Grants and Contributions

This project continues and builds on past support to the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) and seeks to address urgent peacebuilding needs in fragile and conflict-affected states through locally-led, gender and youth-responsive, catalytic investments. Project activities include: (1) supporting fast and flexible initiatives that address gender and youth inclusion; (2) facilitating United Nations transitions from peacekeeping to local level peacebuilding; and (3) supporting cross-border and regional programs.

Mobility disability affects 1 in 10 Canadians and is a major impediment to quality of life. This is particularly true for the growing senior population, increasing risk of social isolation, falls, and loss of independence. In this work, the project team will explore and evaluate emerging solutions to managing mobility disabilities in community-dwelling older adults. The team aims to survey the needs and experiences of older adults related to mobility assessment and planning, and their perceptions and interests in adopting technology-based solutions. After developing a better understanding of the intersectional needs of older adults with varying degrees of mobility and independence, the team will explore and implement potential solutions, drawing from emerging state-of-the-art options such as wearables and computer-vision. These solutions will then be evaluated in a series of mixed-methods pilot studies with end-users to evaluate their benefits, performance, and design tradeoffs. The development of better and more accessible assessment tools could improve engagement and proactive monitoring, enabling seniors with mobility disabilities to better age in place.

Advances exploratory research under the New Beginnings Initiative

The project team will utilize a quantum annealing processors for replacing the computationally expensive first-principles simulation with synthetic data generated by a quantum-assisted Machine Learning model – the Quantum Variational Autoencoder (QVAE). Simulated data enables the analysis of the real data at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The LHC, and the experiments that capture and analyze proton-proton collisions produced by the LHC, ATLAS and CMS, are a global scientific effort that resulted in the discovery of the Higgs Boson and the awarding of the 2013 Nobel prize in Physics. This quest continues now to study the Higgs Boson and search for new discoveries, but the cost of generating simulated data threatens the physics reach of upcoming upgrades to the LHC. The QVAEs combine deep encoder and decoder neural networks with a Quantum Boltzmann Machine implementing the latent space – a hidden representation of the data. This latent space can be efficiently sampled utilizing Quantum Annealing devices, creating plentiful and fast simulations of particles and their interactions with the detector.

Advances exploratory research under the New Beginnings Initiative

Advances exploratory research under the New Beginnings Initiative

Specialized cells called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are derived from mature tissue, such as the skin, and have accelerated the development of cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative disorders, cancer, and other hard-to-treat diseases. However, the processes used to convert cells taken from a patient into a therapeutic product could be more efficient and easier to control. The project focuses on iPSC-derived CAR-NK immune cells, an upcoming anticancer therapy technology in which cells from a patient are modified and reintroduced to stimulate the patient's anticancer immune defences. Previous studies show that current production methods yield a low number of CAR-NK cells and that these cells rapidly lose their therapeutic attributes. The project investigates if new genome engineering strategies can improve the production of iPSC-derived CAR-NK immune cells. It has the potential to set new standards for stem cell manipulation and iPSC-derived therapy production that will bring CAR-NK anticancer therapies closer to the clinic.

The contribution supports the active engagement and participation of the Cree Nation Government and coastal Cree communities of Eeyou Istchee in determining the feasibility of establishing a national marine conservation area in eastern James Bay. It enables the Cree Nation Government to hire personnel (such as project coordinator, community liaison), to support travel to and undertake necessary community consultations in partnership with Parks Canada, to participate in project steering committee meetings with Parks Canada, and to subcontract the assembly, mapping and review of traditional Cree knowledge. As an important part of Cree culture and knowledge, Cree language will be used, besides English and French, in some of the communication materials and in consultations.

The objective is to promote greater awareness of clean fuels and clean fuels technologies across all industries, commercial applications, and the general public in Canada.

The purpose of this agreement is to increase awareness, availability and use of lower carbon vehicles and fuels in Canada by supporting the installation of electric vehicle charger tecnhology in Ontario and Quebec.