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.
article
Ontario
Is bad air quality making you sick?
The air you breathe contains thousands of natural and synthetic chemicals. Joseph Okeme is identifying which ones cause chronic diseases.
podcast
New Brunswick
Meet Acadian researcher Céline Surette, for whom interdisciplinarity is second nature
Céline Surette embodies both the chemistry of living things and interdisciplinarity to serve the real needs and questions of communities. And to achieve this, and ensure that critical thinking triumphs, she'll pull out all the stops.
video
The Canada Foundation for Innovation has supported cutting-edge research in Canada for 25 years. In these videos, researchers reflect on how CFI funding has advanced their work and how future generations will benefit. They tell passionate stories of curiosity, commitment and innovation.
All stories
podcast
New Brunswick
Meet Acadian researcher Céline Surette, for whom interdisciplinarity is second nature
Céline Surette embodies both the chemistry of living things and interdisciplinarity to serve the real needs and questions of communities. And to achieve this, and ensure that critical thinking triumphs, she'll pull out all the stops.
podcast
Ontario
Should bodies of water have the same legal status as people?
Researcher Kelsey Leonard, member of the Shinnecock Nation and founder of the Wampum Lab at the University of Waterloo, delves into ocean, water and climate justice.
podcast
Quebec
Science (sea) star
Ocean science research is at a pivotal moment according to Guillaume St-Onge, Director of the Institut des sciences de la mer de Rimouski at Université du Québec à Rimouski
podcast
Ontario
Reinforcing the reliability of our vulnerable electricity grid
York University’s Pirathayini Srikantha studies power grid systems with the aim of keeping Canada’s infrastructure safe from fluctuations and hackers. Find out why she’s passionate about power.
podcast
Quebec
Getting fired up about the Arctic
Alexandre Langlois is passionate about all aspects of his job. As a researcher in Northern Canada, he studies the fastest-warming place on the planet and the problems that arise as the climate changes.
podcast
Alberta
Using the power of nutrition to treat those living with cancer
Carla Prado left her native Brazil and flew to Alberta in pursuit of a dream. Now, she is a globally recognized researcher who advocates for incorporating nutrition into the treatment of cancer.
podcast
Quebec
How using sound to treat disease is music to one researcher’s ears
Simone Dalla Bella of Montréal’s International Laboratory for Brain, Music, and Sound Research asks “How can music help us in our daily tasks? And how can it slow down the deleterious effects of diseases such as Parkinson’s?”
podcast
Ontario
Rapid diagnostics: Nano discoveries and mega results
McMaster researcher Leyla Soleymani looks to the tiny world of nanotech to make some very big discoveries
podcast
Ontario,British Columbia
Social justice for a more empathetic world
Four inspiring researchers talk about how knowledge and understanding can create a more just tomorrow, from climate activism to social justice learning to queer rights to public health and wellbeing
podcast
British Columbia
Vaccination consteRNAtion
Anna Blakney wants to share with the world the power and potential of messenger RNA vaccines. She uses TikTok to post facts and fight fears
podcast
This country’s extraordinary real-life research facilities provide a wondrous backdrop for Sawyer’s imagined futures, proving you don’t have to stray far from home to be inspired by leading-edge science
podcast
Alberta
Tiny fly, deadly bite
Leishmaniasis is a devastating disease that kills tens-of-thousands of people every year. By studying the sandflies that transmit it, the University of Calgary’s Chukwunonso Nzelu is helping to zero in on a vaccine