Internal Funding
Dalhousie research grants for faculty and instructors
A variety of internal funding opportunities exist at Dalhousie. Find the one that is right for you.
SSHRC Institutional Grant Programs
SSHRC Explore Grants Program
Explore Grants can be used to develop or pilot or to help seed an external grant application in the social sciences and humanities (e.g. SSHRC Insight Grant or Insight Development Grant). The maximum funding value per grant is $5,000.
Deadline: May 31, 2023 at 4:30pm AST
SSHRC Explore - 2023 Application Form [PDF 297 kB].
For questions or to apply please contact GrantsandContracts@dal.ca.
SSHRC Exchange Grants Program
Exchange Grants can be used to fund knowledge mobilization (KM) activities, namely to travel to a conference or to organize a KM activity such as a conference or workshop. Proposed activities must help seed new external grant applications in the social sciences and humanities or disseminate the results of SSHRC-funded research.
The maximum funding value per grant is $2,000 to travel to a conference or $5,000 to organize a KM activity.
Deadline: May 31, 2023 at 4:30pm AST.
SSHRC Exchange - 2023 Application Form [PDF 330 kB].
For questions or to apply please contact GrantsandContracts@dal.ca.
Funds mandated by Dalhousie Faculty Association
Reduced salary for a research grant when NOT on leave
As noted in Article 32.15 of the Dalhousie Faculty Association’s Collective Agreement, DFA members who are not on leave may apply for a research grant of up to one year’s duration.
Note that grants awarded under this program are considered taxable income and will be reported on a T4A slip as a research grant. No income tax will be deducted by Dalhousie University. The grantee is responsible for reporting this income to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), declaring against this income any eligible expenditures and dealing with any subsequent negotiations with CRA as per the Canada Revenue Agency Income Tax Folio S1-F2-C3.
Supplemental sabbatical/special leave grant and leave remuneration
As noted in Article 30.22 of the Dalhousie Faculty Association’s Collective Agreement, the University's Board of Governors provides a fund each year for research grants to supplement salary, for faculty members granted sabbatical leave or special leave for part or all of that year.
Further, as noted in Article 30.28(b) of the DFA Collective Agreement, faculty members granted sabbatical leave or special leave may also apply for leave remuneration to be paid as a research grant.
Supplemental educational/special educational leave grant and leave remuneration
As noted in Article 30.32(f) of the Dalhousie Faculty Association’s Collective Agreement, the University's Board of Governors provides a fund each year for research grants to supplement salary, for instructors granted educational leave or special educational leave for part or all of that year.
Further, as noted in Article 30.32(i) of the DFA Collective Agreement, instructors granted educational leave or special educational leave may also apply for leave remuneration to be paid as a research grant.
How and when to apply
Faculty members and instructors are requested to complete the application form [PDF 134 kB] for these grants, and submit this form through the ROMEO Researcher Portal. Select and complete the Investigator Checklist, and upload the application form to the Attachments tab.
Sabbaticals for 2023/2024 will cover the academic year July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024. They could take place from one of the following:
- July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024
- July 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023
- January 1, 2024 to June 30, 2024
Deadlines are as follows:
- Supplemental sabbatical/special leave grants: May 15 [Only One Deadline]
- Supplemental educational/special educational leave grants: May 15 [Only One Deadline]
- Leave remuneration paid as a research grant: May 15 or September 30
Please note that there is now only one form for the three above opportunities.
Notification of the award
Applicants will be notified of the outcome of their applications by June 15 each year.
Note that income tax is not deducted from any of these awards. Financial Services will issue a T4A tax form for the award amount in the appropriate calendar year.
All expenses claimed against the grant for tax exemption must be supported by receipts to Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Any questions about the eligibility of expense deductions and taxation regulations should be referred directly to the CRA; please consult the Canada Revenue Agency Income Tax Folio S1-F2-C3.
