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Supporting Camosun’s academic and innovative ability
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) funding is a big deal for a college. It took two years, but as one of only two colleges in BC eligible for NSERC funding, Camosun has access to federal research funding for applied research projects.
“It gives us credibility in the research community,” says Chris Edley, coordinator of Camosun’s Centre for Oriented Research and Innovation (CORI). “Camosun’s focus is to be a learning institute before a research institute, but now we are a learning institute that can also be recognized for applied research.”
Encouraged by two successful small funding requests from NSERC, CORI is coordinating applications worth millions.
“Of course, we are also building Camosun’s ongoing research capacity,” says Edley. Funding for applied research will expand the supply of research equipment and release faculty for research projects, gradually cultivating a broader research climate at the College.
Opening doors in our community
“We talk to the industrial community about the advantages of working together on an NSERC project,” says Edley. By partnering with us, companies can carry out approved applied research and development projects for a fraction of their full cost.
Through NSERC funding, learning can reach beyond Camosun’s students. Encouraging children to get involved in science and technology is the thrust of Camosun’s first two NSERC projects, both funded through NSERC’s Pacific Regional Opportunities Fund.
“We help educate and shape our children’s future,” says April Atkins, coordinator of the NSERC-funded DiscoverTech@Camosun camp, offered at Camosun this summer for high school students in grades 9 to 12. “It broadens career pathways, opening doors by developing awareness about what technologies entail.” Teenagers at DiscoverTech test technology options in an action-packed week as they learn how math, physics, electronics and computer programming can lead to a high-tech career.
“We are using the same funding source as Canada’s top researchers, and this makes an impression on young scientists,” says Thuy Nevado, Biology instructor at Camosun, and coordinator of the NSERC funded Supermarket Autopsy and Cool Pools program. This two-part program invites at-risk high school students to enjoy science by producing online “anatomy atlases” based on the dissection of organs and body parts from a supermarket. A second field trip will examine organisms found in the intertidal zone.
Find out more about research at Camosun
Camosun’s eligibility to NSERC funding has given a new life to innovative ideas within the community’s science, engineering and technology worlds. Taking full advantage of this opportunity, CORI is currently working with the greater community to coordinate new large-scale initiatives.
Find out more about NSERC and other research opportunities at Camosun
Last updated: July 28, 2008 1:58 pm
