Ottawa, Canada, December 3, 2007 – The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Canada Research Chairs Program are launching an initiative to pair leading researchers from universities in Canada with those in developing countries to collaborate on issues of mutual concern. Each team will receive up to CA $1 million over five years to address key development challenges while mentoring a new generation of scholars and practitioners.
The International Research Chairs Initiative will support the creation of up to five IDRC Research Chairs based at universities in the developing world. Each Chair will define a five-year research program in collaboration with a top Canadian researcher.
“As part of the International Research Chairs Initiative, researchers in the developing world and their Canadian counterparts will bring their minds to bear on finding solutions to development problems,” says IDRC President Maureen O’Neil. “Through strategic alliances, the Initiative will also help to strengthen universities in the developing world in their mission of creating and disseminating knowledge at the service of their societies.”
“These partnerships are essential to building and maintaining research excellence in Canada and around the world,” said Chad Gaffield, president of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and head of the Canada Research Chairs Program’s steering committee. “Through this international collaboration, Canada Research Chairs will further strengthen Canada’s connection to the global supply of talent and ideas.”
Researchers and representatives from Canadian universities or from universities in eligible developing countries are invited to apply for funding under this initiative, which will encourage research in four areas:
* Environment and natural resource management
* Information and communication technologies for development
* The impact of science, technology and innovation policies on development
* Social and economic policy related to poverty reduction, growth, health and human rights
In addition to identifying new avenues for knowledge, policy, and technology transfer, these partnerships will provide university students with unique training and fieldwork opportunities under the mentorship of the chair holders.
For more information about the International Research Chairs Initiative including eligibility and selection criteria, and application and evaluation procedures, please consult: www.idrc.ca/irci.
The financing announced is built into IDRC’s existing fiscal framework.
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About IDRC
Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) is one of the world’s leading institutions in the generation and application of new knowledge to meet the challenges of international development. For more than 40 years, IDRC has worked in close collaboration with researchers from the developing world to build healthier, more equitable, and more prosperous societies.
About the Canada Research Chairs Program
The Canada Research Chairs Program is designed to attract the best talent from Canada and around the world, helping universities achieve research excellence in natural sciences and engineering, health sciences, and social sciences and humanities. Chairholders improve Canadians’ depth of knowledge and quality of life, strengthen the country’s international competitiveness, and help train the next generation of highly skilled people.
Since its launch in 2000, the Chairs program has created 1,851 research professorships at 70 universities across Canada. Of these positions, 584 have been filled by researchers recruited from abroad, including 267 Canadian expatriates. When fully implemented, the program will support 2,000 Chairs across the country. Applications to renew a chair holder’s appointment undergo the same rigorous peer review used to evaluate the initial nomination.
Information:
Isabelle Bourgeault-Tassé
(+1 613) 236-6163, ext. 2343
[email protected]