Operations & Maintenance Response Fund for Canada Foundation for Innovation Projects
Operations & Maintenance Response Fund (O & MRF) for Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) Projects
In 2023, Dalhousie updated the Operations & Maintenance (O & M) Plan for Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) funded research projects [PDF 167 kB].
For more information, please contact elspeth.white@dal.ca.
Ocean Frontier Institute: Seed Fund Program
Ocean Frontier Institute: Seed Fund Program
The Ocean Frontier Institute is seeking proposals for its Seed Fund, which supports ocean-related projects that have a high potential for innovation success but need small amounts of funding to help them move forward — and grow. Awards range from $10,000 to $15,000, with particularly compelling ideas considered for up to a maximum of $30,000. Faculty, staff and students of Dalhousie University are eligible to apply. Learn more.
Deadlines 2022: June 30
Vice-President Research and Innovation International Seed (VPRIIS) Fund
Vice-President Research and Innovation International Seed (VPRIIS) Fund
The VPRIIS Fund is an internal small grant which is intended to support the development of international research initiatives between Dalhousie researchers and their global partners.
Applications are accepted from researchers who are eligible for tri-agency funding; resulting grants are intended to support emerging collaborations, of up to one year’s duration, which require start-up support to develop research ties. Such collaborations will be funded up to a maximum of $5,000.
How and when to apply
The submission deadline for the 2022 VPRIIS competition is November 25, 2022.
The guidelines for the 2022 competition are available here [PDF].
The application form is available here [PDF].
For any questions regarding the Fund, please contact ovpri@dal.ca.
Past recipients
2022:
- Dr. Ahmad Al-Mallahi, Agriculture, with Indian Institute of Techonology (IIT), India: "Collaborative research on precision agriculture by developing nutrient sensors and spraying mechanism for precise applications"
- Dr. James Forren, Architecture and Planning, with University of Newcastle, United Kingdom: "Local Adaptation of Living Building Materials (LBM) to Achieve Net Zero Construction"
- Dr. Lisa Berglund, Architecture and Planning, with Columbia University, USA: "Am emerging climate surveillance apparatus: Exploring the social implications of surveillance technologies for disaster risk management"
- Dr. Silvio Digesto, Arts and Social Sciences, with Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Brazil: "Combating linguistic prejudice and discrimination: Inherent patterns of linguistic variation in local varieties of French and Portuguese versus standard linguistic ideology"
- Dr. Zeeshan Sheikh, Dentistry, with International Medical University, Malaysia: "Inhibition of Cancer Protease by using Novel K21 quaternary ammonium compound: Anti-Cancer Investigation and Understanding Cancer Protease Biology"
- Dr. Jamila Ghadder, Management, with The American University of Beirut's Jafet Library, Lebanon: "Archiving histories of violence in Lebanon for mourning, commemoration, healing and hospitality"
- Dr. Philip Tibbo, Medicine, with National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece: "Cross-validation of outcome prediction models in Early Intervention Services in Psychosis Programs internationally"
- Dr. Sherry Stewart, Science, with University of Paris/Sorbonne, France: "An In-Depth Investigation of the Links of Sensation Seeking to Problem Gambling: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis, and Future Empirical Study"
- Dr. Kelvin Fong, Science, with Korea University, Korea: "Uncovering Air Pollution Exposure and Health Disparities to Advance Environmental Justice"
- Dr. Joyline Makani, Libraries, with Northwestern University, USA; University of Johannesburg, South Africa; University of Ghana, Ghana; Univesrity of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe: "Advancing inclusive and effective online learning environments"
2021:
- Dr. Mayra Donaji Barrera Machuca, Computer Science, with Kadir Has Unversity, Turkey; Aarhus University, Denmark; Lancaster University, United Kingdom: "Eye-Gaze interactions for 3D Sketching in Virtual Reality"
