Research News鈥
Update on Research Security
Canada鈥檚 research ecosystem requires increasing vigilance with respect to research security. The federal and Ontario provincial governments have published guidelines and associated processes to assess research security risk associated with some of their funding programs. More recently the federal government has issued submitted to several federal funding organizations, affecting projects where any of the researchers are affiliated with 鈥渕ilitary, national defence or state security entities of foreign state actors that pose a risk to our national security.鈥 The federal government further indicated that they will be 鈥渦rging [universities] to follow similar guidelines for all their research partnerships, and more particularly those partnerships involving sensitive research areas.鈥 To provide our research community with advice and support in these matters, the VPR portfolio will host virtual office hours for researchers to discuss their research plans and any potential associated research security risks. The details of these office hours will be provided on the VPR website in the coming weeks and will also be distributed through your Associate Dean of Research.鈥
New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) International
The 2023 NFRF International funding call invites researchers to tackle global challenges caused by climate change. Research teams must be interdisciplinary and include collaborators eligible for funding from one of the identified international partner countries, and proposals must address at least two of the key representative risks identified in the call.
The VPR is gathering Queen's research experts to begin collaboration and knowledge sharing ahead of the pending announcement. The first brainstorming and networking session was held on December 9, with 50 Queen's researchers attending in-person and virtually.
Details about collaboration opportunities and funding timelines are available at queensu.ca/vpr/nfrf-int
Postdoctoral Fund
The Vice-Principal Research Postdoctoral Fund aims to attract outstanding postdoctoral fellows (PDFs) to Queen鈥檚 University and foster greater recognition of trainees as research leaders of the future. Applications are now being accepted to fund two years of salary support for up to six (6) PDFs. Each award is valued at $50,000 per year of the funding period for a total of $100,000 per recipient.
Details of the funding program are available at queensu.ca/vpr/postdoc-fund
SSHRC Institutional Grants
The Vice-Principal Research Portfolio (VPR) has launched the 2023 Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Institutional Grants (SIG) program, which provides Queen鈥檚 faculty with funds for small-scale research and research-related activities. Applications for creative research that result in artistic work(s) are welcome.
The VPR will facilitate a merit review process to award SIG funds up to $7,000 per year/per project. Funds are awarded to Queen鈥檚 University based on researcher success in earlier funding competitions, and support faculty career advancement and student participation in projects.
Details on the upcoming deadlines are available at queensu.ca/vpr/SIG
Undergraduate Student Summer Research Fellowships (USSRF)
New for 2023, USSRF has been expanded to support up to 100 fellowships, with four projects hosted at Bader College. Projects are available in any discipline. Interested applicants should contact potential supervisors and/or departments to learn about the application process.
Further information is available at queensu.ca/vpr/ussrf.
Recent Honours and Awards
- Ahmed Hassan (School of Computing) is now a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
- Nicole Robitaille (Smith School of Business) received the Responsible Business Education Award
- Gregory Jerkiewicz (Chemistry) was granted a Cross of Freedom and Solidarity from the President of Poland in 2022
Partnerships and Innovation
In support of the burgeoning Electric Vehicle (EV) industry in Ontario and Canada, Queen鈥檚 and ecosystem partners made a proposal to the Ontario government to establish an Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network and Demonstration Zone in Kingston, with a focus on battery testing for EVs. The proposal includes showcasing Queen鈥檚 at the inaugural EV Technology and Innovation Conference in Toronto in February and developing a concept for the Workforce Development Board to support the EV Battery Industry in Kingston.