(October 18, 2007 - Thunder Bay,ON)
LakeheadUniversity has received a collective total of $372,500 in FedNor funding. The Faculty of Forestry and the Forest Environment has been awarded $345,000 to provide technical support to the wood products industry, and the Biotechnology Research Program has received $27,500 to fund a future Youth Internship position. Both funding announcements are part of FedNor's recent $10.6 million investment that supports 78 economic development projects that will benefit hundreds of
Ontario's northern communities.
Dr. Reino Pulkki, Dean of the Faculty of Forestry and the Forest Environment says that the $345,000 in funding will be used to support the wood products industry as well as its dependent communities located across Northern Ontario, and to further develop connectivity between Northern Ontario value-added manufacturers, communities, organizations, agencies and
LakeheadUniversity. "The benefits of this funding are extensive and multi-faceted," says Pulkki, who explains that the money will: enhance Lakehead's research capacity and a partnership with FP Innovations - Forintek Division; provide opportunities to work with First Nations and other communities in Northern Ontario to identify the needs and capabilities of producing wood products for local consumption and export while providing state-of-the-art forest management planning tools to achieve this; build market intelligence to develop wood products industries appropriate to the forest, financial, and human resources available in First Nations and Northern Ontario communities; and consolidate government, industry, academic, and community support for an NSERC Industrial Chair in Wood Products Marketing Intelligence at Lakehead's Faculty of Forestry and the Forest Environment.
LakeheadUniversity's Biotechnology Research Program will use $27,500 in FedNor funding to provide an internship position for a successful graduate applicant, who will have the opportunity to gain the skills required to secure permanent employment in the north. "This funding will support the successful intern applicant by providing them with paid, valuable, on-the-job experience that helps with the transition from campus to career," says Dr. Heidi Schraft, Associate Professor of Biology at
LakeheadUniversity. Lakehead's intern will work on outreach programs that promote biotechnology research to youth in
Thunder Bay and the region, and will support various faculty members in promoting their biotechnology research activities while networking with potential industrial partners. The University hopes to complete the application process and hire the intern by November 1, 2007.
The intern will also help the Lakehead University Centre for Analytical Services (LUCAS) build awareness of
LakeheadUniversity's ability to contribute to development projects that require access to advanced analytical facilities and expertise. The funding will improve liaison with potential regional, national, and international clients - eventually leading to new opportunities for companies and
LakeheadUniversity's researchers. Through a new awareness in Lakehead's expanding capabilities, the region will have increased options for their innovative research and development programs. According to Allan MacKenzie, Director of Lakehead University's Analytical and Research Services, "To improve technology delivery, the region needs to know what Lakehead can offer, and Lakehead endeavours to learn how it can assist the region with its experts and advanced facilities."
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Media: Drs. Reino Pulkki and Heidi Schraft may be contacted for interview. Please call Heather Scott at 343-8177 to arrange interview times. If you have any questions regarding this media release, please contact:
Heather Scott, Communications Officer, 807-343-8177 or commun@lakeheadu.ca
Eleanor Abaya, Director of Communications, 807-343-8372 or eabaya@lakeheadu.ca.
About Lakehead
Lakehead is a comprehensive university with a reputation for innovative programs and cutting-edge research. With a main campus located in
Thunder Bay,
Ontario and a campus in
Orillia,
Ontario, Lakehead has over 7,700 students and 2,250 faculty and staff, and is home to the west campus of the
NorthernOntarioSchool of Medicine. In 2006, Research Infosource Inc. named
Lakehead UniversityCanada's
ResearchUniversity of the Year in the undergraduate category. For more information on
LakeheadUniversity, visit www.lakeheadu.ca
