Research Week Archives

View the 2020 Research Week Program.

View the 2020 Graduate Student Symposim program.

Recipient of the 2019-2020 Excellence in Research Award

Professor Alain Doom (recipient) with President Robert Haché

 

Recipients of the 2020 Innovation Award

Dr. Nancy Young and Mary Jo Wabano

(Pictured: two research assistants working with Dr. Young) 

 

Winners of the Voyageurs' Innovation Challenge

Ben MacKenzie, Curtis Carpino, Cameron Perdue, and Guneet Sahni (pictured with Gisele Roberts), students in the Faculty of Management, won for their Residence Move-In Box idea, in collaboration with Dr. Ron Mulholland (not pictured)

1. Dr. Mélanie Perron, in collaboration with the University of Moncton, transformed her collaborative research into a book for children entitled “Emotions: how to explain them better”. So far, 500 copies of the book have been distributed to help promote the development in young francophone children of the understanding of emotions.

2. Dr. Chantal Mayer-Crittenden started The Parlé Podcast where she hosts a bevy of guests on the topic of communication at large.

3. Dr. Celeste Pedri-Spade received Laurentian University’s first New Frontiers in Research Fund grant for her research project repatriating children’s artwork to Indian Residential School and Day School survivors in Anishinabe and Algonquin territory.

4. Dr. Nancy Young and Ms. Mary Jo Wabano are co-leading a CIHR grant entitled, “Listening to Children's Voices - Promoting Indigenous Mental Wellness (I aM Well).”  This 5-year grant is worth $1.5 million and is one of only two applications that were successful in the National competition.

5. In 2019, Dr. Joey-Lynn Wabie received a SSHRC Connection grant to support outreach activities in the area of reconciliation, bringing forward the voices of Indigenous youth (aged 16-
29) from communities across Ontario. 

6. The Workplace Simulation Laboratory (W-SIM), housed at the CROSH, has been created through successful grant applications totalling approximately $750, 000 from FedNor, NOHFC, CFI, and ORF. W-SIM is the only facility of its kind globally, and can recreate almost any northern workplace environment, within a controlled laboratory setting. Integrating: a robotic, motion platform (simulates vibration); an environmental chamber (to control temperature/humidity); a virtual reality eye-tracker (simulates workers’ surroundings); and a cardiorespiratory diagnostic system (measures human responses) – W-SIM can solve real-world, workplace problems using simulation.

7. The Wiigwam at Laurentian University is a visible reminder of Indigenous presence and lands on campus. It is a treasured community member, and one way the community has moved LU forward towards its Imagine 2023 goal of becoming a national leader in Indigenous education. Launched by LU faculty and staff, the outcome of this funded research project continues to change the landscape on campus through the sharing of Indigenous knowledge.

8. Dr. Elizabeth Turner is among a team of scientists that have discovered the world’s oldest fungus fossil to date, which dates back as far as a billion years ago. That's about half a billion years older than the previously discovered fungi.

9. Dr. James Watterson’s partnership with Sudbury Action Committee for Youth (SACY) to identify the chemical properties of street drugs.

10. Dr. Kerry McGannon was a co-author of the article, "Educating Parents of Children in Sport About Abuse Using Narrative Pedagogy" which won paper of the year (2019) from the North American Society for the Sociology of Sport.

• Indigenous Presentation | Natasha Daviau
• Runner-Up | Chantel Desrochers

• Faculty of Health | Margaret Kanya-Forstner
• Runner-Up | Chelsea Sherrington

• Faculty of Science | Christina Mozzon
• Runner-Up | Jade Dawson

• Faculty of Arts | Vivian Oystrick
• Runner-Up | Sarah de Blois

• Francophone Affairs | Ania Mezouari
• Runner-Up | Marangaby (Miriam) Mahamat

• 3MT | Lea Fieschi Meric
• 3MT Runner-Up | Rachel Belanger
• 3MT People's Choice | Tess Dufour

• Overall Phd | Adam Kirkwood
• Overall MA | Christina Mozzon

View the Research Week 2019 program.

