Grants and Contributions

The objectives of the Program are to; support the development and utilization of effective approaches to address social issues and challenges;.develop, exchange and apply knowledge, tools and resources that address social needs of individuals, families and communities; foster partnerships and networks to address existing and emerging social issues; recognize and support the ability of not-for-profit organizations to identify and address social development priorities; and, recognize and promote community engagement initiatives (e.g. volunteerism, corporate social responsibility, innovation, partnerships, coalitions) that mobilize community assets and develop capacities and resources for action..

It works with folk development colleges (FDCs) and community-based organizations (CBOs) to increase rates of participation of women and adolescent girls in skills training programs, improve access to business, skills and gender and human rights training in their communities, and expand opportunities in the informal and formal sectors through post-training support to transition to employment or self-employment. Project activities include: (1) building the capacity of FDCs and CBOs to develop and deliver gender-responsive programs; (2) providing gender training to partner staff and volunteers and establishing a gender champions network; (3) revising program content and teaching methods to better integrate gender considerations and ensure appropriate support services and facilities for women and adolescent girl students, especially young mothers; and (4) engaging local communities in awareness-raising activities on the benefits of women’s education and economic empowerment to encourage enrollment and create an enabling environment for women graduates.

Gender and identities Platform
PCVE/CT Toolkit

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ (OCHA) primary mandate is to oversee the coordination of international humanitarian responses, in partnership with national and international actors, in order to achieve more coherent and effective humanitarian action. This grant represents Canada’s country-level support to OCHA in Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Mali, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Ukraine, Venezuela, Yemen. This grant also includes Canada’s regional support to OCHA in Africa, Asia, and the Venezuela Crisis.

With the support of Canada and other donors, OCHA fulfills its mandate by: (1) strengthening humanitarian leadership; (2) establishing and overseeing coordination systems; (3) monitoring and reporting on humanitarian situations; (4) advocating on behalf of affected people; (5) supporting the assessment and prioritization of humanitarian needs and strategic planning; (6) promoting emergency preparedness; and (7) mobilizing funding for humanitarian assistance.

Researchers will collect publicly available skeletal muscle-relevant single-cell data and in-house cell data from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, as well as from the NRC’s Disruptive Technology Solutions for Cell and Gene Therapy Program. The AI-methodologies and simulation models developed in this Project will help to better understand the mechanisms of how stem cells differentiate to specific cell types with desired properties, speeding up the optimal strategy for selection while reducing the costs and facilitating the safe and efficient stem cell therapy.

The design of a high-performance micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) requires extensive design simulation to optimize its performance. Complex MEMS implementations, such as in adaptive optics (AO) systems, have multiple competing specifications and structural parameters to optimize. Skilled designers often spend many months of effort to develop such MEMS systems, with design effort often stopping when performance is sufficient as opposed to fully optimized. This slows and limits innovation in applied MEMS technology areas. This Project will focus on the development of AI using multi-objective optimization to automate the design and optimization of complex MEMS systems. The multi-objective MEMS performance problem is one where AI will provide dramatic benefits and significantly accelerate innovation.

The aim of this Project is to generate flexible-use, automated devices for rapid and efficient SARS-CoV-2 genome sequencing in order to enable early detection and molecular epidemiology studies to inform public health policies. The device will be based on the PowerBlade system and should be able to perform complex molecular steps, from virus RNA reverse transcription, to PCR amplification and library preparation for rapid sequencing by nanopore technology. The Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) reaction will also be adopted in combination with nanopore sequencing and applied in the form of a sequencing based rapid molecular test. These devices will be suitable for rapid deployment in the case of COVID-19 threats, as well as future threats in public health laboratories, diagnostic laboratories in hospitals, genomics laboratories and sequence service providers in academia, and the private sector, as well as suitable for point-of-need deployment, including remote locations. The combination of PowerBlade and Nanopore represents a potential flexible, mobile solution, which allows deployment in locations that do not have substantial genomics infrastructure, and therefore, enables the wide use of this system. This should enable low cost-fast turnaround genome sequencing and targeted sequencing in order to identify high risk SARS-CoV-2 virus variants in response to outbreaks and inform public health authorities.

The growing body of research on the benefits associated with pulse consumption has garnered interest in developing innovative technologies to expand the use of pulses in food products. At the same time, pulse incorporation in food products often comes with challenges associated with their sensory profile, including off-aromas and flavours. Yellow pea is one of the key pulses grown in Western Canada with considerable interest from the food industry. Although an excellent source of protein, yellow pea similar to other pulses causes sensory challenges relating to their acceptability and stability over time. A major contributor to volatile organic compounds (VOCs)-associated off-flavours in pulse products is lipoxygenase (LOX). The Project will employ a flavouromics approach to provide a better understanding of these off-flavour formations by examining the LOX activity, fatty acids and VOCs profile of selected yellow peas, including processed fractions, and to investigate their association with their sensory profile.

The use of robotics in orthopedic surgery substantially reduces the patient recovery time and enhances the operation’s efficiency, reliability, autonomy, and standardization. Despite these advantages, issues such as cost, safety, and training must be addressed before Robot-Assisted Orthopedic Surgery (RAOS) becomes widely available. This Project will employ a digital twin approach to help reduce the cost and increase the safety of RAOS technology. Offline and in-process computer simulations are a key part of the current RAOS systems. This Project seeks to enhance these simulations by integrating the process physics (e.g. forces, temperature, vibrations). Specifically, the Project focuses on combining physics-based and data-driven methods to develop high-fidelity and high-efficiency models of the process physics during RAOS. These models will then be used to develop a pilot software, ultimately leading to the envisioned digital twin.

To support the participation of Indigenous peoples in activities relating to theconservation and protection of fish and fish habitat, including the development of theDepartment of Fisheries and Oceans' (DFO) policies, program elements and regulationsand the development of their technical capacity to support greater involvement in the conservation and protection of fish and fish habitat.