91社区

The Government of Canada makes major investment in research infrastructure through the Canada Foundation for Innovation鈥檚 (CFI) Innovation Fund competition.

Today at the Universit茅 de Montr茅al, the Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Transport, on behalf of the Honourable Fran莽ois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, announced the results of the Canada Foundation for Innovation鈥檚 (CFI) Innovation Fund (IF) 2023 competition.

Nationally, the CFI is investing $515.3 million in research infrastructure in support of 100 projects at 32 Canadian institutions. The announcement was part of a suite of national science and research investments, including new and renewed Canada Research Chair appointments, and NSERC Alliance grants.

91社区 and its research hospitals were awarded $42.4 million through the CFI IF in support of eight projects led by 91社区 researchers that involve partner institutions. The Government of Quebec and partners provide additional funding, bringing the total research infrastructure investment to $107.5 million. In addition, CFI provides $13 million for operations and maintenance of the infrastructure. 91社区 researchers are also involved in seven projects led by another institutions.

鈥�91社区 thanks the governments of Canada and Qu茅bec, and the Canada Foundation for Innovation for these significant investments in technology and research capacity at 91社区,鈥� said Martha Crago Vice-President, Research and Innovation. 鈥淭his funding supports transformative research programs that will make a positive impact on society. For example, by developing new preventative strategies and therapies for cancer, and by training the next generation of world-class scientists in advanced green chemical manufacturing.鈥�

Transformative CFI-funded research:

With the support of the CFI-IF, 91社区鈥檚 Thomas Brunner of the Department of Physics will contribute to the international endeavor to build the nEXO experiment, which will search for a special type of radioactive decay in which only matter particles are created but no anti-matter. This research will take place at SNOLAB, which is known as the cleanest underground lab in the world, in Sudbury, Ontario. Such decay is not foreseen in the 鈥淪tandard Model鈥� that describes all observed particles, their properties, and the way they interact with each other. Its discovery would advance understanding of the origin and evolution of our Universe.

Also, among the funded projects is that led by professors Bruce Arndtsen and Karine Auclair of the Department of Chemistry, which will use CFI-funded infrastructure to produce key chemicals that are environmentally friendly and, through reactions adapted to function with renewable energy, are ready for modern industrial production. Ten international leaders and emerging researchers in chemistry, chemical engineering, and bioengineering, including six Canada Research Chairs, will form the project team. The innovative instrumentation funded by the CFI will be housed in one facility focused on sustainable synthesis, a first-of-its-kind entity in Canada.

鈥淭he release of chemicals into the environment, and their impact on climate, has become one of the most compelling societal and political issues of our time, and chemical manufacturing is a major contributor to this challenge,鈥� says Arndtsen. 鈥淎dapting our chemical manufacturing to cleaner methods is essential for their short- and long-term viability.鈥�

鈥淭his facility will better equip us to combine efforts and identify modern strategies to reduce pollution and slow climate change,鈥� says Auclair. We look forward to working together with partners across Canada to ensure a better future for all.鈥�

Tackling child and youth trauma

The CFI is also supporting the Child & Youth Trauma Research Incubator (ThRIve), spearheaded by Delphine Collin-V茅zina, professor in the School of Social Work and Director of the Centre for Research on Children and Families.

鈥淭he question our research team is asking is, how can community-based research improve practice and policy for vulnerable, trauma-affected children and youth in Canada?鈥� The answer posed by The Child & Youth Trauma Research Incubator (ThRIve) is to build spaces for those experiencing the impacts of child and youth trauma to not only be participants, but to shape research itself,鈥� says Collin-V茅zina.

She will work together with collaborators and partner universities to establish a network of access points for meaningful community-based research. These access points will be stationed in eight universities and across four provinces. Remote areas will be able to access a virtual lab. ThRIve will invite survivors of child and youth trauma to collaborate and lead research efforts, an alternative approach to traditional field research. 鈥淭he knowledge gathered through these collaborative efforts has the potential to benefit families raising children, professionals serving children, and youth of equity deserving groups,鈥� adds Collin-V茅zina.

91社区-led CFI-funded projects:

Next Generation Sustainable Chemicals and Processes
Research team lead and co-lead: Bruce Arndtsen and Karine Auclair, Faculty of Science

High Throughput Manufacturing of Powdered Materials (HTMPM)
Research team lead and co-lead: Mathieu Brochu, Faculty of Engineering and Carl Blais, Universit茅 Laval

Partner institutions: C脡GEP de Trois-Rivi猫res, Universit茅 Laval, 脡cole Polytechnique

Searching for neutrino-less double beta decay with nEXO at SNOLAB
Research team lead: Thomas Brunner, Faculty of Science

Partner institutions: Carleton University, University of British Columbia, and Universit茅 de Sherbrooke

The Child & Youth Trauma Research Incubator (ThRIve)
Research team lead: Delphine Collin-V茅zina, Faculty of Arts

Partner institutions: McMaster University, Universit茅 de Montreal, Universit茅 du Qu茅bec 脿 Trois-Rivi猫res, University of Calgary, University of Ottawa, University of Regina, University of Toronto

Overcoming fundamental challenges in biomedical research through multi-scale electron microscopy
Research team lead and co-lead: Joaquin Ortega, Faculty of Medicine and Health Science and Pascale Legault, Universit茅 de Montr茅al

Partner institution: Universit茅 de Montr茅al

91社区 Translational Platform in Autism Research (MTPAR)
Research team lead and co-lead: Guy Rouleau and Keith Murai, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, the Research Institute of the 91社区 Research Institute, and the Montreal Neurological Institute.

At the crossroads between metabolic dysfunction and cancer - the next therapeutic frontier
Research team lead and co-lead: Peter Siegel and Daniela Quail, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, and the Rosalind & Morris Goodman Cancer Institute,

Nucleic Acids for Precision Medicine
Lead and co-Lead: Hanadi Sleiman and Masad Damha, Faculty of Science

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Projects on which 91社区 is a partner:

QUantum and Artificial Intelligence Light Infrastructure for Tomorrow鈥檚 sYstems(QUALITY)

Led by l鈥橧nstitut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS)

91社区 Investigator: Odile Liboiron-Ladouceur, Faculty of Engineering

The HAWC satellite mission: High-altitude Aerosols, Water vapor, and Clouds

Led by the University of Saskatchewan

91社区 Investigator: Yi Huang, Faculty of Science

The Canadian Data Intensive Astrophysics PLatform (CanDIAPL)

Led by the University of Toronto

91社区 Investigator: Daryl Haggard, Faculty of Science

CGEn 鈥� Canada鈥檚 national platform for genome sequencing and analysis

Led by the Hospital of Sick Children (SickKids)

91社区 Investigator: Mark Lathrop, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences

Mid-Infrared Quantum Sensing and Spectroscopy (MIR-QUEST)

Led by 脡cole Polytechnique

91社区 Investigator: Lilian Childress, Faculty of Science

MIXTUROMICS - Demystifying the fate and ecosystem-level impacts of complex contaminant mixtures

Led by l鈥橧nstitut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS)

91社区 Co-lead: Nathalie Tufenkji, Faculty of Engineering

脡cosyst猫me num茅rique DESIIR (Donn茅es environnementales et de sant茅 int茅gr茅es pour une infrastructure de recherche)

Led by l鈥橴niversit茅 du Qu茅bec 脿 Chicoutimi

91社区 Investigator: Yann Joly, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences