Nine McGill researchers appointed Canada Research Chairs

Over $8 million to be shared by one newly appointed and eight renewed CRCs

Nine McGill researchers were among the 132 newly awarded or renewed Canada Research Chairs just announced by the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for Science and Technology. The McGill CRCs work in fields ranging from social statistics and family change to the cognitive neuroscience of attention and expectation. McGill researchers received a total of $ 8,100,000 for four Tier 1 and five Tier 2 Chairs from a total of $124.5 million allocated from federal funds for new, cutting-edge research. The Canadian Foundation for Innovation provided a further $251,089 to fund research infrastructure that is essential to two of these chairs.

“Our Government is committed to investing in research programs that continue to have a positive effect on Canada’s economy and that touch the lives of Canadians,” said Minister Goodyear. “We are focused on what matters—creating jobs and economic growth. By supporting innovation, we are not only encouraging cutting-edge research but also help bring promising ideas to the marketplace to keep our economy strong in the future.”

“The Canada Research Chairs Program helps to position Canadian postsecondary institutions as world-class research centres,” said Dr. Chad Gaffield, president of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and chair of the Canada Research Chairs Program Steering Committee, who attended today’s announcement. “With this funding support, researchers are gaining insight about, and developing innovative solutions to, today’s social, health and economic issues, and are training the next generation of top scientists and scholars.”

McGill’s newest Canada Research Chairs are:

Campbell, Gwyn R.
Canada Research Chair in Indian Ocean World History    
Renewal

Guan, Pengfei
Geometric Analysis  
Renewal

Kollias, Pavlos-Radar
Applications in Weather and Climate Research
Renewal

Le Bourdais, Céline
Canada Research Chair in Social Statistics and  Family Change  
Renewal

McBride, Heidi
Canada Research Chair in Mitochondrial Dynamics
New

Pastinen, Tomi
Canada Research Chair in Human Genomics                    
Renewal

Ramankutty, Navin
Canada Research Chair in Land Use and Global  Environmental Change
Renewal

Raz, Amir
Canada Research Chair in the Cognitive Neuroscience of Attention and Expectation
Renewal

Schirrmacher, Ralf
Canada Research Chair in synthesis of novel radiopharmaceuticals for Positron Emission   Tomography (PET) in neurology and oncology
Renewal

For further information: http://www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca/media-medias/releases-communiques/2012/march-mars-eng.aspx