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. 

Portrait of Nafissa Ismail professor in the School of Psychology at the University of Ottawa.

How neuroendocrinology crosses sectors to create promising new insights

Nafissa Ismail focuses on the effects of hormones on the brain to pin down the interactions between our organs and our emotions
Listen now
Hilary Earl kneels on the floor with her laptop as she prepares for an interview. In the foreground is a video camera.
article

Investigating the causes — and consequences — of war and genocide

How immersive simulation, film, video and podcasting tools are giving Hilary Earl and her colleagues fresh insights into the history of state-sponsored violence
All articles
Portrait of Nafissa Ismail professor in the School of Psychology at the University of Ottawa.
podcast
Ontario

How neuroendocrinology crosses sectors to create promising new insights

Nafissa Ismail focuses on the effects of hormones on the brain to pin down the interactions between our organs and our emotions
All podcasts
Image of various cellphones on a wooden table displaying photos of researchers.
video

A promising future, now: 25 years of investing in ideas that change our world

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 videos

All stories

A bird with a long, reddish bill and flecked brown feathers wades in marshy waters.
article
Ontario

A fresh take on protecting our waters

A wide-ranging survey of aquatic environments in Eastern Ontario will bring together Indigenous and Western Knowledge to find better ways to preserve Canada’s freshwater habitats and species
A wheelchair is strapped in testing equipment in a laboratory.
article
British Columbia,Manitoba

Unlimited access

Researchers combine expertise in engineering and occupational therapy to build wheelchairs that further break down barriers to mobility
A child on a swing against a blue sky.
article
Quebec

Moving beyond surviving to thriving

A new network of eight Canadian universities aims to help make a difference for children and youth exposed to trauma
Prescription pill bottles tipped over with white tablets poured out
article
Alberta

Probing the brain to break the cycle of opioid addiction

New treatments for opioid use disorder are desperately needed — and fast. The answer may lie in existing medications.
An illustration composed of coloured bars that look like genetic screening radiating from a nucleus of curved covered lines.
article
Quebec

Genetic sleuthing

A state-of-the-art laboratory is leveraging modern and ancient DNA analysis in tandem with genealogical data to fully understand an evolving population
Weathered cottages perch on the edge of a ragged shoreline in Prince Edward Island that was badly eroded by Hurricane Fiona.
article
Prince Edward Island

Coastal scourge

Compounded by a changing climate, severe erosion is scouring Prince Edward Island’s coastline. Researchers are designing an elaborate coastal hazard monitoring and modelling system to help protect the island’s shores from being further flushed out to sea.
A hockey team in orange jerseys poses on the arena ice.
article
Quebec

Unsettling the Canadian hockey story

Collecting the stories of hockey players, builders and fans from Lac Seul First Nation to reveal a different narrative about Indigenous hockey
A stylized line drawing of a woman's torso with one breast highlighted by a coloured circle.
article
Manitoba

Ushering in a new era of breast cancer screening

The discovery of tumour biomarkers paves the way for earlier disease detection through a simple blood test
A young researcher wearing a hardhat sits in the driver’s seat of a vehicle, typing on a laptop.
article
Nova Scotia

Meet Canada’s greenhouse gas detectives

With a few creative hacks, the Flux Lab has transformed a lab bench gas analyzer into a mobile tool they’re using to measure emissions from pipeline leaks, landfills and melting permafrost in the field
Pallet of natural fabrics dyed with food waste.
article
Quebec

Advocating for ethical fashion

What are your daily needs? To breathe clean air, drink clean water, eat produce grown in healthy soil. Covering our bodies to protect ourselves is also not a luxury, but the clothing industry diminishes the quality of the first three vital ingredients.
A pixelated graphic of the map of North America.
article
Saskatchewan

Understanding the importance of where we live

Historians are merging Indigenous research methods with digital historical data to rethink how we view the places we live and how those change over time
An illustration showing mouths, eyes, hands and ears clipped from newsprint with red splotches, exes and the word fake overlain.
article
Ontario

Taking aim at online hate and fake news

Dangerous disinformation campaigns on social media are on the rise. So are targeted personal attacks. The Digital Society Lab is using AI-powered countermeasures to push back.