This page outlines major external research funding opportunities available to VIU Faculty. For full instructions on how to apply for the below funding, please visit the relevant website links provided. To have news about upcoming opportunities delivered to your inbox, subscribe to our e-newsletter.
All Faculties
Social Sciences and Humanities Funding
Canada Council for the Arts Explore and Create
The Research and Creation component of the Canada Council for the Arts Explore and Create grant supports the initial stages of the creative process. Canadian artists, artistic groups and arts organizations can apply to develop and make creative works. Grants provide funding for creative research, creation and project development.
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SSHRC Connection
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Connection grants provide funding for events and outreach activities geared toward short-term, targeted knowledge mobilization initiatives.
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SSHRC Insight Development
SSHRC Insight Development Grants support social sciences and humanities research in its initial stages. The grants enable the development of new research questions, as well as experimentation with new methods, theoretical approaches and/or ideas.
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SSHRC Insight
Insight Grants support research excellence in the social sciences and humanities. Funding is available to both emerging and established scholars for long-term research initiatives of two to five years.
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SSHRC Partnership Engage
The small-scale, stakeholder-driven partnerships supported through the Partnership Engage Grants are meant to respond to immediate needs and time constraints facing organizations in non-academic sectors. In addressing an organization-specific need, challenge and/or opportunity, these partnerships let non-academic organizations and postsecondary researchers access each other’s unique knowledge, expertise and capabilities on topics of mutual interest.
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SSHRC Partnership Development
Partnership Development Grants provide support over one to three years to teams/partnerships, led by a project director, to: develop research and related activities in the social sciences and humanities, including knowledge mobilization and the meaningful involvement of students and new scholars; or design and test new partnership approaches for research and/or related activities that may result in best practices or models.
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SSHRC Partnership
Partnership Grants support large-scale formal partnerships between academic researchers, businesses and other partners that will advance knowledge and understanding on critical issues of intellectual, social, economic and cultural significance.
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Vancouver Foundation
The Participatory Action Research Grant supports research that is co-led by community members and researchers to learn more about the root causes of pressing issues impacting the health of communities. The Systems Change Grant supports projects that take action to address the root causes of pressing social, environmental or cultural issues in BC.
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Science and Technology Funding
Environment Canada Habitat Stewardship Program for Species at Risk
This program provides funding for projects aimed at protecting species designated under Canada’s Species At Risk Act (SARA) as well as a new Prevention Stream for projects aimed at protecting undesignated but vulnerable or at risk species. A priority ecosystem under the Species at Risk stream is the Garry oak (Quercus garryana) ecosystem of southern Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and Fraser Valley of British Columbia, which is home to more than 20 species at risk nationally.
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National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society funds small seed projects in the following fields: anthropology, archaeology, astronomy, biology, botany, geography, geology, oceanography, paleontology, and zoology.
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NSERC Connect
Natural Science and Engineering Council (NSERC) Connect grants provide targeted financial support to encourage post-secondary researchers at universities and/or colleges to connect with industry and other knowledge end-user communities in order to form new partnerships.
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NSERC Discovery
The NSERC Discovery Grant program is the primary funding mechanism for discovery-based science and engineering research in Canada. The Discovery Grant program is very competitive. A mandatory Notification of Intent (NOI) is due annually on August 1.
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NSERC Discovery Development
The NSERC Discovery Development Grant is a new pilot program, up to $20,000 over 2 years, targeted to researchers at small institutions like VIU. Development Grants are awarded to the top small institution researchers that were not funded for Discovery Grants.
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NSERC Engage
Engage Grants are intended to foster the development of new research partnerships by supporting short-term research and development projects aimed at addressing the company-specific problem of an industry partner. The mutually beneficial projects are expected to result in economic benefits to the industry partner and to Canada.
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NSERC Idea to Innovation (I2I) Grant
The I2I Grant provides funding to college and university faculty members to support research and development projects with recognized technology transfer potential. This is achieved through defined phases by providing crucial assistance in the early stages of technology validation and market connection.
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NSERC PromoScience
NSERC PromoScience Program supports hands-on learning experiences for young students and their science teachers. Grants may be used to cover improvements to program content or delivery, as well as for new programs and activities. PromoScience applications are due annually on September 15.
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Pacific Salmon Foundation Community Salmon Program
The Pacific Salmon Foundation’s Community Salmon Program provides support for salmon enhancement and watershed stewardship projects.
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Health Funding
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
CIHR is Canada's premier health research funding agency, funding over 8,500 researchers in universities, teaching hospitals, and research institutes across Canada. CIHR provides funding opportunities for four themes of health research: Biomedical, Clinical, Health systems services, and social, cultural, environmental and population health.
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Canadian Nurses Foundation
Canadian Nurses Foundation seeks to advance nursing knowledge and improve health care by providing research grants, awards, and scholarships to Canadian nurses and nursing students.
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Island Health
Island Health offers a variety of internal grants and VIU researchers are eligible to be collaborative team members. In addition, the Collaborative Research Grant program funds research partnerships between Island Health employees and its academic partners.
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MSHFR Convening and Collaborating (C2) Award
Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSHFR) strengthens the BC health research enterprise through innovative, integrated services and programs that create and maintain a vibrant health research environment, mobilize stakeholders to identify priorities and address health to build the capacity for excellent health research. C2 awards support teams of health researchers and research users planning and carrying out collaborative activities such as stakeholder consultations, public engagement or co-development of research methodologies.
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MSHFR Reach Award
The MSFHR Reach Program provides funding for teams of researchers and research users to support the dissemination and effective uptake of research evidence to inform and improve further research, practice and policy-making.
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Public Health Agency of Canada Multi-sectoral Partnerships to Promote Healthy Living and Prevent Chronic Disease
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)’s Partnerships to Promote Healthy Living and Prevent Chronic Disease program advances innovative, multi-sectoral approaches across all segments of society to promote healthy living and prevent chronic disease.
Vancouver Foundation
The Participatory Action Research Grant supports research that is co-led by community members and researchers to learn more about the root causes of pressing issues impacting the health of communities.
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Fellowships and Internships
Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships
Canada is building world-class research capacity by recruiting top-tier postdoctoral researchers at an internationally competitive level of funding and positioning them for success as the research leaders of tomorrow. These prestigious two-year fellowships worth $70,000 per year are open to both Canadian and international researchers who have recently completed a PhD, PhD-equivalent or health professional degree.
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Canada-US Fulbright Program
The Canada-US Fulbright Program provides the opportunity for outstanding Canadian scholars to lecture and/or conduct research in the United States.
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Mitacs Accelerate
The Accelerate Program provides funding for students and post-docs participating in research partnerships between universities and industry or non-profit partner organizations.
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Mitacs Business Strategy Internship
Provide new training and career opportunities for your students by giving them the chance to put their knowledge and expertise to work in a challenging business environment.
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Mitacs Canadian Science Fellowship
This fellowship is designed to form mutually beneficial relationships between government decision makers and academic researchers in support of policy challenges in Canada and enhance science communication, collaboration, and policy capacity in government departments and agencies. Eligible applicants must be able to negotiate a leave of absence from VIU.
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Killam Research Fellowship
The Killam Research Fellowships are release time awards that provide support to scholars of exceptional ability who are engaged in research projects of broad significance and widespread interest within the disciplines of the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, health sciences, engineering, or studies linking any of these disciplines.