Opening Ceremony

The Opening Ceremony of Research Week 2019 featured the launch of volume 8 of The Key, the release of the Research Week 2019 video and updates on Outcomes 16-20 of the Strategic Plan. Following the Opening Ceremony, Mr. Alfred Leblanc of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council gave the keynote address.

 

Symposium and Activities 

Five professors took on the challenge of presenting their research in 3 minutes! They were judged by a panel of graduate students who themselves participated in the 3MT competition. The participants were, from left to right, Guangdong Yang, Isabelle Côté, Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde (winner), Michèle Minor-Corriveau and Eduardo Galiano-Riveros.

Last year's Research Excellence Award (2017-2018) recipient, Jackie Litzgus, gave a talk highlighting her research on conservation and turtles, including the successes and challenges (pictured here with Sean Parsons from the Office of Research Services). 

Five teams competed in the Voyageurs' Innovation Challenge! 

A large and lively group ate poutine and participated in this year's Research Trivia Night, hosted by professor Michael Emond!

ACFAS-Sudbury held a round-table discussion on the challenges of publishing academic research in French in Northern Ontario! The panelists were (left to right) Denise Truax (Prise de parole), Julie Boissonneault, Simon Laflamme, Line Tremblay and Raoul Étongué-Mayer.

The Faculty of Education invited Nicholas Ng-A-Fook (University of Ottawa) to give a talk on Restorying Teacher Education!

Sadequl Islam and the Department of Economics invited Nusrate Aziz (Algoma University) and Livio Di Matteo (Lakehead University) to talk about income inequality.

Members of the Association of Retired Academics at Laurentian University presented some of their active research projects! Pictured, Professor Emeritus Joe Shorthouse.

CNFS-Laurentienne held a full-day on mental health in Northern Ontario!

The Laurentian Research Institute for Aging held two events during Research Week, including this event on design and age-friendly environments. 

SNOLAB researchers gave 3-minute updates on their research!

Students from the Sciences infirmières program held poster presentations of their research projects. 

Research Excellence Award 2018-2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Amadeo M. Parissenti was awarded the 2018–2019 Research Excellence Award for his outstanding research in monitoring tumour response to chemotherapy and its potential to help patients. Dr. Parissenti is a tenured Full Professor with the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Laurentian University, a tenured Full Professor with the Division of Medical Sciences at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM), a Principal Investigator at the Health Sciences North Research Institute (HSNRI), and Chief Scientific Officer at RNA Diagnostics, Inc. Dr. Parissenti has an impressive publication record, including six co-authored book chapters and fifty-five peer-reviewed articles. He holds several patents, some of which were granted in many jurisdictions, and has received a number of awards, including the Best Intellectual Property Award from The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE) as part of the Quest Business Competition in Toronto. 

 

Innovation Award

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Joël Dickinson, Dean for the Faculty of Arts, and Anik Dennie, master's student in Human Kinetics, received the Innovation Award for developing the Safe Space Training.

 

Voyageurs' Innovation Challenge Winners

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Voyageurs' Innovation Challenge winning team led by Drs. Ashley Scott and Nathan Basiliko with post-doctoral fellow Gerusa Senhorinho, and PhD students Miranda Gauthier, Merritt Kennedy and Sabrina Desjardins. Their innovation will help remote northern communities capture carbon dioxide from diesel-powered generators, and use that captured gas to grow microalgae.                                                                                                            

 

3-Minute Thesis Competition

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Master's of Science Communication student Chelsea Pike won the Laurentian 3MT competition and represented the University at the provincial 3MT competition in April 2019.          

 

3-Minute Research Competition

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde from the Department of Biology won the faculty competition for summarizing their research in 3 minutes using only one slide.

 

SciArt

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gillian Schultze (pictured with SciArt organizer Dr. Thomas Merritt) won the Staff/Faculty Best in Show prize for her piece “Northern Roots”.   

