The 2023 SSHRC Impact Awards competition has been launched. The Impact Awards recognize exceptional SSHRC-funded researchers and students and celebrate their achievements in research, research training, knowledge mobilization and outreach activities.

Institutions eligible to administer SSHRC funding are invited to put forward nominations in the following categories:

Gold Medal ($100,000)

Talent Award ($50,000)

Insight Award ($50,000)

Connection Award ($50,000)

Partnership Award ($50,000)

Gold Medal ($100,000)

The Gold Medal is SSHRC’s highest research honour. It is awarded to an individual whose sustained leadership, dedication and originality of thought have inspired students and colleagues alike.

The recipient’s achievements in research must have significantly advanced understanding in their respective fields of research in the social sciences and humanities. The exceptional quality and impact of the recipient’s research, and their ongoing efforts to share the results of this work, must have greatly enriched Canadian society, and contributed to intellectual, cultural, social and/or economic life in Canada and/or internationally.

Gold Medal funds must be used within one year for research, knowledge mobilization or other research-related activities. At least 10% of the award must be used to promote the impact and outcomes of the recipient’s research achievements.

Talent Award ($50,000)

The Talent Award recognizes outstanding achievement by an individual who, on April 1, 2023, holds a SSHRC doctoral scholarship or fellowship or postdoctoral fellowship. This includes, but is not limited to, a Canada Graduate Scholarship, Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship or Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship.

The Talent Award is given to an individual who maintains academic excellence, has a talent for research and knowledge mobilization, and has demonstrated clear potential to be a future leader within and/or outside the academic sector.

The Talent Award can either be:

• taken up as a fellowship to fund the recipient’s doctoral or postdoctoral research over a one-year period; or
• used within one year of receiving the award as a grant to support research, knowledge mobilization or other research-related activities.

At least 10% of the award funds must be used to promote the recipient’s research achievements.

Insight Award ($50,000)

The Insight Award recognizes outstanding achievement arising from a single or multiple SSHRC-funded initiatives. It is given to an individual or a team of six people maximum (including the nominee) whose initiative(s) have significantly contributed to knowledge and understanding about people, societies and the world. The research outcomes must have led to demonstrable impact within the nominee’s fields of research and/or beyond the social sciences and humanities research community.

In the case of a team initiatives(s), the nominee must be the principal investigator. If successful, this person will receive the award on behalf of the team.

The nomination package must include the nominee’s SSHRC CV, and those of any team members (up to five), if applicable.

Insight Award funds must be used within one year to further develop the initiative(s) being recognized, through research, knowledge mobilization or other research-related activities. A minimum of 10% of the award funds must be used to promote the recipient’s research achievements.

Connection Award ($50,000)

The Connection Award recognizes an outstanding SSHRC-funded initiative that facilitates the flow and exchange of research knowledge within and/or beyond the social sciences and humanities research community. It is given to an individual or a team of six people maximum (including the nominee) whose initiative has engaged the campus and/or wider community, and has generated intellectual, cultural, social and/or economic impacts.

In the case of a team initiative, the nominee must be the applicant/project director for the initiative. If successful, this person will receive the award on behalf of the team.

The nomination package must include the nominee’s SSHRC CV, and those of any team members (up to five), if applicable.

Connection Award funds must be used within one year to further develop the knowledge mobilization activity being recognized, or to support other research-related activities. At least 10% of the award funds must be used to promote the recipient’s research achievements.

Partnership Award ($50,000)

The Partnership Award recognizes a SSHRC‑funded formal partnership for its outstanding achievement in advancing research, research training or knowledge mobilization, or developing a new partnership approach to research and/or related activities. It is awarded to a formal partnership that, through mutual co-operation and shared intellectual leadership and resources, has demonstrated impact and influence within and/or beyond the social sciences and humanities research community.

For the Partnership Award, the nominee must be the project director. If successful, this person will receive the award on behalf of the partnership.

The nomination package must include the nominee’s SSHRC CV, and those of any team members (up to five), if applicable.

Partnership Award funds must be used within one year to further develop the research, knowledge mobilization or research-related activities being recognized. At least 10% of the award funds must be used to promote the recipient’s research achievements.

Please note that institutions can only submit one nomination for each award each year. If you are interested in being nominated for one of these awards, please contact Dr. Batia Stolar, Associate Vice-President, Research & Graduate Studies, at avp.research@lakeheadu.ca

Connection Grants are expected to respond to the objectives of the Connection program.

These grants support events and outreach activities geared toward short-term, targeted knowledge mobilization initiatives. These events and activities represent opportunities to exchange knowledge and to engage with participants on research issues of value to them. Events and outreach activities funded by a Connection Grant can often serve as a first step toward more comprehensive and longer-term projects.

