Major infrastructure investments from CFI include support for 14 UBC-led and co-led projects

The Government of Canada is investing more than $552 million in research infrastructure through the Canada Foundation for Innovation's (CFI) Innovation Fund.

This funding, which supports 92 research infrastructure projects at 32 higher education institutions across the country, was announced today by Karim Bardeesy, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry, on behalf of the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions.

UBC researchers are leading and co-leading fourteen projects where UBC is the lead university. These projects have been awarded a total of $50.6 million in funding. UBC researchers are collaborating on or co-leading a further five projects led by other universities. 

These investments will help Canada remain at the forefront of exploration and knowledge generation and will support researchers in addressing global challenges and making meaningful contributions to social, health, environmental and economic benefits for Canadians. 

See CFI's announcement

UBC links and features

• Better batteries (UBCO)
• Restoring language, Revitalizing culture (UBCO)
• UBC Medicine researchers awarded more than $21M for research infrastructure to accelerate discovery and impact (Faculty of Medicine)

Awarded Projects (UBC as lead university)

UBC Vancouver Campus
 

1. Quantum Matter Institute Core Facilities (QMI-CF): Creating the Building Blocks for Future Quantum Technologies
   Project Leads: Andrea Damascelli (Physics & Astronomy) and Pinder Dosanjh (Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute) 
    
2. UBC's Life Sciences Institute's core facilities
   Project Leads: Leonard Foster (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; Michael Smith Laboratories) and Pauline Johnson (Life Sciences Institute; Microbiology and Immunology) 
    
3. BioDevice Foundry
   Project Lead: Govind Kaigala (School of Biomedical Engineering)
    
4. UBC MRI Research Centre Expansion: Integration of Multi-Nuclear MR Technology to Assess Brain Disease and Injury
   Project Leads: Cornelia Laule (Radiology; Pathology and Laboratory Medicine) and Piotr Kozlowski (Radiology)
    
5. Mobility Innovation Core
   Project Lead: Teresa Liu-Ambrose (Physical Therapy) 
    
6. RadMol: A Radioactive Molecule Lab
   Project Leads: Kirk Madison (Physics & Astronomy) and Stephan Malbrunot (TRIUMF)
   Collaborating Institutions: University of Manitoba, University of Toronto, University of Waterloo
    
7. xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Archaeology Centre
   Project Leads: Andrew Martindale (Anthropology) and Leona M. Sparrow (Musqueam Indian Band)
    
8. Canadian GRAIN - leading the next frontier in astrophysics
   Project Leads: Jess McIver (Physics & Astronomy) and Daryl Haggard (McGill University)
   Collaborating Institutions: Bishop's University, McGill University, Université de Montréal, University of Lethbridge, University of Manitoba
    
9. Connected Ultrasound (cUS)
   Project Lead: Robert Rohling (Electrical and Computer Engineering; Mechanical Engineering)
    
10. Second-generation instrumentation for the CCAT telescope
    Project Lead: Douglas Scott (Physics & Astronomy)
    Collaborating Institution: University of Toronto
     
11. ASTRID consortium: From atomic to in situ structural analysis of drug target complexes at the host/pathogen interface
    Project Lead: Natalie Strynadka (Biochemistry & Molecular Biology)
    Collaborating Institution: Simon Fraser University
     
12. Cytometry Operations for Research Excellence (CORE): Redefining boundaries for transformative immune-oncology research
    Project Lead: Leandro Venturutti (Pathology and Laboratory Medicine)

UBC Okanagan Campus

1. Interior Salishan Studies Centre
   Project Leads: Jeannette Armstrong (Community, Culture and Global Studies) and Michael Evans (Community, Culture and Global Studies)
    
2. Pacific Battery Innovation Centre (PBIC)
   Project Lead: Jian Lu (School of Engineering)

Awarded Projects (Led by other universities)

1. Building a Future for Canadian Neutron Scattering, Part 2
   Lead Institution: McMaster University
   UBC Lead: Meigan Aronson (Physics & Astronomy; Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute)
   Collaborating Institutions: Brock University, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Queen's University, St. Francis Xavier University, Toronto Metropolitan University, Université de Montréal, University of Alberta, University of British Columbia (The), University of Calgary, University of Guelph, University of Regina, University of Saskatchewan, University of Toronto, University of Western Ontario (The), University of Windsor
    
2. Chiral Belle: Leveraging New Physics through a Polarization Upgrade of the SuperKEKB Particle Collider
   Lead Institution: University of Victoria
   UBC Lead: Christopher Hearty (Physics & Astronomy)
   Collaborating Institutions: McGill University, St. Francis Xavier University, The University of British Columbia, University of Manitoba
    
3. ATLAS Tier-1 Centre and Distributed Computing at the LHC Energy Frontier
   Lead Institution: Simon Fraser University
   UBC Lead: Alison Lister (Physics & Astronomy)
   Collaborating Institutions: Carleton University, McGill University, The University of British Columbia, Université de Montréal, University of Alberta, University of Toronto, University of Victoria, York University
    
4. A Canadian Contribution to the ANDES instrument for the European Extremely Large Telescope
   Lead Institution: Université de Montréal
   UBC Lead: Allison Wing Shan Man (Physics & Astronomy)
   Collaborating Institutions: McGill University, Royal Military College of Canada, Université Laval, The University of British Columbia, University of Toronto
    
5. Unveiling the microsecond radio sky
   Lead Institution: McGill University
   UBC Lead: Ingrid Stairs (Physics & Astronomy)
   Collaborating Institutions: Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, The University of British Columbia, University of Toronto

Projects supported through the Innovation Fund are eligible for additional funding through the Infrastructure Operating Fund (IOF) to cover the costs of operating the research infrastructure. The total investment of $552.2 million includes $127.4 million from the IOF.

The CFI typically contributes up to 40 per cent of a project’s research infrastructure costs. Research institutions secure remaining funds through partnerships with provincial and territorial governments, industry and other organizations. Proposals for matching provincial funding for CFI awards may be pending confirmation at the time of the CFI announcement.