Other SciArt winners:

LUL Student (1st) - Adam Greasley, “Model Organisms”

LUL Student (2nd) - Teagan Neufield, “A Little Slice of Coronal”

LUL Student (3rd) - Pritha Banerjee, “Epigenetics and Aging”

Community Artist Awards - Isabelle Ratte, “Industrial Ballerina”, Hadyn Butler, “Jocelyn Bell”, Suzanne McCrae, “BIG and Itty-Bitty”

School Awards - R.LBeattie, “Dr. Milk-Bot”, Julia Oystrick, “Dance to Titanium”, R.L Beattie, “Biodiversity Tree”, Emily Thomas, “Meltdown”, Kara Lynn Edgar, “Earth on Fire”

People’s Choice - Gene Solomon, “Water is Life”

Visit the Laurentian 2019 SciArt Exhibition website.

 

Top 10 Research and Innovation Achievements of 2018 Awards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Architecture students accepted the 1st place award on Dr. Émilie Pinard's behalf.       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Ming Cai received the 2nd place award.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Jennifer Walker received the 3rd and 6th place awards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drs. John Gunn and Nathan Basiliko received the fourth place award.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Tammy Eger received the 5th place award.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Luckny Zéphyr received the 9th place award.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Drs. Anne-Marise Lavoie and Sylvie Larocque received the 10th place award on behalf of the Sciences infirmières program. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 2019 Top Ten trophies were designed and made by 4th year Architecture students David Gagnon and Alexander Scali, featuring a piece of slag in the middle.     

Top Row: Gillian Schultze, Ki-Youn Kim, Andrée Noiseux (co-chair), Lise Carrière, Lynn Leclerc and Sean Parsons

Bottom Row: Robin Craig, Kristyna Ripley, Stacy Sathaseevan, Stephanie Harris, Gisele Robert, Daniel Archambault (co-chair) and Rizwan Haq

1. Dr. Émilie Pinard received Laurentian University’s first ever SSHRC Partnership Engage grant at for her project supporting the Innu Takuaikan Uashat mak Mani-Utenam Band Council in developing a project to build a centre for the transmission of Innu culture focused on youth. 
    
2. Dr. Ming Cai and four students obtained a patent in Chile for their new rock bolt (Superbolt) design. It is Laurentian’s first patent in Chile and the first issued patent which names four students as co-inventors.
    
3. Drs. Jennifer Walker (co-PI), Taima Moeke-Pickering, Sheila Cote-Meek, Joey-Lynn Wabie and Celeste Pedri-Spade were part of the research team behind the inaugural summer school of Ontario’s Indigenous Mentorship Network (IMN), Ontario’s first Indigenous-led health research training network. 
    
4. A team of Laurentian University researchers led by Dr. Nathan Basiliko, along with Drs. John Gunn and Nadia Mykytczuk, received $1.6M from NSERC and OCE for the project entitled “Landscape Carbon Accumulation through Reductions in Emissions (L-CARE)”, aimed at tackling the problem of greenhouse gas emissions. 
    
5. Dr. Tammy Eger is one of four Canadian women (from a total of 95 women representing 28 countries) to have been selected to participate in a 12-month intensive leadership program for women in STEMM entitled “Homeward Bound”, which culminates with a 3-week expedition to Antarctica.
    
6. Dr. Jennifer Walker received an Early Researcher Award from the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade for her project entitled “Data as Medicine: Improving population-level health information in First Nations communities in Northern Ontario.”
    
7. Grace Scott, PhD candidate in Rural and Northern Health, received the Frederick Banting and Charles Best CGS – Doctoral Award, administered through the Canadian Institute of Health Research. 
    
8. Dr. Luis Radford received an Honorary Provincial Education Award from the Ministry of Education for his exceptional and sustained contribution to French-language education research in Ontario. The award waspresented at the 4th edition of the forum Synergie portant sur la recherche en éducation de langue française de l'Ontario.
    
9. Dr. Luckny Zephyr received First Prize AMBAR 2018 - Research and Development of the Colombian Energy Sector (Research Category) from the Association of Colombian Distributors of Electrical Energy for the paper "MAEP: A Mild- and Long-Term Tool for Hydro-Thermal Power Systems".
    
