TORONTO, Canada – The Ontario government is providing over $70.4 million to help advance ‘Ontario made’ research and innovation at Ontario’s colleges, universities, research institutes and research hospitals. The funding is being delivered through the Ontario Research Fund and Early Researcher Awards programs and will support the development of homegrown ideas, products and technologies.
“Ensuring Ontario’s researchers have access to state-of-the-art technology, talent and equipment has never been more important than it is now as we support our world-class research institutes, research hospitals and post-secondary institutions across the province,” said Jill Dunlop, minister of Colleges and Universities. “This funding helps to ensure researchers have the necessary supports in place to make discoveries that advance knowledge, inspire advances in technology, drive our economic competitiveness, and create a better future for the people of Ontario.”
The funding will support 176 research projects across the province and will be used to cover the costs of research operations and infrastructure, including building, renovating and equipping research facilities with the latest technology.
Examples of research projects include:
- The Water and Ice Research Lab at Carleton University is receiving $109,999 in funding to use state-of-the-art autonomous aircraft and underwater vehicles to explore remote and inaccessible environments in order to improve land-use management, conservation and protection in Ontario.
- Lambton College’s Canadian Extrusion Research Lab is receiving $417,533 in funding to help Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) develop and optimize green, smart and recycling materials and technologies. The Canadian Extrusion Research Lab will position Ontario as a provincial and national hub for material development projects.
- The University Health Network is receiving $246,923 to conduct research to better understand heart disease and how it is affected by diabetes. Researchers will also test new regenerative medicine techniques to try to repair damaged hearts using stem cells and engineered blood vessels.
- The University of Toronto is receiving $3,280,998 to improve autonomous driving car technology in winter weather, in partnership with General Motors, LGE, Applanix and Algolux.
As announced in Ontario’s Action Plan: Protecting People’s Health and Our Economy – 2021 Ontario Budget, the government is investing over $500 million over the next 10 years to support additional high‐value research undertaken across Ontario’s universities, colleges, research institutes and research hospitals.
“Driving research excellence and innovation is crucial as Ontario continues to defeat COVID-19 and lay the groundwork for a robust and long-term economic recovery,” said minister Dunlop. “Our government will continue to support ground-breaking research to advance new discoveries and innovation, while fostering a skilled labour force and promoting new business opportunities across the province.”
