Research ranging from Latin poetry to neuroethics at the University of British Columbia has received an $8.5 million boost in federal funding for eight professors appointed or renewed as Canada Research Chairs.
The UBC contingent is among the 102 new and renewed chairs announced Friday by Ed Holder, Minister of State for Science and Technology, at the University of Alberta.
The Minister of National Revenue Kerry-Lynne Findlay announced UBC’s two new recipients and six renewals at an event on the Vancouver campus to recognize B.C. appointees. The event featured the work of Martin Ordonez, an assistant professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, who was named a new Chair in Power Converters and Renewable Systems. His work aims to maximize the use of renewable energy from wind, solar, and the ocean by developing the next generation of power conversion and storage solutions to produce low emissions power.
From left: UBC Applied Science Dean Marc Parlange, UBC Vice-President, Research and International John Hepburn, Minister of National Revenue Kerry-Lynne Findlay, UBC Professor Susanna Braund, UBC Assistant Professor Martin Ordonez, and Professor and Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering Andre Ivanov. Photo: Rich Lam
UBC is home to 187 Canada Research Chairs and one active Canada Excellence Research Chair.
“The CRC program strengthens UBC’s leading role in world-class research, attracting the best and the brightest minds to work here,” said John Hepburn, UBC vice-president, research and international. “The work of these professors creates lasting change within Canada and beyond.”
For more information about the Canada Research Chair program, click here.
BACKGROUND
Newly appointed CRCs at UBC are:
Vanessa Andreotti, Chair in Race, Inequalities and Global Change
Andreotti studies education for and about international development, and its impact on marginalized populations. She started her career in Brazil and worked in Finland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom before coming to Canada in 2013.
Martin Ordonez, Chair in Power Converters for Renewable Energy Systems
Ordonez studies ways to enhance renewable energy sources (solar, wind, ocean current) using technology. He is from Argentina and did his graduate work at Memorial University in Canada.
Renewed CRCs at UBC are:
Susanna Braund, Chair in Latin poetry and its Reception
Braund studies the poems of Virgil, investigating the appeal classical Latin poetry has in western intellectual history.
Jiahua Chen, Chair in Statistical Inference
Chen uses statistic models to tease out information for the study of genetic diversity and for pinpointing the genetic origins of disease.
Denise Daley, Chair in Genetic Epidemiology of Common Complex Diseases
Daley studies genetic susceptibility to asthma and other common diseases.
Erica Frank, Chair in Preventive Medicine and Population Health
Frank studies medical education and how a doctor’s health can impact their patients’ health.
Joseph Henrich, Chair in Culture, Cognition and Evolution
Henrich studies how people learn from one another and its relation to human evolution.
Judy Illes, Chair in Neuroethics
Illes studies the ethics of neuroscience, a field that allows us to understand, monitor and potentially manipulate human thought using technology.