10. In 2018, bachelor's and master's students in Sciences infirmières received six (6) awards for presenting quality research projects at various conferences. 

View the 2018 Research Week program.

A Word from the Vice-President Research

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research Week 2018 was a fantastic demonstration of this year’s theme of Our Research, Our Community! Laurentian University’s best Research Week yet showcased the wide variety of research and innovation activities by our faculty and student researchers and its significance for and connection to our community.  

The week was filled with compelling symposiums, presentations, celebrations, and network activities, starting with our Health Research Day and keynote address by Mr. Simon Kennedy, Deputy Minister of Health Canada. We also had the pleasure of having the 2017 Canada Gairdner International Laureate, Dr. David Julius, as our keynote speaker. 

During Research Week 2018, faculty, students, community partners and the organizing committee held 29 unique symposiums and activities. The SciArt exhibition had nearly 100 pieces that link art and science in the Atrium of the Parker Building. Three teams composed of faculty and student members pitched their innovative business ideas to a panel of judges at the Voyageurs’ Innovation Challenge. 21 graduate students presented their research themes during the Graduate Symposium’s 3-Minute Thesis Competition (3MT®). For the first time in Research Week celebrations, nine faculty members took on the challenge of presenting their researching in three minutes during the Three Minute Research (3MR). And in another Research Week first, two symposiums were organized and facilitated by student-researchers; a trend we hope will continue next year!

Our weeklong celebration of research at Laurentian was capped off by an Awards Gala and Celebration where this year’s Laurentian University Research Excellence Award recipient was announced, the renewal of two Tier 1 Canada Research Chairs was fêted, the Top 10 Research and Innovation Achievements of 2017 were revealed and many other achievements of our faculty and students were recognized.

Thank you to all who participated in Research Week 2018, and to the staff of the Office of Research Services, Office of the Vice-President Research, the Faculty of Graduate Studies, Marketing and Communications for your help in organizing a memorable week.

Dr. Rui Wang, Vice-President Research

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Opening Ceremony

Research Week 2018 officially launched on March 19, 2018, starting with an opening prayer by traditional knowledge keeper Mr. Rob Spade and the reading of a proclamation from the City of Greater Sudbury by Mayor Brian Bigger. The 2018 edition of The Key was launched, as was the Laurentian Research Success 2017 video made by Dr. Hoi Cheu. Funding for Dr. Nancy Young’s research program from the Health System Research Fund to evaluate children’s health in 8 indigenous communities was announced and the Centre for Rural and Northern Health Research’s (CRaNHR) Director Dr. Alain Gauthier marked the Centre’s 25th anniversary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Opening Ceremony
Pictured: Sonia Del Missier, Dr. Claire Perreault, Dr. Alain Gauthier, Dr. Rui Wang, Dr. Nancy Young, Mayor Brian Bigger, Dr. Pierre Zundel, Laurentian Elder Rob Spade, Dr. Daniel Archambault 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keynote Address
Pictured: Dr. Pierre Zundel, Mr. Simon Kennedy (Keynote Speaker), Mayor Brian Bigger, Dr. Rui Wang

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Health Research Day

The first day of Research Week highlighted the variety of health research being done at Laurentian, starting with presentations for the Louise Picard Public Health Research Grant, a joint research program between Public Health Sudbury & Districts and Laurentian University. The eponymous Mrs. Picard was in attendance to explain the origin of the grant, and funding for six new collaborative research projects was announced. CRaNHR celebrated 25 years of rural health research excellence, starting with a keynote address by Dr. James Rourke, director of the Centre for Rural Health Studies at Memorial University; current CRaNHR researchers gave overviews of their ongoing projects and past directors talked about the research accomplishments of their tenures.

Louise Picard Public Health Research Grant Presentations  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Louise Picard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Dr. Daniel Archambault, Julia Russell, Dr. Diana Urajnik, Michelle Lim, Paula Ross, Shannon Dowdall-Smith, Stephanie Hastie, Karen McCauley, Dr. Janis Goldie, Dr. Heather Jessup-Falcioni, Dr. Suzanne Lemieux, David Groulx, Louise Picard, Renée St-Onge, Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, Dr. Shelley Watson, Dr. Kelly Harding.

