2016 Vanier Scholars

What are your research plans for the next three years?
I aim to first define the mechanism and gene products (RNA, proteins) involved in regulating cellular organization and epithelial cell polarity, and second, to test whether disturbing these factors will enhance tumor formation. This involves using a combination of powerful molecular biology and microscopy approaches, as well as various experimental models, including human cells and the common fruit fly, a widely used genetic model organism. I intend to share my work at various national and international conferences, followed by disseminating my results in respected peer-reviewed journals. I also hope to broaden my networking circle and strengthen key collaborations by attending an international exchange, expanding my horizons as a young researcher.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
I feel ecstatic and privileged to be named a Vanier Scholar. It’s a great energy boost for my PhD journey! I owe many thanks to all my mentors who shared their passion and love for research with me. This award enables me to pursue cutting edge research at the lab of my choice and to attend more conferences, which is of immense importance to achieving higher knowledge and keeping up-to-date with the ongoing discoveries. This award also alleviates all financial worries associated with graduate studies, giving me the much needed time to focus on my research. In short, this award not only gives me the momentum to fully dedicate myself to research, but it also opens up a world of opportunities as I lay the foundation for the next chapters of my research career.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
For the next three years, I plan to further our knowledge of cold adaptation in plants. Cold is also a developmental cue, and by working on this project, I will also investigate the interaction between development and survival. These are often intertwined, especially in temperate plants.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am truly honored to have received the Vanier CGS.  This prestigious scholarship allows me to focus all my energy on research. It has been a great motivation and I believe the Vanier will open many doors for my future career.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
Over the next three years, I will complete the molecular work for the mice born within the enclosures and begin the genetic analyses that will answer questions such as “What proportion of the genome is involved in adaptation?” and “Are the same genes begin selected across generations?” We will continue to maintain the enclosures and sample mice from within to establish a long term dataset that will serve as a valuable resource for future studies.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am very honored and thankful for being awarded the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship. I can now begin my Ph.D. studies without worrying about my financial situation and focus purely on my research. The Vanier will also give me the freedom to pursue other projects and initiate collaborations with scientific institutions from around the world.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
Over the next three years, I plan to perform cell culture experiments to study the effect of changing the surface chemistry of PEEK and graphene on the response of osteoblast and immune cells. Since the adsorption of proteins plays a major role in the successful integration of an implant at the cellular level, I also plan to study the relationship between surface chemistry and the adsorption of non-specific proteins. I hope to help gain a better understanding of the role of surface chemistry in PEEK implant integration and to develop a solution-based coating technique that could be easily applied to implants of various shapes and sizes.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am very humbled and honored to have been selected as a recipient of the Vanier scholarship. I am so grateful that I will be able to focus on my research project over the next three years without spending time applying for funding. I feel that this scholarship provides me with an opportunity to not only take my project further but also to have time to develop some side projects that I may not otherwise have had time for. I am excited to use this funding to attend more conferences where I have the chance to discuss my ongoing works with experts in my field and to develop some collaborations. I feel very fortunate to be among the Vanier scholars, which will allow me to develop my research and leadership skills while preparing myself for a career in research. I cannot thank all those who supported me before, during and after the application process enough for their time, help and words of encouragement, and I appreciate very much the support that the Vanier will provide me as I advance in my future career.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
I will use a cluster sampling of programs offered to university students to gather information on project objectives, methods, content, and duration as well as diversity in socioeconomic and geopolitical conditions. The study will apply mixed‐methods. The first component will be a longitudinal survey. All participants (both those entering the dialogue programs and those in the control groups) will complete a survey at the program’s start, indicating their involvement in CS. A survey at the end of the program will elucidate the recent alumni intention to take part in CS institutions and initiatives. Finally, a 12 month longitudinal follow‐up survey will address the levels of alumni involvement in various CS frameworks. The surveys will be accompanied by qualitative methods –participant observation during encounters, content analysis of students’ final papers in case of university courses, and interviews with a sample of 100 students from all the programs designed to present diversity in nationality, gender and socioeconomic background. As CS is a broad concept, a wide range of engagements