IDEAWORKS Update for Faculty & Staff - January 14, 2022

Funding Opportunities

Although NSERC Engage Funding is no longer available, NSERC Applied Research and Development (ARD) grants are suitable for a wide range of applied research projects. The ARD program will be closed from February to March and will re-open for applications on a rolling basis in April. If you have a project and partner in mind for this funding, please contact Andrea Johnson.

Funding is available from OCI’s Voucher for Innovation and Productivity. This program supports the collaboration between Academia and Industry to solve an industry-based problem and drive the commercialization of Intellectual Property [IP]. The institution will leverage the unique skills and specialized infrastructure that is instrumental to streamline internal innovations and commercialization needs. Resulting in targeted training of individuals and direct engagement with industry to work on commercially viable solutions. If you have a project that you think would benefit from this funding, please contact Andrea Johnson.

Applications are now open for The College and Community Social Innovation Fund (CCSIF). Funding is for $120,000 per year for up to three years. CCSIF is managed by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), in collaboration with the Social Sciences Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). CCSIF grants are intended to foster community innovation by connecting the talent, facilities and capabilities of Canada’s colleges and polytechnics with the research needs of community organizations. CCSIF proposals should facilitate collaborative and innovative research that brings together researchers, students and partners to address challenges in community innovation in the social sciences, humanities, health sciences, natural sciences and engineering research fields. Applications are due internally on February 15, 2022- if you are planning on applying, you must let IDEAWORKS know by January 28, 2022. Please note that IDEAWORKS is limited to review and feedback support for these applications.

Interested in completing research focused on academic admissions and want to publish in the field? The Alo Grant is an annual $100,000 research fund built to accelerate the creation of new research that will strengthen the global admissions community, with a focus on completing a research project in one of three streams: general admissions, strategic and diversity. Grants range from $10,000-$20,000 The call for applications  for 2022 hasn’t opened yet, but additional information is available on the website.            

SSHRC Partnership Engage Grants provide short-term and timely support for partnered research activities that will inform decision-making at a single partner organization from the public, private, or not-for-profit sector. Partnership Engage Grants are valued at $7,000 to $25,000 for one year. Please note that these grants do not cover faculty release or backfill. IDEAWORKS is currently supporting applications with an internal deadline of March 1, 2022 and June 1, 2022. If you have a project that you think would benefit from this funding, please contact Andrea Johnson.

The objective of the Idea to Innovation (I2I) grants is to accelerate the pre-competitive development of promising technology originating from the university and college sector and promote its transfer to a new or established Canadian company. Read more about the grant.

The Canada Council for the Arts has recently announced funding for its Digital Generator and Digital Greenhouse Programs. Digital Generator is a short-term initiative to allow Canadian arts groups, collectives, and organizations to build their digital capacity and transform their business model and operations. Digital Greenhouse is a digital innovation initiative for Canadian individuals, groups, and organizations. It supports short-term projects that leverage digital technology to address sectoral and digital challenges. Grant applicants must meet the eligibility set by the Canada Council for the Arts. Applied researchers may work with artists and other organizations as external consultants, experts, or training providers. If you have a project that you think would benefit from this funding, please contact Andrea Johnson.

Funding is available for Health and Eng Tech faculty interested in working with an industry partner on a health innovation project as part of the Southern Ontario Pharmaceutical and Health Innovation Ecosystem (SOPHIE).  Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. If you have a project that you think would benefit from this funding, please contact Andrea Johnson.

Canadian Post-Secondary instittuions are now eligible for the ICTC’s WIL Digital program, an innovative Work Integrated Learning program that helps employers grow their businesses by providing financial assistance for hiring post-secondary students. WIL Digital provides 75% of the student’s salary, up to $7,500. Learn more about the program.

Do you need IDEAWORKS’s assistance in preparing your funding application? Be sure to plan in advance! While we’re always available to answer any questions you may have, we have very limited internal capacity until April. In the meantime, we can connect you with external resources to support your writing.

Opportunities for Students

SSHRC’s ninth annual Storytellers challenge is open to submissions as of November 9. The initiative welcomes postsecondary students from across Canada to tell the story—in up to three minutes or 300 words—of how SSHRC-funded research is impacting the lives of Canadians. The deadline to submit is 5 p.m. (eastern), Monday, January 24, 2022. For inspiration, see winning entries from previous years in the Storytellers Gallery.

IDEAWORKS fills the space between research and solutions by delivering customized support to organizations. Want to get involved as a Mohawk College researcher? Contact us at ideaworks@mohawkcollege.ca