Collaborative Innovative Research Projects Take Aim at Industrial and Societal Challenges

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Jan. 9, 2014) - Office of the Minister of State (Science and Technology)

The Honourable Greg Rickford, Minister of State (Science and Technology) announced over $43 million in support for 77 scientific teams at universities across the country. Researchers will work with companies and other organizations on long-term projects in areas that benefit Canadians and improve their quality of life, such as advancing 3D technology for wireless systems, studying the impact of oil spills on river beds and fish habitats, and developing affordable solutions for clean drinking water in small, rural and First Nations communities.

The projects are being funded through two grants, the Strategic Network Grants and Strategic Project Grants, administered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).

Quick Facts

• NSERC Strategic Project Grants aim to increase research and training in areas that could strongly influence Canada's economy, society or environment in the next 10 years in four target areas: environmental science and technologies; information and communications technologies; manufacturing; and natural resources and energy.
  
  
• NSERC Strategic Network Grants support large-scale, multidisciplinary research projects that require collaboration between academic researchers, organizations and companies across Canada to address challenges facing a particular industry over the next 10 years.
  
  
• The University of British Columbia (UBC) received $8.5 million through these two initiatives. Funding will go towards 10 research projects in areas such as solar power, cloud-based computing, and improvements to pulp and paper manufacturing processes.
  
  

Quotes

"Our government understands that for an economy to grow and prosper and for the quality of life of Canadians to improve, we must support innovation. The strategic investments we're announcing today will allow companies to increase their R&D activities in Canada by accessing the expertise and knowledge of scientific teams at universities. Furthermore, by supporting partnerships such as these, we are addressing the long-term needs of our industries and helping them turn ideas into real benefits for Canadians."

Greg Rickford, Minister of State (Science and Technology)

"By taking fundamental research and moving it towards solving real-world problems, these talented research teams are helping improve the lives of Canadians, and build Canada's future economic prosperity. These collaborations exemplify NSERC's goals to connect and apply the strength of the talented researchers in our learning institutions with the needs of industry."

Janet Walden, Chief Operating Officer of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)

Related Products

- Recipients of the 2013 Strategic Project Grant and Strategic Network Grant Competitions

Associated Links

- Strategic Project Grants Program Overview

- Strategic Network Grants Program Overview

NSERC is a federal agency that helps make Canada a country of discoverers and innovators. The agency supports almost 30,000 post-secondary students and postdoctoral fellows in their advanced studies. NSERC promotes discovery by funding approximately 12,000 professors every year and fosters innovation by encouraging over 2,400 Canadian companies to participate and invest in post-secondary research projects.
www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Backgrounder

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
Announcement of Strategic Grants

Strategic Network Grants and Strategic Project Grants encourage collaborative research between academic researchers and industry and government partners. They focus on four main strategic areas: environmental science and technologies; information and communications technologies; manufacturing; and natural resources and energy.

1) Strategic Network Grants (SNG)

SNGs are designed to increase research and training in targeted areas that have the potential to strongly enhance Canada's economy, society and the environment within the next 10 years. They fund large-scale, multidisciplinary research projects that require a network approach and involve collaboration between academic researchers and Canadian-based organizations.

The following two networks will receive a total of $7.8 million over five years:

1. The new NSERC TRIA Network: Turning Risk into Action for the Mountain Pine Beetle Epidemic is an inter-university initiative led by Dr. Janice Cooke from the University of Alberta. This network will focus on research into controlling the pine beetle epidemic in boreal forests.
   
   
2. RES'EAU WaterNET: An NSERC Strategic Network on Small, Rural and First Nations Water Systems led by Dr. Madjid Mohseni from the University of British Columbia, is the first inter-university network devoted exclusively to developing innovative and affordable solutions for clean drinking water in small, rural and First Nations communities. The network received renewed funding to continue its activities for a second five-year period, to further improve the lives of Canadians.
   
   

2) Strategic Project Grants (SPG)

SPGs help address Canada's science and technology priorities. The primary goal of these grants is to increase research and training in targeted areas that could strongly enhance Canada's economy, society and/or environment in the next 10 years.

This year, 75 research projects were selected. The following universities will receive more than a combined $35 million over the next three years:

• University of Alberta
  
  
• University of British Columbia
  
  
• University of Calgary
  
  
• Carleton University
  
  
• Dalhousie University
  
  
• École Polytechnique de Montréal
  
  
• University of Guelph
  
  
• Institut national de la recherche scientifique
  
  
• Université Laval
  
  
• McGill University
  
  
• McMaster University
  
  
• Université de Montréal
  
  
• University of Ottawa
  
  
• Université du Québec à Rimouski
  
  
• Queen's University
  
  
• University of Saskatchewan
  
  
• Simon Fraser University
  
  
• University of Toronto
  
  
• Trent University
  
  
• University of Victoria
  
  
• University of Waterloo
  
  
• Western University
  
  
• University of Windsor