On February 8, 2011, Canada Excellence Research Chairs, university presidents, business leaders and cabinet ministers came together to celebrate the world-leading research funded through the Canada Excellence Research Chairs (CERC) Program.
Held at Ottawa’s Château Laurier hotel and hosted by the University of Alberta, “An Evening with the Canada Excellence Research Chairs” was also an opportunity for university leaders to thank the Government of Canada for their commitment to nurturing Canadian research and talent.
“The appointment of 19 Canada Excellence Research Chairs across the country is a clear signal of where Canada is heading—and that is to the forefront of the global research community,” said University of Alberta President Indira Samarasekera, who was emcee for the event.
Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty, Minister of Industry Tony Clement, Minister of State (Science and Technology) Gary Goodyear and University of Toronto President David Naylor all spoke at the event, congratulating the 14 Canada Excellence Research Chairs in attendance and reiterating the importance of the program to Canadians.
Attendees were also treated to presentations by the Canada Excellence Research Chairs and a panel discussion hosted by Public Policy Forum President David Mitchell that showcased the research of:
- Marcel Babin, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Remote Sensing of Canada’s New Arctic Frontier, Université Laval;
- Robert Boyd , Canada Excellence Research Chair in Quantum Nonlinear Optics, University of Ottawa;
- David Cory , Canada Excellence Research Chair in Quantum Information Processing, University of Waterloo;
- Ali Emadi , Canada Excellence Research Chair in Hybrid Powertrain, McMaster University;
- Oliver Ernst, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Structural Neurobiology, University of Toronto;
- Ian Gardner, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Aquatic Epidemiology, University of Prince Edward Island;
- Younès Messaddeq, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Enabling Photonic Innovations for Information and Communication, Université Laval;
- Adrian Owen, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Cognitive Neuroscience and Imaging, The University of Western Ontario;
- Graham Pearson, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Arctic Resources, University of Alberta;
- Bertrand Reulet, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Quantum Signal Processing, Université de Sherbrooke;
- Frederick Roth, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Integrative Biology, University of Toronto;
- Thomas Thundat, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Oil Sands Molecular Engineering, University of Alberta;
- Douglas Wallace, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Ocean Science and Technology, Dalhousie University; and
- Howard Wheater, Canada Excellence Research Chair in Water Security, University of Saskatchewan.
The evening concluded with a question-and-answer session moderated by Stephen Toope, president of The University of British Columbia.