Research stories

Our investments support research that benefits Canadians

In CFI-funded labs and facilities across the country, researchers in all stages of their careers are making discoveries, supporting a robust innovation ecosystem and helping solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges. 

A launchpad to success for SmartChutes

How the Research Facilities Navigator helped one company find the liftoff they needed toward commercialization
Read the success story
Two students wearing disposable gloves each hold a small metal object as they stand in front of a large TRUMPF TruPrint 2000 machine.
article
Ontario

Giving industry an additive manufacturing edge

Putting 3D printing power to work for civilian, military and dual-use applications
All articles
podcast
Nova Scotia

Jan Rainey is untangling the mysteries of spider silks

The Dalhousie University researcher is looking to create synthetic versions of spider's silk that have the potential to help heal damaged nerves and damaged hearts
All podcasts
video

Transforming research instincts into a successful business (March webinar)

Part of our Future You webinar series. This webinar features a new generation of researchers who share their challenges and successes as they made the move from researcher to entrepreneur. Watch the video to gain insights and receive valuable tips on how to start your own business.
All videos

All stories

A young boy peers through the bars of a playground structure
article
Ontario

Finding new markets for monkey bars

Lambton College labs help develop the next generation of playground equipment to give a southwestern Ontario company a boost into the adult fitness market
A rainbow of light emanates from two human forms side by side
article
Alberta

Making regenerative therapies reality

The University of Alberta’s Cell Therapy Manufacturing facility will take new therapies for diabetes and cancer from the hypothetical to the viable
A red and white text over a grey background.
article
Ontario,Quebec,Alberta,Saskatchewan,New Brunswick,British Columbia,Newfoundland and Labrador,Nova Scotia,Prince Edward Island

Innovation: A desire to make things better

A collection of stories to illustrate the breadth of ways in which innovation changes our world
A woman in a military uniform faces the camera, angling a machine gun at the ground.
article
Nova Scotia,Ontario

PART XVI: It guides how we make decisions

Helping female soldiers return to civilian life. Mount Saint Vincent University.
Looking through the ropes into a boxing ring, with boxers blurred in the background.
article
Ontario

PART XV: Or in the ring

Studying the mental journey of elite athletes to keep them focused and motivated to win. Laurentian University.
An artist’s representation of “entanglement,” one of the properties of quantum mechanics. The image shows two circles, one larger than the other. Each orb has two smaller circles moving around it in different directions.
article
Ontario,Prince Edward Island

PART XIV: Competitive in the world

Pushing Canada to the leading edge of the quantum frontier. University of Waterloo.
A close up of two hands joined against a blurred out, grey-brown background. The hands are wrinkled and aging.
article
Ontario,Alberta,Nova Scotia

PART XIII: It keeps us healthy

Following 50,000 people for 20 years to find out how to make our golden years healthier. McMaster University.
A starburst of pink, yellow and gray dots, partially connected by curving lines, is meant to represent the relationships between gay liberation activists in Canada.
article
British Columbia,Alberta

PART XII: To what makes us human

Finding patterns in the history of how we understand gender and sexuality. University of British Columbia Okanagan.
A close up shot of a woman’s hands on her pregnant stomach.
article
British Columbia,Quebec,Newfoundland and Labrador

PART XI: To what is closest to our hearts

Safeguarding the health of pregnant women and their unborn babies by zeroing in on prescription drug exposure. Université de Montréal.
A compilation of the Milky Way as seen from space, a tall, circular building containing the telescope and a powerful space camera, which looks like a large blue box.
article
British Columbia

PART X: From the outer reaches of our universe

Peering into the distant cosmos to answer questions about the origins of galaxies, stars and planets. University of British Columbia.
Three diagrams of human heads, generated from data, show areas of the brain lit up with different colours. A series of lines criss-cross above each head – connecting one area to another.
article
Ontario

PART IX: To inside our head

Using mindful medicine to communicate with patients in a vegetative state. Western University.
A large steel sphere in a darkened room.
article
Ontario

PART VIII: From inside the earth

Answering fundamental questions about our universe from two kilometres under the Earth. Queen’s University, Carleton University, Laurentian University, Université de Montréal and University of Alberta.