The Canada Foundation for Innovation announced more than half a billion dollars in funding last week for 35 institutions and 102 research projects across Canada.
Some projects address the COVID-19 crisis, while other projects focus on areas such as the health of Canada's oceans, reconciliation with First Nations and Inuit peoples and the detection of dark matter.
"Whether you're looking for better cancer treatments or developing blockchain technologies, our Canadian researchers — you — need these kinds of tools to turn their bold ideas into reality," said Science and Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne at a press conference on March 3. "This is both about leadership and excellence."
The grants were provided through the first Innovation Fund competition since the CFI received permanent funding in 2018. Up to 40 percent of the funds go towards infrastructure costs for each project. The competitions will now be held every 24 to 30 months, which the CFI says is intended to allow institutions to plan strategically when seeking funding for projects.
The funding can be divided into three large categories: $394 million for research projects through the Innovation Fund, $118 million of additional funds from the Infrastructure Operation Fund to cover operating and maintenance costs and an extra $6.2 million for 22 multi-institutional proposals to cover administrative costs.
The research projects that received funding include:
The following 35 institutions received funding:
Institution | Number of Projects | Total Funding |
Aurora College | 1 | $1,686,897 |
Carleton University | 2 | $9,272,590 |
Concordia University | 1 | $723,417 |
Dalhousie University | 5 | $13,269,908 |
École Polytechnique de Montréal | 1 | $3,109,552 |
McGill University | 9 | $41,938,755 |
McMaster University | 5 | $35,116,984 |
Memorial University of Newfoundland | 1 | $6,773,058 |
Queen’s University | 2 | $9,657,685 |
Ryerson University | 1 | $1,962,000 |
Simon Fraser University | 1 | $2,169,811 |
Sinai Health System | 2 | $7,921,373 |
St. Joseph’s Health Care London | 1 | $2,008,333 |
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre | 1 | $485,676 |
The Hospital for Sick Children | 4 | $23,279,808 |
The University of British Columbia | 9 | $28,321,016 |
Thompson Rivers University | 1 | $848,698 |
Université de Montréal | 8 | $23,387,033 |
Université de Sherbrooke | 3 | $10,948,373 |
Université du Québec and École de technologie supérieure | 1 | $4,552,405 |
Université du Québec and the Institut national de la recherche scientifique | 1 | $3,249,940 |
Université du Québec à Montréal | 1 | $722,423 |
Université Laval | 4 | $16,871,194 |
University Health Network | 1 | $1,350,035 |
University of Alberta | 5 | $24,089,452 |
University of Calgary | 5 | $18,219,942 |
University of Manitoba | 2 | $4,748,673 |
University of Ottawa / Université d’Ottawa | 5 | $26,172,052 |
University of Regina | 1 | $1,403,288 |
University of Saskatchewan | 2 | $9,964,427 |
University of Toronto | 4 | $24,600,005 |
University of Victoria | 2 | $7,400,000 |
University of Waterloo | 6 | $17,272,134 |
Women’s College Hospital | 1 | $1,184,061 |
York University | 3 | $9,023,206 |
Total Institutions: 35 | 102 | $393,704,204 |
The full list of funded projects can be found on the Canadian Innovation Fund website here.