The Short Report - September 7, 2022: A boost for B.C. & Alberta's patient-oriented research units; moving towards a national flood insurance program, Suzanne Fortier retires from McGill, and more.

GOVERNMENT FUNDING

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) will receive more than $36 million and $32 million respectively for its Alberta and British Columbia support units. Alberta's funds are from the governments of Canada and Alberta as well as other provincial funding partners, and will be delivered over five years to continue connecting research with patient needs. B.C.'s support unit funding is from the federal and B.C. governments and will also be delivered over five years to support the unit's second research phase. CIHR Alberta SPOR CIHR B.C. SPOR

The Ministere de l'Economie et de l'Innovation du Quebec (MEI) has approved 11 research and innovation projects valued at $34 million in response to the call for proposals issued by the Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Quebec last April. The MEI contributed $13.5 million as part of Stratégies québecoise de l'aérospatiale (SQA) Horizon 2026, while additional funding was provided by the private sector, Mitacs and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council. Funded projects include training an aeronautical workforce in hydrogen systems integration (project partners Bell Textron Canada, Calogy Solutions and the Institute for Hydrogen Research at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières) and gathering data to develop strategies to make future air vehicles more icing tolerant (project partners Marinvent Corporation, Chrono Aviation and Flight Test Centre of Excellence). Newswire

The Government of Alberta is launching a program that provides three-year grants of up to $1 million for research, education and initiatives that promote cancer prevention, early detection and screening, and improve quality of life. Eligible applicants for the Cancer Research for Screening and Prevention (CRSP) grant program include Alberta-based post-secondaries, non-profits, plus Métis and First Nation communities and organizations. The application deadline is Oct. 31. Government of Alberta

The Southwestern Ontario Development Fund (SWODF) has reopened its intake for its business stream (businesses can apply for a loan of up to 15 percent of eligible project expenses up to $500,000) and its community economic development stream (applicants may receive up to 50 percent of eligible project expenses, for a maximum grant of up to $1.5 million in support). The deadline to apply is November 17. Mentor Works

The Government of British Columbia is allocating a further $583,000 to the province's Innovator Skills Initiative to allow wait-listed businesses to access the program. The province provided $15 million to the initiative in fall 2021 to help people from under-represented groups get their start in the technology sector in 2022 and 2023. Government of B.C.

INVESTMENT NEWS

Ottawa-based Lytica, a provider of electronic component spend analytics and risk intelligence, closed its Series A investment round with a total consideration of over $13 million.  The round was led by Resolve Growth Partners (Baltimore) with participation from York IE (New Hampshire). Lytica

Consulting firm Accenture has completed its acquisition of Eclipse Automation (Cambridge, ON). Eclipse is a customized manufacturing automation and robotics solutions provider for life sciences, industrial equipment, automotive, energy, and consumer goods companies. The acquisition is designed to help Accenture offer automated production lines that "leverage the cloud, data and artificial intelligence (AI), making factories and plants smarter and thus, more productive, sustainable and safe." Eclipse

Cellular agriculture investment platform CULT Food Science (Vancouver) has acquired Food Revolution Media, a media company focused on alternative proteins and cellular agriculture. CULT has made the move to harness social media and advance messaging around cellular agriculture as a potential solution to food scarcity and to help drive commercialization and partnerships with portfolio companies. CULT Food Science

REPORTS

The Government of Canada's interdisciplinary Task Force on Flood Insurance and Relocation has released an analysis of insurance solutions to advance work on Canada's first national flood insurance program. The report provides evidence to support decision-making and a way forward on a national flood insurance program, and considerations for potential strategic relocation of people most at risk of flooding. GOC Release Task Force Report

The Chief Information Officers Strategy Council is inviting comments on the draft second edition of its National Standard of Canada for the fundamentals of digital trust and identity by September 21, 2022. The standard specifies requirements and controls for creating and maintaining trust in digital systems and services pertaining to people and organizations. The council is also inviting reviews and comments on its National Occupational Standard for the Cybersecurity Workforce (deadline October 21) and Data Governance – Part 8: Framework for Geo-residency and Sovereignty (deadline October 31). IT Business

SYMPOSIUMS

The Canadian Robotics Council, a partnership between industry, academia and government meant to demonstrate robotics' overall value in the economy along with high-growth areas like artificial intelligence and machine learning, will be holding its first symposium on September 22 in Ottawa. CRC

Researchers from Canada’s Global Nexus for Pandemics and Biological Threats at McMaster University are hosting international experts for an interdisciplinary symposium aimed at solutions to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) on October 12. The symposium will be co-chaired by Dr. Marie Elliot and Dr. Eric Brown, who jointly lead the Global Nexus AMR taskforce, AMR: Science, Society, Commercialization and Policy. McMaster

COVID-19 NEWS

Health Canada has authorized the first bivalent COVID-19 booster for adults 18 years and older. The vaccine targets the original SARS-CoV-2 virus from 2019 and the Omicron (BA.1) variant. Health Canada

THE GRAPEVINE

Dr. Suzanne Fortier, the former president of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, has retired as principal and vice-chancellor of McGill University. Dr. Christopher Manfredi has been named interim principal, effective September 6. Manfredi currently serves as the provost and vice-principal (academic). McGill

Filomena Tassi, formerly Minister of Public Services and Procurement, is now the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario). Tassi replaces Helena Jaczek, who has been installed as public services and procurement minister. PM

University of Saskatchewan president Dr. Peter Stoicheff has been appointed to chair the governing body of the U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities, effective September 1, 2022. Stoicheff follows University of British Columbia president Dr. Santa Ono, who begins his new position as president of the University of Michigan on October 13. Stoicheff was elected to serve as the new U15 chair of the board at its annual general meeting in August. USask

Dr. John Luxat has been appointed to the new position of senior advisor of nuclear energy in the Office of the Vice-President, Research (OVPR) at McMaster University. Luxat, who holds the Senior University Network of Excellence in Nuclear Engineering (UNENE) Industrial Research Chair in nuclear safety analysis, will be working with assistant vice president, nuclear Dr. Dave Tucker to support McMaster's research in nuclear energy. McMaster

Dr. Étienne Côté, veterinary cardiologist and professor in the Department of Companion Animals, Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island and Dr. John Bell, senior scientist at The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute are among the 71 new fellows elected to the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences for 2022. CAHS 

International Trade and Small Business Minister Mary Ng hosted the inaugural meeting of the selection panel for the Global Hypergrowth Project (GHP), an initiative to accelerate growth in up to 15 Canadian companies by helping them navigate and overcome exporting barriers and regulatory challenges. The selection panel is co-chaired by Thomas Park, lead and partner of the Business Development Bank of Canada’s (BDC) Deep Tech Venture Fund and John Ruffolo, founder and managing partner of Maverix Private Equity. GO