Connection Grants support workshops, colloquiums, conferences, forums, summer institutes, or other events or outreach activities that facilitate:

• disciplinary and/or interdisciplinary exchanges in the social sciences and humanities;
• scholarly exchanges between those working in the social sciences and humanities and those working in other research fields;
• intersectoral exchanges between academic researchers in the social sciences and humanities and researchers and practitioners from the public, private and/or not-for-profit sectors; and/or
• international research collaboration and scholarly exchanges with researchers, students and non-academic partners from other countries.

Only a Canadian institution that holds institutional eligibility can administer funds. However, the intellectual leadership and governance for Connection Grant activities can come from within the research community and/or from within the public, private and/or not-for-profit sectors.

SSHRC welcomes applications involving Indigenous research, as well as those involving research-creation.

Partnership Engage Grants are expected to respond to the objectives of the Insight program and the Connection program. However, Partnership Engage Grants cannot respond exclusively to the objectives of the Connection program.

These grants provide short-term and timely support for partnered research activities that will inform decision making at a single partner organization from the public, private or not-for-profit sector. The small-scale, stakeholder-driven partnerships supported through Partnership Engage Grants are meant to respond to immediate needs and time constraints facing organizations in non-academic sectors. In addressing an organization-specific need, challenge and/or opportunity, these partnerships let non-academic organizations and postsecondary researchers access each other’s unique knowledge, expertise and capabilities on topics of mutual interest.

SSHRC welcomes applications involving Indigenous research, as well as those involving research-creation.

For tools and resources to assist in the planning and implementation of your partnership, see SSHRC’s Partnerships Tool-Kit.

Partnership Engage Grants are expected to respond to the objectives of the Insight program and the Connection program. However, Partnership Engage Grants cannot respond exclusively to the objectives of the Connection program.

These grants provide short-term and timely support for partnered research activities that will inform decision making at a single partner organization from the public, private or not-for-profit sector. The small-scale, stakeholder-driven partnerships supported through Partnership Engage Grants are meant to respond to immediate needs and time constraints facing organizations in non-academic sectors. In addressing an organization-specific need, challenge and/or opportunity, these partnerships let non-academic organizations and postsecondary researchers access each other’s unique knowledge, expertise and capabilities on topics of mutual interest.

SSHRC welcomes applications involving Indigenous research, as well as those involving research-creation.

For tools and resources to assist in the planning and implementation of your partnership, see SSHRC’s Partnerships Tool-Kit.

Under the Mitacs Globalink Research Award (GRA) Program, Mitacs has signed a new partnership with the Consejo de Rectores de las Universidades Chilenas (CRUCH-FUDEA) for research student mobility  (bi-directional, from Canada to Chile, or from Chile to Canada).  The call is now open for Partnership applications (no co-pay!).  The partnership stream is limited to eligible universities.  While no MOU is required for the GRA program, we especially encourage applications with our partner, Universidad de la Frontera.

• Deadline:  April 30, 2023 at 5 p.m. PT
• Level: Full-time senior undergraduate, master's and PhD students, postdoctoral fellows
• Themes: All disciplines
• Other requirements: N/A

• Eligible institutions:
• Universidad de Santiago de Chile (USACH)
• Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO) (Lakehead MOU Partner)
• Universidad Católica del Norte (UCN)
• Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (PUC)
• Universidad Católica del Maule (UCM)
• Universidad de Concepción (UdeC)
• Co-funding: No financial contribution is required from the Canadian university
• Award amount: $6000
• Application process and submission:  submit through the Office of Research Services,  intl.research@lakeheadu.ca.

Chile is of course eligible under the regular (quota, non-competition) stream, open call, any Chilean university is eligible, however there is a co-pay requirement. Please contact Jill Sherman, intl.research@lakeheadu.ca, for more information and an application package.

The Petroleum Research Fund is an endowed fund, managed by the American Chemical Society that supports fundamental research directly related to petroleum or fossil fuels at nonprofit institutions (generally colleges and universities) in the United States and other countries.

ACS Petroleum Research Fund (ACS PRF) grants are intended as seed money, to enable an investigator to initiate a new research direction. The investigator should not have published or received financial support from another funding agency for the proposed research. Also, proposals that the ACS PRF Committee feels are a logical extension of an investigator’s previous research may be denied as “not a new direction.”

Please contact Jill  Sherman at intl.research@lakeheadu.ca  for more information.

It is anticipated that 95% of all captured CO₂ will need to be permanently stored to achieve net-zero emissions. To ensure the permanent removal of CO₂ from the carbon cycle, CO₂ needs to be sequestered and stored.

As part of the Energy Innovation Program – Carbon capture, utilization and storage RD&D Call, the Storage & Transportation focus area aims to characterize and develop safe, permanent sub-surface CO₂ storage, and technologies that support safe and efficient transportation of CO₂ and storage opportunities across Canada.