 

Celebrating 25 years of Rural Health Research Excellence; CRaNHR 1992-2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Past and current CRaNHR Directors: Dr. Elizabeth Wenghofer, Dr. Wayne Warry, John Hogenbirk, Dr. Raymond Pong, Dr. Alain Gauthier 

 

Graduate Symposium

The Graduate Symposium took place on March 19th, 20th, and 21st. Over 10 prizes were awarded in the categories of: Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Health, Faculty of Science, Engineering, and Architecture, French and Indigenous content. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Alex Freedman, Dr. Janis Goldie, Anik Dennie, Amy Henson, Jasmine Veitch, Markus Schwabe, Erik Slade

 

Faculty Symposiums

Research Week 2018 provided a venue for faculty members to share their research and research results with the greater Laurentian community. This year, we are proud to have welcomed numerous symposiums, each having an impact on Laurentian’s research successes.

 

Hidden Homelessness and Reconciliation  
Organized by the Centre for Research in Social Justice and Policy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photovoice exhibit illustrating forms of homelessness

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Keynote Jesse Thistle, York University, PhD candidate and resident scholar on Indigenous homelessness, Canadian Observatory on Homelessness 

 

Shastri Indo-Canada Institute Funding Opportunities 
Organized by the Department of Marketing and Management of the Faculty of Management 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Patricia Orozco, Dr. Rana Haq, Dr. Veronica Chevasco, Dr. Ivy Kyei-Poku, Dr. Natalya Totskaya  

 

Zoos and Aquariums Moving Forward: History, politics and science 
Organized by the Centre for Evolutionary Ecology and Ethical Conversation (CEEEC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Presenter: Alannah Biega (Simon Fraser University)

 

Our Research, Our Community, Our Indigenous Sovereignty
Organized by the Maamwizing Indigenous Research Institute 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Ghislaine Goudreau and Eladia Smoke

 

Work on Wood 
Organized by the McEwen School of Architecture

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Dr. Patrick Harrop 

 

SNOLAB Cookies and Cloud Chambers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Dr. Oleg Chkvorets, Dr. Serge Nahorny, Dr. Pierre Gorel and Blaire Flynn 

 

3-Minute Research (3MR): Faculty Presentations

 

 

 

 

Presenter: Dr. Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SciArt Exhibition
Organized by Dr. Thomas Merritt

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Piece by Dr. Erica Caden (winner of SciArt) called "Super-Kwilt". Erica is a scientist at SNOLAB working on the Super-Kamiokande experiment.

 

Rencontres express : À la recherche de partenaires pour améliorer l’accès et la qualité des soins de santé des francophones
Organized by CNFS-Laurentienne

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Léo Therrien, Boroma Sanou, Gaëtane Pharand, Patrick Timony, Dr. Mélanie Perron, Marie-Josée Charrier, Pierre Mafunda Mahuma, Dr. Suzanne Lemieux, Dr. Manon Robillard, Monique Beaudoin

 

Student Symposiums and New Initiatives

Student Symposium: Lose the Tube: Early Discontinuation of Urinary Catheters in Medical Inpatients 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pascale King, Nadia Omri, and Jeff McLellan, students at NOSM, presented a research proposal discussing their ‘Lose the Tube’ proposal, exploring the early discontinuation of urinary catheters in patients at Timmins and District Hospital. 

 

Student Symposium: LGBTQ2+ Youth Homelessness in Ontario 

 

 

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Vincent Bolt, student in the School of Indigenous Relations, presented research and then held a discussion about issues related to LGBTQ2+ Youth and Homelessness in Ontario.

