Article

Canada Research Chairs receive more than $7.3 million in research infrastructure support to pursue cutting-edge research

OTTAWA, ONTARIO – Thirty-two Canada Research Chairs are receiving more than $7.3 million in support for state-of-the-art research tools from the…

OTTAWA, ONTARIO – Thirty-two Canada Research Chairs are receiving more than $7.3 million in support for state-of-the-art research tools from the Government of Canada through the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) John R. Evans Leaders Fund. The CFI partners with the Chairs Program to help universities attract and retain top researchers in Canada by equipping them with the tools they need to stay on the cutting edge.

The funding supports Chairs at 20 institutions from across the spectrum of disciplines. For example, the University of the Fraser Valley’s Cynthia Jardine will use CFI funding to advance her research related to improving immunization rates among immigrant populations and promoting health and wellness among Indigenous youth. Another recipient, Ahmad Haidar of McGill University, will use CFI-funded infrastructure to develop an artificial pancreas system to help Type 1 diabetes patients manage their blood sugar levels.

Read: Canada Research Chairs recipient list (May 2017)

“Attracting the best minds to our universities is critical for ensuring Canada continues to be a research leader on the global stage,” says Gilles Patry, President and CEO of the CFI. “The CFI’s partnership with the Chairs Program ensures these world-class researchers have both the state-of-the-art equipment and research support they need to think big and strive for excellence in their fields.”

Quick facts:

Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2017, the CFI is contributing $5,641,621 for tools and equipment through the John R. Evans Fund for 32 projects at 20 institutions across Canada.
This fund, named to pay tribute to the outstanding contributions of John R. Evans, the first Chair of the CFI’s Board of Directors, enables a select number of researchers to undertake leading-edge research by providing them with the foundational 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.
As part of this announcement, an additional $1,692,486 is being awarded under the Infrastructure Operating Fund, which helps institutions with the operating and maintenance costs associated with the new infrastructure.
The CFI partners with the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Secretariat through the JELF to create competitive packages for the funding of infrastructure and research support and to help reduce the burden on both applicants and reviewers.

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Associated links:

John R. Evans Leaders Fund
The CFI Research Facilities Navigator – An online directory of CFI-funded labs that are available to collaborate with the private sector.

Cumulative Totals (PDF)

John R. Evans Leaders Fund

Funding for infrastructure associated with a Canada Research Chair

Institution	Projects approved
Brandon	1
Carleton University	1
Dalhousie University	3
École Polytechnique de Montréal	1
Lakehead University	2
McGill University	3
Memorial University of Newfoundland	1
Simon Fraser University	4
St. Francis Xavier University	1
Université de Moncton	1
Université de Montréal	2
Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières	1
Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue	2
University of British Columbia (The)	2
University of Lethbridge	1
University of New Brunswick	1
University of Ontario Institute of Technology	1
University of Ottawa / Université d’Ottawa	1
University of the Fraser Valley	1
University of Waterloo	2
Total 20 institutions	32

John R. Evans Leaders Fund

Funding for infrastructure associated with a Canada Research Chair

List of approved projects by institution

Chairholder	Project title	Maximum CFI contribution
Brandon University
Plosker, Sarah	Quantum Information Theory	$66,295
Total	1	$66,295
Carleton University
Boulay, Mark Guy	Facility for Noble Liquid Detector Research	$200,000
Total	1	$200,000
Dalhousie University
Hashmi, Javeria	Predictive Role of Brain Networks in Pain Modulation	$125,000
Paulovich, Fernando	Visualization and Visual Analytics Facility	$50,000
Stewart, Sherry	Infrastructure for the Mood, Anxiety, and Addictive Disorders [MAAD] Laboratory	$125,000
Total	3	$300,000
École Polytechnique de Montréal
Boffito, Daria Camilla	Infrastructure for Intensified Mechano-Chemical Processes for Sustainable Biomass Conversion	131 784 $
Total	1	131 784 $
Lakehead University
Chen, Aicheng	Electrochemistry and Nanomaterials Research Laboratory	$230,000
Haiven, Max	The Common Currencies Research Lab	$42,705
Total	2	$272,705
McGill University
Haidar, Ahmad	Developing and Testing Artificial Pancreas Systems	$100,000
Orthwein, Alexandre	From Genetic Diversity to Genomic Instability: Insight into B-Cell Biology and Malignancies	$132,400
Watson, Ian	Functionalizing the Melanoma Genome	$117,200
Total	3	$349,600
Memorial University of Newfoundland
Khan, Faisal	Dynamic Risk Management Experimental Facility	$100,000
Total	1	$100,000
Simon Fraser University
Holdcroft, Steven	Synthesis and Characterization of New Ion-Conducting Materials and Membranes	$348,560
Kjeang, Erik	Fuel Cell Characterization and Fabrication	$400,000
Menon, Carlo	Transformative Approaches and Novel Biomedical Technology to Assist Motor Function	$397,000
Richards, Michael	Next-Generation Isotope Fingerprinting	$400,000
Total	4	$1,545,560
St. Francis Xavier University
Levman, Jacob	Novel Pattern Recognition Technologies in Medical Imaging Applications	$114,121
Total	1	$114,121
Univesité de Moncton
Hamel, Deny	High-Efficiency Detector System for Optical Quantum Information	171 218 $
Total	1	171 218 $
Université de Montréal
Seidah, Nabil	The Proprotein Convertases and their Relationship to Health and Disease	101 039 $
Veillette, André	Signaling in the Immune System	300 036 $
Total	2	401 075 $
Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
Kinnard, Christophe	Multiscale Study of Cryosphere Hydrological Processes Using a Mobile Environmental Observation Platform	150 000 $
Total	1	150 000 $
Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue
Bergeron, Yves	Chaire de recherche du Canada en écologie et aménagement forestier durable	176 644 $
Neculita, Carmen Mihaela	Treatment of Contaminated Mine Water	176 927 $
Total	2	353 571 $
University of British Columbia (The)
Ford, Adam	Facility for the Restoration of Ecological Processes	$163,000
Pennell, Matthew	Centre for Biodiversity Modeling and Synthesis	$89,817
Total	2	$252,817
University of Lethbridge
Athanasios, Zovoilis	RNA Bioinformatics and Genomics Laboratory	$53,131
Total	1	$53,131
University of New Brunswick
Ni, Yonghao	Cellulose Biomaterial Research Laboratory	$150,000
Total	1	$150,000
University of Ontario Institute of Technology
Piro, Markus	Applied Thermodynamics Laboratory	$50,000
Total	1	$50,000
University of Ottawa / Université d’Ottawa
Jabbour, Ghassan	In-Situ Low Cost Fabrication of Self-Assembled Nanomaterials and Conductive Textile for Device Applications	$792,923
Total	1	$792,923
University of the Fraser Valley
Jardine, Cynthia	Health Risk Communication with Vulnerable Communities	$66,856
Total	1	$66,856
University of Waterloo
Eliasmith, Chris	Computational and Robotic Infrastructure for Large-Scale Neural Simulation	$69,965
Hug, Laura	Microbial Diversity and Function in Contaminated Sites	$50,000
Total	2	$119,965
TOTAL	32 projects	$5,641,621

NOTE:
As part of this announcement, an additional $1,692,486 was awarded under the Infrastructure Operating Fund, a mechanism that assists institutions with the incremental operating and maintenance costs associated with the new infrastructure.