- Dr. John Blake, Engineering, with Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil: "Optimizing the topology of regional blood supply networks"
- Dr. Zhenyu Cheng, Medicine, with Hubei Academy of AgroSciences in Wuhan, China: "The application of microbiome in increasing crop yield"
- Dr. Manuel Helbig, Science, with Northern Arizona University, USA: "Integrating weather balloon, ceilometer, and flux tower observations to quanitfy land-atmosphere feedbacks"
- Dr. Israat Haque, Computer Science, with Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil: "Scaling Multimodal Big Data Analytics at the Programmable Network Edge"
- Dr. Kevin Hewitt, Science, with Aix-Marseille Université, France; Institute of Phototonic Sciences, Spain: "Molecular Holography: PI and PhD student mobility to introduce a 3D Highly Multiplexed Alternative to Fluorescence Microscopy to Phototonics Institutes Leaders in France and Spain"
- Dr. Sean Myles, Agriculture, with University of California, Davis, USA: "Advancing CRISPR genome editing in apples"
- Dr. Kyle Wilby, Health, with University of Otago, New Zealand: "Towards dismantling systemic racism and discrimination within case-based learning material in health professional training programs - a case study in pharmacy"
- Dr. Haorui Wu, Health, with Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SRA, China; University of the Philippines Diliman, the Philippines; University of Washington, USA; University of Colorado, USA: "From passive victims to empowered actors: Establishing a global disaster resilience network of older adults to enhance post-COVID-19 recovery"
- Dr. Alexa Yakubovich, Medicine, with the University of Oxford, United Kingdom; University of Pennsylvania, USA; Harvard University, USA: "The gender-based impact of stand your ground laws: a triangulated analysis of homicide trends and legal cases"
2019:
- Dr. Quan (Sophia) He, Agriculture, with Tsinghua University, China: “Exploration of Hydrothermal Liquefaction Mechanism via Computational Calculation”
- Dr. Yuri Leving, Arts & Social Sciences, with St. Petersburg State University, Russia and Jacobs University, Germany: “Cold War Cultures: Constructing Identities on Both Sides of the Atlantic”
- Dr. Stan Matwin, Computer Science, with IMT Atlantique, France: “Acoustic Detection of Fish with Deep Learning”
- Dr. Richard Price, Dentistry, with Malmö University, Sweden, “Determining Longevity of Dental Restorations and to Identify Causes of Failure”
- Dr. Floris Goerlandt, Engineering, with Technical University Delft, Netherlands; University of Ghent, Belgium; Aalto University, Finland; National Technical University of Athens, Greece; World Maritime University, Sweden: “Arctic Shipping Safety and Environmental Protection: Towards an EU-Canada Student and Staff Exchange Project”
- Dr. Alex Kalamkarov, Engineering, with Karlsruhe Institute of Technology; German Aerospace Center; and Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, Germany: “Interacting Smart Composite Materials and Structures”
- Dr. Catherine Mah, Health, with Monash University, University of Queensland and Deakin University,Australia: “Healthy Stores Practice Exchange”
- Dr. Heidi Lauckner, Health, with University of Cape Town, South Africa and La Trobe University, Australia: “Advancing Community Development: North-South Dialogues”
- Dr. Tony R. Walker, Management, with University of Manchester, United Kingdom, “Pollution Biomonitoring Using Honeybees”
- Dr. Kimberley Hall, Science, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom: “Advance systems for solid state quantum emitters”
- Dr. Djordje Grujic, Science, with ETH Zurich and University of Lausanne, Switzerland: “Direct Dating of Ancient Earthquakes”
2018:
- Dr. Nandika Bandara, Department of Plant, Food and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, with University of Melbourne, Australia: “Renewable polymer-based edible packaging materials for improving microbial food safety”
- Dr. Stephanie Collins, Department of Animal Science and Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, with University of Veterinary Medicine, Austria: “In-ovo feeding of bioactives to promote broiler chicken health and reduce reliance on antibiotics”