 

Research Trivia Night

 

      

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Lynn Leclerc, Dr. Lingyun Wu, Dr. Rui Wang, Bill Sanders, Chris Gore, Nirav Pandey, Thomas Gore, Gillian Schultze, Dr. Daniel Archambault, Kayla Jones, Nathalie Chaput, Dr. Sean Parsons, Laura Williams, Andrée Noiseux, Stephanie Harris   

 

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Breakfast of Excellence

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured is the 2016-2017 Research Excellence Award winner, Dr. Harold Gibson. A full professor in the Harquail School of Earth Sciences, Dr. Gibson is seen giving a presentation about his career path in geology, how it has led to his current research interests, and where he thinks his research is headed in the future.

Research Excellence Award 2017-2018

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Research Excellence Award is given out every year to the faculty member who has over the last five years shown outstanding achievements in their research program. Given out during Research Week, this award is considered one of the most prestigious awards that Laurentian bestows upon a member of its faculty, and recipients must be nominated by their colleagues. Dr. Jacqueline Litzgus was the recipient of the 2017-2018 Research Excellence Award. Dr. Litzgus is a full professor in the Department of Biology, and was nominated by colleagues and students for her outstanding work in the field of conservation, particularly focusing on reptiles and turtles. 

Pictured: Lila Merritt, Dr. Jackie Litzgus and Dr. Pierre Zundel

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Awards Gala and Celebration

The Awards Gala and Celebration is one of many pinnacle events during Research Week.  Every year, this event highlights and celebrates research successes at Laurentian.  This year, the Awards Gala welcomed over 100 guests including members of industry and university partners. Congratulations, once again, to each of the award recipients. 

 

Voyagers’ Innovation Challenge  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Winners Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk (left) and Varun Gupta (right), with Gisele Roberts

 

Top 10 Research and Innovation Achievement Awards - 1st Place Winner

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Winner Dr. Ming Cai (middle), with Craig Fowler and Sonia Del Missier 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Top 10 trophies were designed and made by third-year McEwen School of Architecture students David Gagnon, Alexander Scali and Gabriel Luis Gaviola.

 

SciArt Show Winners and Judges

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Dr. Thomas Merritt, Gene Solomon, Adrian Hutchinson, Katie Fennerty, Dr. Thierry Bissonnette and Dr. Tammy Gaber 

 

Graduate Studies Symposium Winners

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Masters Presentation from the Graduate Symposium Winner: Pooja Woosaree (pictured with Stacy Sathaseevan), Physics, Faculty of Science, Engineering, and Architecture 
Project: Rn Concentrations Within the Water Phase of the SNO+ Experiment 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3MT Winner: Jasmine Veitch (pictured with Stacy Sathaseevan), Presentation: Behavioural and Physiological Responses to Ectoparasites: Effects of Parasites on Stress Hormones and Maternal Care in Small Mammals 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best PhD Presentation from the Graduate Symposium
Winner: Bright Opong Afum (pictured with Stacy Sathaseevan), Natural Resources Engineering, Faculty of Science, Engineering, and Architecture
Project: Strategic Evaluation of Mineralized Waste Rocks as Future Resource

 

Group Photo of All Research Week Award Winners

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Pooja Woosaree, Jasmine Veitch, Varun Gupta, Bright Oppong Afum, Dr. Ming Cai, Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk, Dr. Pierre Zundel, Dr. Jackie Litzgus, Craig Fowler, Dr. Daniel Archambault, Mayor Brian Bigger, Dr. Kobana Abukari, Sonia Del Missier, Dr. Claire Perreault, Dr. Tammy Gaber, Dr. Carol Kauppi, Suzanne Lemieux, Dr. Chantal Barriault, Dr. Nancy Young, Dr. Tammy Eger, Dr. Sandra Dorman, Dr. Rui Wang   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured: Lynn Leclerc, Dr. Rui Wang, Dr. Daniel Archambault (co-chair), Gisele Roberts, Dr. Sean Parsons, Kayla Jones, Nathalie Chaput, Gillian Schultze, Catherine Crawford-Brown, Lise Carrière, Pauline Zanetti, Stephanie Harris (co-chair), Andrée Noiseux 

Missing: Stacy Sathaseevan and Sierra Goetz

1. John A. Franklin Award

Dr. Ming Cai received the John A. Franklin Award from the Canadian Geotechnical Society, recognizing his work in rock mechanics and rock engineering aimed at improving safety and efficiency in the mining industry in Canada and around the world.

