Twelve McGill University researchers exploring issues from green chemistry to biochemical pharmacology to international security and ethnic conflict are among the 62 newly appointed Canada Research Chairs announced September 10 by the Honourable Diane Ablonczy, Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism) on behalf of the Honourable Jim Prentice, Minister of Industry and minister responsible for the Canada Research Chairs Program.
McGill received five Tier-1 and seven Tier-2 Chairs, including the three renewals, for a total of $10,500,000. In addition to that amount, the Canada Foundation for Innovation is investing approximately $2,384,729 to fund research infrastructure essential to the work done by nine of those Chairs.
“Building a larger base of scientific expertise and enhancing Canada’s international reputation for research excellence are key elements of Mobilizing Science and Technology to Canada’s Advantage, our government’s new Science and Technology Strategy,” said Ablonczy. “Our Government recognizes the importance of doing more to help transform and commercialize scientific and technological innovations. This in turn will help create better jobs, increase economic growth and improve our quality of life.”
The Government of Canada created the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Program in 2000 to establish 2,000 research professorships across the country by 2008, with the aim of making Canada one of the world's top five countries for research and development. Since then, McGill has used its CRCs to recruit an exceptional group of international researchers as well as to repatriate a number of outstanding Canadian and Québécois researchers from postings abroad.
"This announcement reflects the immense talent that we are attracting to McGill,” said Denis Thérien, Vice-Principal (Research and International Relations). “Quality research requires quality people, and we are bringing in a generation of researchers who are advancing discovery and innovation in exciting new directions."
McGill's newest Canada Research Chairs:
Michel Biron
Tier 2 (Renewal)
Social Sciences and Humanities
Canada Research Chair in Québécois and Francophone Literature
$500,000
Sylvain Coulombe
Tier 2 (Renewal)
Natural Sciences and Engineering
Canada Research Chair in Non-thermal Plasma Processing
$500,000
Elaine C. Davis
Tier 2 (Renewal)
Health
Canada Research Chair in Anatomy and Cell Biology
$500,000
Tho Le-Ngoc
Tier 1
Natural Sciences and Engineering
Canada Research Chair in Broadband Access Communications
$1,400,000
Stéphanie Lehoux
Tier 2
Health
Canada Research Chair in Cardiovascular Physiology
$500,000
Gergely Lukacs
Tier 1
Health
Canada Research Chair in Molecular and Cellular Biology of
Cystic Fibrosis and Other Conformational Diseases
$1,400,000
Audrey Moores
Tier 2
Natural Sciences and Engineering
Canada Research Chair in Green Chemistry
$500,000
Vassilios Papadopoulos
Tier 1
Health
Canada Research Chair in Biochemical Pharmacology
$1,400,000
Thomas Quinn
Tier 1
Natural Sciences and Engineering
Canada Research Chair in Soft Tissue Biophysics
$1,400,000
Amir Raz
Tier 2
Health
Canada Research Chair in the Cognitive Neuroscience of
Attention
$500,000
Stephen M. Saideman
Tier 2 (Renewal)
Social Sciences and Humanities
Canada Research Chair in International Security and Ethnic
Conflict
$500,000
Barbara Sherwin
Tier 1
Health
Canada Research Chair in Hormones, Brain and Cognition
$1,400,000
University total: $10,500,000