- Dr. Gail Eskes, Dept of Psychiatry, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, with University of Birmingham, United Kingdom: “Multimodal approaches to cognitive enhancement in aging and brain disease”
- Dr. John Gosse, Department of Earth Science, Faculty of Science, with ETH Zurich, Switzerland; University of Oslo, Norway; Uppsala University, Sweden; and Cambridge University, United Kingdom: “AAT Risk: Arctic and Atlantic Tsunami Risk Project”
- Dr. Shashi Gujar, Department of Pathology, Department of Microbiology & Immunology and Department of Biology, Faculties of Medicine and Science, with Harvard University, USA: “Developing novel avenues to educate a patient’s own immune system to fight cancer”
- Dr. Israat Haque, Faculty of Computer Science, with University of Pisa, Italy: “Mobility-assisted community service: a data-driven approach to smart service design”
- Dr. Barret Kurylyk, Department of Civil and Resource Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, with WHOI and MIT, USA: “Salt marsh contamination and cycling along the Atlantic Coast of North America”
- Dr. Andrew Medeiros, School for Resource and Environmental Studies, Faculty of Management, with Northwestern University, USA: “Understanding how environmental change affects freshwater ecosystems and the services they provide across the circumpolar north”
- Dr. Derek Reilly, Faculty of Computer Science, with University College London, United Kingdom: “Fundamental issues and opportunities introduced by recent advances in AR technology”
- Dr. Kathy Russell, Faculty of Dentistry, with Penn State University, USA: “International Intercentre Outcome Study on the Burden of Care for Patients with Cleft Lip and Palate"
- Dr. Amina Stoddart, Department of Civil and Resource Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, with University of Texas at Austin, USA, “Manganese (Mn) removal by biofiltration”
- Dr. Dominika Wranik, School of Public Administration, Faculty of Management, with SGH Warsaw School of Economics and Medical University of Warsaw, Poland; Maastricht University, Netherlands: “Selecting drugs for public reimbursement: How do we minimize error?”
Dalhousie Belong Research Fellowships
Dalhousie Belong Research Fellowships
In keeping with Dalhousie's strategic plan and commitment to increasing diversity and gender equity, and to support and enhance research excellence across the institution, the Offices of the Provost & Vice-President Academic and the Vice-President Research & Innovation launched the Dalhousie Belong Research Fellowship Awards in November 2018. The goal of the fellowship awards is to provide pre-tenure, tenure-track faculty members from equity-deserving groups with support to further research in their respective fields. Up to four fellowships of $5,000 each are available annually.
Terms of Reference [PDF]
Criteria
Eligibility criteria:
- Candidates must be pre-tenure, in a tenure-track appointment.
- Candidates must self-identify in one or more of Dalhousie's equity-deserving groups.
- Candidates must not hold a funded chair.
- Candidates must not have previously held, nor currently hold, external research funds as principal or co-principal investigator.
Application packages will be evaluated using the following criteria:
1. Research problem or phenomena of interest is significant and clearly stated (if action research, the intended improvement in outcomes is clearly stated).
2. Appropriate review of relevant literature is presented.
3. Stated objectives/aims/purpose are potentially significant, are specific and achievement can be evaluated using clear criteria.
4. Objectives/Aims/Purpose are realistic and feasible given proposed time frame and requested budget.
5. The proposal clearly indicates the importance of undertaking research or study to address the problem or phenomenon of interest (i.e. the project has merit).
6. The proposal includes a clear explanation of how the project will further the applicant's program of research.
7. Budget includes total and itemized expenses, as well as an explanation or justification for how the funds will be used over each year of the period.
8. The applicant shows strong research potential.
How and when to apply
* The submission deadline for the 2022 Belong Research Fellowship competition is November 28, 2022.