2. 2017 Annual CFA Society Toronto & Hillsdale Canadian Investment Research Award 

Dr. Kobana Abukari, with his colleague Isaac Otchere, won the 2017 Annual CFA Society Toronto & Hillsdale Canadian Investment Research Award for his paper Dominance of Hybrid Contratum Strategies over Momentum and Contrarian Strategies: Half a Century of Evidence.

3. Early Researcher Award

Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk received the Early Researcher Award, only the second in Laurentian history, from the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science for her project titled, Extracting value from environmental liabilities: using microbes to recover metals and reduce impacts from mine waste.

4. Ontario Public Health Association’s 2017 Award of Excellence

Dr. Jennifer Walker received the Ontario Public Health Association (OPHA)’s 2017 Award of Excellence, in recognition of her contributions and leadership in the field of Indigenous health. Dr. Walker was also awarded $500,000 from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research for her project Validation of the Canadian Indigenous Cognitive Assessment Tool in three provinces.

5. Health System Research Fund Grant

Dr. Nancy Young is the recipient of a $2 million Health System Research Fund (HSRF) grant for Health Promotion from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care for her project Evaluation to Action: Integrating the Voices of Aboriginal Children. Co-leading the project is Mrs. Mary Jo Wabano, Health Services Director for Wiikwemkoong Unceeded Territory.

6. Exhibition at Noor Cultural Centre

Dr. Tammy Gaber’s exhibition of 30 original research-creation pieces and 72 informative posters at the Noor Cultural Centre in Toronto as part of the Canadian Council for Muslim Women symposium, based on the findings of her SSHRC project documenting mosques in Canada.

7. SSHRC Impact Award

Dr. Carol Kauppi received the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Partnership Award for her accomplishments in working with university and community partners to understand homelessness in northern Ontario and her research into sources of social and economic inequality and strategies for working toward social justice.

8. Master’s Program in Science Communication

Canada’s first and only comprehensive Master’s program in Science Communication in the School of the Environment created by the team lead by Dr. Chantal Barriault, including Drs. Philippa Spoel, David Pearson, Ratvinder Grewal, and Ann Pegoraro, and Science North as a partner institution.

9. #1 Undergraduate University in Total Sponsored Research Income

Laurentian University is Canada’s #1 Undergraduate University in total sponsored research income, according to Research Infosource.

10. M-CROSH

The Centre for Research in Occupational Safety and Health (CROSH) launched M-CROSH, its mobile, occupational safety and health research lab, the first of its kind in Canada. The M-CROSH project is co-lead by Drs. Tammy Eger and Sandra Dorman.

10. Governor General Gold Medal for highest achievement in the Faculty of Graduate Studies and NSERC Doctoral Award, Justin Chamberland (MA, Psychology)

Justin Chamberland (MA, Psychology) received the Governor General Gold Medal for highest achievement in the Faculty of Graduate Studies along with a 3 year NSERC Doctoral Award to study at the University of Ottawa. Justin has been exemplary in his time at Laurentian with 8 publications and has conducted exceptional research on the relationship between eye movement and smile authenticity: According to his external thesis examiner, "This study (relationship between eye movement and smile authenticity) is a remarkable Master's thesis and I would like to congratulate the candidate for a fine piece of work".

9. Outstanding NSERC Granting Success, Dr. Elizabeth Turner (Harquail School of Earth Sciences)

 In 2016, Elizabeth Turner was awarded an NSERC Discovery Grant and Accelerator supplement.  The Accelerator supplement is given to less than 1% of all Discovery grantees, and is designed to provide substantial and timely resources to researchers who have a superior research program, and who show strong potential to become international leaders within their field.  Elizabeth is only the second person at Laurentian University to ever be awarded one.

8. Research Chairs recruitment and renewals

Laurentian recruited and renewed several Research Chairs in 2016. This includes the renewal of Canada Research Chairs Drs. Gillian Crozier, Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde, Robert Schinke and Zhibin Ye, the  recruitment of Dr. Jennifer Walker as Canada Research Chair, Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk as NOHFC Industry Chair, and Dr. Serge Miville as Laurentian Chair in Franco-Ontarian History.

