Lab to Market grants to assist UNBC researchers

Researchers at UNBC will have a new capacity to see their innovative ideas mobilized from the laboratory to marketplace.

It’s through a federal funding program designed to develop the next generation of Canadian innovators.

UNBC is a co-applicant in two national networks involving post-secondary institutions that have been awarded Lab to Market grants totalling $54.9 million.

The five-year grants are administered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada in collaboration with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

The funding will allow collaborative efforts involving post-secondary institutions, industry and partners across the country to create and sustain networks that foster entrepreneurial skills development, deliver innovative training and drive real-world impact.

“Students, faculty and highly qualified personnel at UNBC are tackling some of society’s most pressing challenges through their research, generating local solutions for global impact,” says UNBC President Dr. Geoff Payne.

“Initiatives from the Lab to Market grants will equip UNBC researchers with the entrepreneurial skills and mentorship needed to leverage their academic research into innovations ready to make a difference in all sectors.”

Expanding on a program established in 2015, the National Invention to Innovation Network (i2l) will further training initiatives designed to close the gap between research discoveries and innovation in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and healthcare fields.

In addition, UNBC will lead i2I’s North Strategy in collaboration with Lakehead and Yukon Universities to develop commercialization and entrepreneurship training across Canada’s North and engagement with Indigenous communities.

“Working with our partner institutions, UNBC is uniquely positioned to develop a strategy that meets the specific and unique needs of researchers in the North,” says UNBC Vice-President, Research and Innovation Dr. Paula Wood-Adams. “In addition to providing incredible resources to build capacity for students and faculty working to advance their research outcomes, this project is another opportunity for the University to listen, learn and strengthen community connections.”