20 U of T experts named new Canada Research Chairs

Twenty U of T scholars, whose expertise ranges from the neural basis of music recognition to Indigenous methodologies, were named new Canada Research Chairs by the federal government this fall.

Another six U of T chair holders had their terms renewed. The announcement means U of T netted $19.3 million in funding out of the $145.6 million awarded to institutions across Canada.

“The University of Toronto is very proud of our 20 new and six renewed Canada Research Chairs – all of whom are conducting important research with the potential to profoundly change the world,” said Vivek Goel, U of T’s vice-president of research and innovation. “Government funding is crucial for their work and helps U of T to attract and retain some of the top scholars in the world.”

Interested in publicly funded research in Canada? Learn more at U of T’s #supportthereport advocacy campaign

The new Canada Research Chairs at U of T are:

• Jean Martin Beaulieu, Faculty of Medicine – department of pharmacology and toxicology, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Molecular Psychiatry
• John A. Calarco, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of cell and systems biology, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Neuronal RNA Biology
• David Duvenaud, Faculty of Arts & Science – departments of computer science and statistical sciences, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Generative Models
• Anna Goldenberg, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of computer science, and the Hospital for Sick Children, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Computational Medicine
• Alec Jacobson, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of computer science, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Geometry Processing
• Jean-Philippe Julien, Faculty of Medicine – departments of biochemistry and immunology, and the Hospital for Sick Children, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Structural Immunology
• Joanne Kotsopoulos, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, and Women’s College Hospital, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer Prevention
• David I. W. Levin, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of computer science, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Simulation-Driven Graphics and Fabrication
• Jed A. Meltzer, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of psychology, and Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Interventional Cognitive Neuroscience
• Sean Mills, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of history, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Canadian and Transnational History
• Rulan Parekh, Faculty of Medicine – department of paediatrics, and the Hospital for Sick Children, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology
• Arun Ramchandran, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – department of chemical engineering and applied chemistry, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Engineered Soft Materials and Interfaces
• Adam Steinberg, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering – Institute for Aerospace Studies, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Turbulent Reacting Flow
• Michael H. Thaut, Faculty of Music, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Music, Neuroscience and Health
• András Tilcsik, Rotman School of Management, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Strategy, Organizations and Society
• Eve Tuck, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Methodologies with Youth and Communities
• Aaron R. Wheeler, Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Arts & Science – department of chemistry, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Microfluidic Bioanalysis
• Bradly G. Wouters, Faculty of Medicine – department of medical biophysics and  University Health Network, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Hypoxia and the Tumour Micro-Environment
• Haley Wyatt, Faculty of Medicine – department of biochemistry, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Mechanisms of Genome Instability
• Luyi Yang, Faculty of Arts & Science – department of physics, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Ultrafast Dynamics of Quantum Materials

The renewed chair holders at U of T are:

• Julie Claycomb, Faculty of Medicine – department of molecular genetics, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Small RNA Biology
• Marcelo Cypel, Faculty of Medicine – department of surgery, and University Health Network, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Lung Transplantation
• Mitsuhiko Ikura, Faculty of Medicine – department of medical biophysics, and University Health Network,  Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Cancer Structural Biology
• Trevor F. Moraes, Faculty of Medicine – department of biochemistry, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Structural Biology of Membrane Proteins
• Minna Woo, Faculty of Medicine – department of medicine, and University Health Network, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Signal Transduction in Diabetes Pathogenesis
• Graham A. Wright, Faculty of Medicine – department of medical biophysics, and Sunnybrook Research Institute, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Imaging for Cardiovascular Therapeutics

Established in 2000, the Canada Research Chairs program not only supports important research but also helps the university attract and retain the best and most promising researchers from around the world.

In addition to conducting research that improves our depth of knowledge and quality of life, the chairs also train the next generation of leaders in their fields through student supervision and teaching.