7. First NSERC CREATE grant at LU

Dr. Albrecht Schulte-Hostedde (Biology), Dr. David Lesbarrères (Biology), Dr. Jacqueline Litzgus (Biology), Dr. Brett Buchanan (School of the Environment), Dr. Gillian Crozier (Philosophy)

CEEEC, the Centre for Evolutionary Ecology and Ecological Conservation comprised of 3 biologists (Dr. Schulte-Hostedde, Dr. Lesbarrères, Dr. Litzgus) and 2 philosophers (Dr. Buchanan, Dr Crozier) were awarded the first NSERC CREATE grant ($1.65M) in the history of Laurentian.  ReNewZoo is a unique graduate training programme bringing together the zoological community with academic ecologists and conservation biologists in order to train the next generation of conservation professionals to work seamlessly with zoos, aquariums, and other conservation organizations in Canada and globally to help them achieve their conservation goals.

6. Achievements in Indigenous Research

Laurentian University received national recognition with the establishment of the Maamwising Indigenous Research Institute, an initiative that was unanimously supported by Senate and was officially announced in late 2016. Aligning with this monumental initiative, Indigenous research activities were further enhanced by the announcement of our first-ever Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Health, Dr. Jennifer Walker and the announcement of the Advancing Indigenous Research Fund, a $100,000 strategic investment created to explore solution to the unique challenges faced by Indigenous peoples.  Each of these initiatives in 2016 demonstrates excellence in one of Laurentian’s strategic priorities.

5. Canada’s #1 in total sponsored research income growth in the undergraduate category

Research Infosource, Canada's Source of R&D Intelligence, reported that Laurentian University was Canada's #1 in total sponsored research income growth in the undergraduate university category in 2016.

4. Clifford A. Fielding Research, Innovation and Engineering Building

The total project costs of this state-of-the art building were supported in part by a joint federal-provincial investment of $27.3M as well as a private donation from the Fielding family of $3M.   This is significant as the new RIE Building is the largest infrastructure announcement in Laurentian’s 56-year history.  It will add 47,000 square feet to support the expansion of much needed research and innovation space on campus and will play an important role in driving growth and innovation in our community.

3. Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) award - Metal Earth, $49.6M

This was the largest funding announcement in Laurentian University’s history!  Metal Earth is a success story that will transform our understanding of Earth’s evolution and make Canada a world leader in metal endowment research.  This $104M investment in an applied R&D program led by Laurentian scientists will translate to world-class innovation through open source delivery of new knowledge.

2. 2016 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics

"The Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics is awarded by the Fundamental Physics Prize Foundation, an organization dedicated to awarding physicists involved in fundamental research which was founded by Russian physicist and internet entrepreneur Yuri Milner. The 3 million USD 2016 prize was shared by five experimental neutrino physics collaborations, including the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory, for "the fundamental discovery and exploration of neutrino oscillations, revealing a new frontier beyond, and possibly far beyond, the standard model of particle physics". Nineteen past and present members of the Laurentian Physics Department received a certificate, a medal, and a share of the prize money.”

1. Student Achievement - Publications in High Profile Research Journals

Nature-Heredity, PLOS one, Ecology and Evolution, Genes and Genomics, etc., Gabriel Thériault, (PhD candidate, Biology

Mr. Gabriel Theriault is a bright, active and engaging young scholar who is completing his Ph.D. in Biomolecular Sciences in Dr. K. K. Nkongolo lab. In 2016, he coauthored eight research publications and was the main author of five high profile research papers published in Nature – Heredity, PLOS one, and Genes and Genomics. He also made 3 presentations at 3 international conferences in the USA and Canada. More importantly, Mr. Theriault developed the first complete transcriptome of white birch published in PLOS One. He also discovered a bacterial gene horizontally transferred to birch species that is associated to nickel resistance. This discovery, published in Nature – Heredity was podcasted by the journal because of its significance.