will be considered for this study. It might be difficult to establish a causal link between participation in inter-dialogue programs and leadership due to self-selection bias. Individuals who are oriented towards civic engagement are more likely to engage in intergroup initiatives. To address this potential problem, students who applied to the programs\courses but were not selected or eventually chose not to participate will serve as a control group. A second control group will be comprised of participants’ peers who have not applied for intergroup dialogue programs, but nevertheless self-attest to support for a peaceful resolution, hold strong democratic values and describe themselves as ethnically tolerant. The peers will be contacted through the participants of the programs from their immediate environment and their number will correspond to those who join the program. This design helps isolate the unique effects of intergroup dialogue programs.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am honored and thrilled to receive this prestigious award. These funds will allow me to access bigger sample of participants, evaluate richer diversity of programs and document in greater depth processes that move individuals to engage in civil society. As many societies worldwide struggle with violent conflicts and social cleavages I hope to use the Vanier Graduate Scholarship to gain understanding into how situations of conflict can be transformed on the grassroots level.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
This project is both deeply philosophical and grounded, as is my research plan. I look forward to reading from a wide variety of classic and radical sources and to collaborate with colleagues across academic disciplines and institutions. I am eager to bring this project to the communities I will be working with; to learn with them, to share their stories, and to question theory through practice. I am also looking to find ways to integrate my own urban art practice, and have started learning guitar as one of many ways to see and be in the city differently.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am fortunate to be surrounded by creative and important research and have profound respect for my colleagues. I am humbled to have been selected and grateful for the opportunity the Vanier Graduate Scholarship affords me to dedicate my time and energy to my work. It is a project that is both personally meaningful and that I believe will have far-reaching impact in understanding how we shape our cities and how our cities shape us.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
I will conduct a quasi-experimental study with a difference-in-differences analysis to assess the impact of the Quebec Alzheimer’s Plan. The Quebec Alzheimer’s Plan has been implemented outside any experimental design. To ensure a sound evaluation of its impacts and to take into account confusion bias, I will use a difference-in-differences analysis, a powerful method to mimic an experiment with observational data. I will compare health services’ use of persons with dementia followed in the Family Medicine Groups (FMGs) where the QC Alzheimer’s plan has been implemented to health services’ use of persons with dementia in control FMG where it has not been implemented. I will match the intervention and control FMG according to their propensity scores to ensure comparability of baseline characteristics, as is the case in randomized controlled trials. I will extract data from the Quebec health administrative database.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I feel incredibly honoured, proud and grateful to be awarded a Vanier award. This could not have happen without the strong support I received throughout the application process from my peers, my supervisors, and the professors of the Department of Family Medicine. Being awarded a Vanier award, in addition to the financial security it offers me, which is already an inestimable gift, gives me confidence that my research project is relevant and could have concrete policy implications. As a future clinician researcher it will open me future funding opportunities allowing me to conduct further geriatric relevant research projects in Quebec.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
Building on exploratory fieldwork I conducted in the United States and Panama, the next few years of my research will follow a three-phase plan. I will first complete archival research to explore diverse institutional arrangements throughout the global seaweed aquaculture sector. With that contextual background, I will carry out extended field research to build in-depth case studies on emerging seaweed industries throughout the Americas. Finally, I will analyze the data collected and write my dissertation. I plan to disseminate the findings of my research through academic channels as well as materials relevant to policymakers and coastal communities. My research horizons will continue to expand as a result of the invaluable scientific support provided by McGill’s Neotropical Environment Option, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, and the Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services, and Sustainability NSERC CREATE Program.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am honored to have been selected as a Vanier Scholar. I deeply appreciate the investment in my growth as a scientist. Winning this extraordinary scholarship is a testament to the support of the Department of Geography, the research mentorship of my supervisor, Dr. Brian Robinson, and the contributions of so many others at McGill and beyond to my personal and professional development. The financial flexibility provided by the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship will enable me to more completely focus on my research and engage in complementary outreach activities. The recognition of the Vanier selection committee further challenges, inspires, and motivates me to pursue impactful research, expand my leadership activities, and actively contribute to improving opportunities for sustainable development in coastal regions worldwide.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
