Ten McMaster researchers named Canada Research Chairs

“Ten researchers from three faculties have been named Canada Research Chairs as part of a national strategy to attract and retain a diverse cadre of world-class researchers. Eight McMaster researchers are newly named CRCs and two have had their chairs renewed. Their research is helping to build sustainable businesses, protect ecosystems from climate change, develop new wearable devices for health monitoring, and more. There are two tiers of CRCs, which recognize accomplished and emerging research leaders: Tier 1 chairs are held for seven years with an investment of $200,000 a year; Tier 2 chairs are held for five years, with an investment of $100,000 annually, with an additional $20,000 annual stipend for first-term chairs. Each tier of chairs can be renewed once. These are the new CRCs: Addisu Lashitew | Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Enterprise (Tier 2) Addisu Lashitew is an associate professor of Strategic Management at DeGroote School of Business. Lashitew’s research program investigates the sustainability impacts of emerging digital technologies, including how they can enhance sustainability by helping businesses strengthen internal governance, reduce emissions and facilitate green innovations. It also assesses the distributional effects of digital technologies by analyzing how their benefits vary between small and large firms. Emily Choy | Canada Research Chair in Climate Change and Ecosystem Health (Tier 2) Emily Choy is an assistant professor in the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science. Choy’s research program will examine the effects of climate change and additional anthropogenic stressors on wildlife and ecosystem health using seabirds and aerial insectivores as model organisms to predict forecasted climate change scenarios in Canada and identify vulnerable wildlife and ecosystems that may be at-risk. Ryan Cloutier | Canada Research Chair in Exoplanetary Astronomy (Tier 2) Ryan Cloutier is an assistant professor of Physics & Astronomy in the Faculty of Science. Cloutier’s research program will tackle key open questions concerning the processes that drive the formation and composition of super-Earths and sub-Neptunes around red dwarfs, deepening our understanding of the galaxy’s most common planets around its most common stars. Andrew Gadsden | Canada Research Chair in Intelligent and Cognitive Engineering (Tier 2) Andrew Gadsden is a professor of Mechanical Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering. Gadsden’s research program will build on his expertise in estimation, control and applied AI to further the development of cognitive systems – a type of system that will become integrated into society as the use of AI becomes more prolific. His research will help improve the operational safety and robustness of these engineering systems. Megumi Harada | Canada Research Chair in Combinatorial Algebraic and Symplectic Geometry (Tier 1) Megumi Harada is a professor in the department of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Science. Harada’s research program focuses on new ways to relate piecewise-linear geometry with algebraic geometry, in a manner which unifies, generalizes and organizes many known phenomena into one coherent theory. A key motivation for the research is a major open problem in the intersection of algebraic geometry with string theory called the mirror symmetry conjecture. Drew Higgins | Canada Research Chair in Advanced Materials for Sustainable Energy Technologies (Tier 2) Drew Higgins is an associate professor of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering. Higgins’ research program will develop new nanomaterial catalysts and electrochemical technologies that use electricity to convert nitrate, a common pollutant, into ammonia, a key fertilizer and an emerging clean energy carrier. When powered by renewable or low-carbon electricity, this process will provide a sustainable alternative to conventional ammonia production, which is energy-intensive and heavily polluting. Dylan Kobsar | Canada Research Chair in Human Movement Science and Technology (Tier 2) Dylan Kobsar is an associate professor of Kinesiology in the Faculty of Science. Kobsar’s research program advances the understanding and application of human movement science by integrating biomechanics, data science, and artificial intelligence. Its objective is to develop scalable, ecologically valid movement assessments that improve clinical decision-making, enhance athletic performance, and support innovation in movement technology. Leyla Soleymani | Canada Research Chair in Miniaturized Biomedical Devices (Tier 1) Leyla Soleymani is a professor of Engineering Physics in the Faculty of Engineering. Soleymani’s research program is designed to develop wearable sensors that can detect a wide variety of analytes, including proteins, by leveraging the unique capabilities of aptamers and antibodies. It also aims to enhance sensor performance and evaluate these technologies in vivo, expanding the functionalities of wearable devices to identify key health and disease markers. Soleymani will also receive $196,000 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) John R. Evans Leaders Fund to support infrastructure for her CRC. These are the renewed CRCs: Tohid Didar | Canada Research Chair in Nanomaterials (Tier 2) | Faculty of Engineering Kathryn Grandfield (Bernar) | Canada Research Chair in Microscopy of Biomaterials and Biointerfaces (Tier 2) | Faculty of Engineering. Grandfield will also receive $163,000 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) John R. Evans Leaders Fund to support infrastructure for her CRC. New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) – Exploration Also announced today, the following researchers will receive $250,000 over two years as part of the NFRF Exploration program. Ameer Abdelhadi | Faculty of Engineering | Revolutionizing Psychotic Drug Discovery through AI-Driven Hardware-Accelerated Molecular Simulations and Neurotechnology Leyla Soleymani | Faculty of Engineering | Developing the next generation of wearable health sensors Gianni Parise, McMaster’s vice-president, Research, thanks the government for their continued investment in McMaster research. “Congratulations to McMaster’s new and renewed Canada Research Chairs and the recipients of the 2025 NFRF Exploration grants. This investment is a testament to the influence and impact of their work, which is advancing healthier, cleaner, more equitable communities both here in Canada and around the world,” he says. The post Ten McMaster researchers named Canada Research Chairs appeared first on McMaster News .

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