New faces and lively minds build research profile

77 per cent increase in sponsored funding from 2002-03 to 2003-04

barbara black

A showcase of about 15 Concordia research projects is being launched under the leadership of Vice-Provost Research Truong Vo-Van and with the enthusiastic support of President Claude Lajeunesse.

The five events, described as “interactive fora,” start Jan. 30 and will proceed throughout the term. They were organized to provide the incoming president with an overview of current research, but it seemed too good an opportunity to restrict, so faculty and their interested students have been invited as well. Each will be accompanied by private visits to their related laboratories by Lajeunesse.

The five clusters of three presentations have been organized along the lines set out in the university’s strategic research plan, which was submitted to the Canada Research Chairs program in March 2005. It is available at http://www.chairs.gc.ca/web/program/srp/srp_list_e.asp.

Accordingly, the five research areas are Manufacturing and Transportation Systems, Learn-ing Human Development and Human Environment, Inform-ation Technologies and their Basic Foundations, Health and Life Sciences, and Social and Economic Development in a Global Environment.

CFI increase

According to Vice-Provost Research Vo-Van, it’s a great way to highlight the fact that the university achieved a 77-per-cent increase in sponsored research funding between 2002-03 and 2003-04.

The biggest increase is attributable to funding from the federal Canada Foundation for Innovation program, which jumped from $2.2 million to $8.9 million in that period.

Other sources, such as the major federal and provincial granting agencies, accounted for a nearly 36-per-cent increase, and industry contracts increased by nearly 35 per cent.

Arts and Science, in particular, showed substantial increases in funding from CIHR (health sciences research) and SSHRC, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. The John Molson School of Business also improved its SSHRC funding by 132 per cent.

The Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science improved its industry research by nearly 90 per cent. Although research funded by NSERC (science and engineering) showed only a small increase, the rate of funded researchers was quite high. “There was also a healthy tendency to diversify funding sources,” Vo-Van said.

Not discouraged

Much of the increased research activity is due to the new hires of the past seven or eight years, he explained. “These young researchers are full of fresh ideas, and they’re not discouraged by occasional refusals – they just apply again.”

Between 1997 and 2004, 350 new faculty members were recruited and hired, and over only the past two years, Concordia’s Canada Research Chairs have increased from two to 21.

“Since 2002, the number of research grant applications has constantly increased, and surpassed the 400 mark last year,” Vo-Van said. The bottom line has been no less stunning. In 2003-04, research revenues increased to a total of more than $37 million and considerable publication activities were also noted.

In February, Vo-Van will be the host at a breakfast to celebrate recent award recipients (such as the University Research Awards, and the Petro-Canada Young Innovators), and in March there will be a reception for Canada Research Chairs and Concordia Research Chairs. President Claude Lajeunesse will attend both events.

The first presentation of the Research Speakers Series on Jan. 30, will feature Nadia Bhuiyan, Associate Director of the Concordia Institute of Aerospace Design and Innovation, Subhash Rakheja, Concordia Research Chair in Vehicular Dynamics, and Narayanswamy Sivakumar, Tier II Canada Research Chair in Laser Metrology and Laser Micromachining.

It will be held in EV 2.184, on the second floor of the new building, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Since space is limited, it would be wise to RSVP by contacting Vanessa.Buzzelli@concordia.ca in advance.