OCAD University)

Fatona, Andrea

Centre for the Study of Black Canadian Diaspora

$74,987

Total

1

$74,987

Ryerson University

Gruzd, Anatoliy

Examining the Adoption and Use of Emerging Privacy Preserving Technologies: From Blockchain to Differential Privacy

$154,000

Lee, Damien

Biskaabiiyang and Indigenous Political Resurgence

$84,714

Tavallaei, M.Ali

System and Devices for Cardiovascular Interventions

$86,143

Fakhari Moghaddam Arani, Mohammadreza

Cyber-physical Security of Smart Grids

$75,222

Total

4

$400,079

Simon Fraser University

Carpendale, Sheelagh

Data Visualization

$150,000

Doleck, Tenzin

Supporting and Promoting Postgraduate Students’ Data Science Literacy using DaTu

$100,000

Total

2

$250,000

Trent University

Anne, Pasek

The Trent Low Carbon Research Lab

$47,481

Nichols, Naomi

Research for Social Change Lab

$203,874

Total

2

$251,355

Université de Montréal

Rungta, Ravi

The Synaptic and Cellular Basis of Cerebral Hemodynamics

317 399 $

Vitali Rosati, Marcello

Laboratoire sur les écritures numériques

91 251 $

Total

2

408 650 $

Université de Sherbrooke

Claveau, François

Infrastructure numérique pour l’analyse des discours experts (Inade)

49 634 $

Derome, Dominique

Water Sorption Dynamics in Buildings and in the Built Environment

109 200 $

Corbeil Therrien, Audrey

Intelligence temps réel embarquée pour détecteurs à débit ultrarapide

80 107 $

Total

3

238 941 $

Université du Québec - École de technologie supérieure

Blanchard, Francois

Spatiotemporal Encryption of Terahertz Light Assisted by Computational Methods

200 000 $

Total

1

200 000 $

Université du Québec - Institut national de la recherche scientifique

Ghuman, Kulbir

Computational Energy Materials Design Infrastructure

164 455 $

Total

1

164 455 $

Université Laval

Duchaine, Caroline

Infrastructure de recherche sur les bioaérosols extérieurs

174 977 $

Hartmann, Henrik

Tree Resilience to Climate Change

170 172 $

Masson, Jean-Yves

Infrastructure for a Tier I CRC in DNA Repair and Cancer Therapeutics

175 000 $

Méthot, Pierre-Olivier

Humanités médicales et histoire de la pensée biologique

36 453 $

Petitclerc, Amelie

The Raising Our Children Platform for the Collection, Processing & Sharing of Observational, Assessment & Genetic Data

254 619 $

Innocent , Kamwa

Decentralized Sustainable Electricity Grids for Smart Communities

211 419 $

Taghavi, Seyed Mohammad

A Particle Image Velocimetry System for Complex Flows

165 000 $

Total

7

1 187 640 $

University of British Columbia (The)

Cragg, Jacquelyn

Data Science for Neurological Disorders Laboratory

$125,000

Sin, Don

Enabling Precision Health in COPD

$185,934

Yachie, Nozomu

DNA Event Recording Technologies to Decipher High-resolution Dynamics of Molecules and Cells in Mammalian Development

$400,000

Total

3

$710,934

 

University of Guelph

Murphy, Heather

CRC in One Health

$124,894

Dehghantanha, Ali

Critical Infrastructure Protection: Forensics, Assurance, Analytics

$76,953

Total

2

$201,847

University of Ottawa / Université d’Ottawa

Beug, Shawn

Apoptosis in Cancer and Immunity

$234,501

Toth, Katalin

3D AOD RAMP Multiphotonic Microscope System for Ultrafast Detection of Neuronal Signals

$520,000

Total

2

$754,501

University of Prince Edward Island

Ritter, Caroline

Laboratory for Veterinary Social Epidemiology

$74,061

Total

1

$74,061

University of Regina

El-Halfawy, Omar

Infrastructure to Support Canada Research Chair in Chemogenomics and Antimicrobial Research

$200,000

Total

1

$200,000

University of Saskatchewan

Liang, Xiaodong

Development of Multidimensional Operational Framework for Isolated Microgrids in Remote Communities

$113,611

Mandryk, Regan

Gaming, Analytics, Modeling, eSports, and Social Play (GAMES) Laboratory

$155,000

Total

2

$268,611

University of Toronto

Campbell, Kieran

Machine Learning in Translational Biomedicine

$600,000

Jackson, Hartland

Imaging Mass Cytometry

$800,000

Total

2

$1,400,000

University of Victoria

Dubrawski, Kristian

Community Water Innovation Lab Infrastructure

$150,000

Saidaminov, Makhsud

Advanced Functional Materials Laboratory

$210,000

Templeman, Nicole

Investigating Signaling Pathways and Molecular Mechanisms that Coordinate Metabolism, Reproduction, and Longevity

$175,000

Total

3

$535,000

York University

Van Nort, Douglas

Distributed Performance and Sensorial Immersion Lab V2.0

$59,065

Wakefield, Graham

Infrastructure for Embodied Multimodal Awareness in Human-machine Creativity

$114,753

Srikantha, Pirathayini

Cyber-security Testbed for the Distribution Network

$100,000

Total

3

$273,818

TOTAL

57 projects / projets

$10,627,608

NOTE:
As part of this announcement, an additional $3,188,282 was awarded under the Infrastructure Operating Fund, a mechanism that assists institutions with the incremental operating and maintenance costs associated with the new infrastructure.

 NOTER :
Dans le cadre de cette annonce, la FCI a attribué 3 188 282 $ additionnels à même le Fonds d’exploitation des infrastructures, un programme qui aide les établissements bénéficiaires à faire face aux coûts d’exploitation et de maintenance découlant de leurs nouvelles infrastructures.