The application package must include the following:
1. Completed application form [PDF]
2. Supporting letter from the applicant's Head/Chair/Director providing comments regarding 1) the applicant's need of funding and, 2) the applicant's research potential, making reference to the following as appropriate:
- Leadership and collaboration on research projects;
- Submitted or published articles in peer-reviewed journals and other peer-reviewd contributions (e.g. conference abstracts);
- Professional, academic and extracurricular activities, interactions and collaborations (e.g., teaching chairing committees and/or organizing conferences, meetings);
- Awards and/or scholarships
- Other non-traditional forms of scholarship and traditional ways of knowing, as appropriate to the applicant's discipline.
3. An electronic copy of the applicant's current curriculum vitae.
It is the responsibility of the applicant to collect and collate all required materials including the support letter. The applicant is responsible for submitting the application package via the ROMEO Researcher Portal, allowing sufficient time for routing through Departmental and Faculty level approvals prior to the deadline.
Past recipients
2022:
Rina Wehbe
Faculty of Computer Science
Xiaohong Sun
Faculty of Agriculture
Research Project: Upcycling the side stream from potato starch industry: A new sustainable protein source
Research Project: Reclaiming L'nuk Identity
Stacy Allison-Cassin
Faculty of Management
Research Project: Linked Data Tools and Indigenous Terminologies: A Preliminary Study
Research Project: Stores of Displacement
2021:
Mayra Donaji Barrera Machuca
Faculty of Computer Science
Research Project: Understanding how diverse users function in AR and VR environments
Qi Deng
Rowe School of Business, Faculty of Management
Research Project: How and Why Hashtags Influence Brand Engagement: Evidence from Twitter
Maria Dugas
Schulich School of Law
Research Project: The Impact of Race and Culture in N.S. Child Welfare System
Ana Maria Gonzalez Barrero
School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Faculty of Health
Research Project: Shared-Book Reading in Children with Autism Specturm Disorders from Minority Language Backgrounds
2020:
Olabisi Akinkugbe
Schulich School of Law
Research Project: Illicit Financial Flows, Trade and Sustainable Development in Africa
Yang Gu
Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry
Research Project: Do Th1, Th2, and TH17 mediated immune responses play active roles in oral lichen planus and oral lichenoid mucositis?
Asha Jeffers
Department of English, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Research Project: Against: Rebellious Daughters in US Black Immigrant Fiction
Masud Rahman
Faculty of Computer Science
Research Project: Making Software Development Efficient Using Artificial Intelligence in Code Reviews
Tasha Richard
Department of Business & Social Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture
Reserach Project: Indigenous Way of Knowing Entrepreneurship, A Preliminary Study
Alana Westwood
School for Resource and Environmental Studies, Faculty of Management
Research Project: Setting a foundation for Indigenous knowledge-guided multi-species conservation planning in the Western Boreal Region of Canada
2019:
Sorayya Askari
School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health
Research Project: Factors Describing Cognitive Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis
Timothy Bryan
Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Research Project: Hate Crimes in Nova Scotia
Lisa Binkley
Department of History, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Research Project: Makazinanag: Many Tender Feet
2018:
Dr. Parisa Ghanouni
School of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health
Research Project: Challenges and Facilitators During Transition of Adolescents with Autism to Adulthood
Shauntay Grant
Department of English, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Research Project: Rewriting Canadian folklore, Repositioning Black Canada: A case from old Nova Scotia
Dr. Barbara Hamilton-Hinch
School of Health and Human Performance, Faculty of Health
Research Project: Benefits or Challenges of Culturally-Specific Programs in Attributing to Students’ Success in Post-secondary Education
Dr. Fadi Oudah
Civil Engineering (Structures and Solid Mechanics), Faculty of Engineering
Research Project: Reliability-Based Approach for Optimizing Tidal Turbine Base Foundation for Reduced Weight
Dr. Melanie Zurba
School of Resource and Environmental Studies, College of Sustainability
Research Project: Designing Governance Frameworks for Protected Areas with Meaningful Indigenous Participation
Click here for additional resources on the application submission process.