In order to reach my objectives, I separated my research plans for the next three years as follows. First, I will investigate the possible initial states for the universe. Then, I will study the dynamics of the universe, i.e. how the universe evolves over time given the theory and its ingredients. Finally, I will determine the spectrum of the perturbations, which will allow us to test our ideas against observational facts.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I feel very privileged and honored to be a recipient of the Vanier Graduate Scholarship. Winning this scholarship encourages me to go beyond mainstream ideas and be more independent intellectually. I hope to be able to go to the root of physical problems and contribute to the progress of our understanding of the physical laws that describe our universe in its most extreme behavior. With the support of this scholarship, I will also have more opportunities to travel and visit other institutions. This is crucial to encourage me disseminate new ideas and promote internationally the research carried out at McGill University. It will also help me exchange and create links with other researchers that could play a role in my post-doctoral career.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
During the next three years, I will be investigating the role played by autophagy and mitochondrial dysfunction in sepsis-induced impairment of muscle function using various mouse models. Also, I plan to travel for conferences and internships during the next years. This will allow me develop several research skills in collaboration with other researchers.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​It is a great honor and I feel privileged to receive the Vanier Scholarship. Winning this award will allow me to focus entirely on my research without financial worries. The Vanier Scholarship will also give me more opportunities to attend international conferences and to establish collaborations with other researchers. I believe that the support of this award will further motivate me to achieve my full leadership potential in my research field. This award confirms my commitment to make a positive impact in the field of research focusing on muscle dysfunction.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
We know that challenges to the maternal immune system during pregnancy, like viral or bacterial infections, increase the chances of neurodevelopmental disorders appearing in the young, including: Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder and Schizophrenia. The mother’s attempt to repel invaders—her inflammatory response—is seemingly at fault. Recently, the brain’s guardian immune-cells, microglia, have been shown to be critically involved in normal brain development, shaping the connections between neurons. Defective brain connections could seriously affect physical, social and/or intellectual capacities giving rise to neurodevelopmental disorders. We believe that with roles both in immunity and development, microglia are therefore an exciting new target for investigation in the context of maternal infection. During the next three years, I will study microglia’s role shaping neuronal connections in a mouse model of maternal immune activation. With this model, we can peek inside the brain using cutting-edge microscopy technology and do gene manipulations, allowing us to directly dissect microglia’s involvement in neurodevelopmental disorders arising from maternal infection.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I’ve fallen in love with research. This search for truth that requires bridging of different disciplines and countries, I think is the very basis of our development as a society. My first thought with the news about the Vanier was… “Wow, I may actually have a chance to continue in this path of becoming a scientist!” Let’s face it; it has become very difficult to follow a career in science, and coming from a developing country where you have very little financially, the need to be practical about life choices can be overwhelming at times. Obtaining this distinction is liberating. I’m happy and fortunate to have made it this far with the unconditional support of my husband, and this award certainly fuels my hope to continue on this career path. Given the potential benefits that research on neurodevelopment could have for children, I feel that being part of current and future research in the field is how I can best contribute to the global community.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
I will begin by conducting field studies to gather data that will be used in computer modeling. This includes monitoring of important hydrologic metrics such and stream discharge, groundwater levels and water chemistry as well as physical site properties including subsurface and infiltration characteristics. Next I will modify existing hydrologic computer programs so that the groundwater, surface water and glacier melt components work together. Finally, I will use the model to run hydrological simulations that use climate projections as an input and output hydrologic projections for the next fifty years.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am incredibly grateful to have been selected for the Vanier Graduate Scholarship and am honoured to be among this group of student leaders. Winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship gives me the financial freedom to focus more completely on my research. This scholarship will allow me to conduct fieldwork in the Peruvian Andes and engage directly with Peruvian collaborators and stakeholders amplifying the impact of my work.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
Over the next three years I will be working on a cost-effective and accurate way of conducting TBI surveillance using administrative health data. My goal is to develop novel TBI surveillance algorithms that can be used across jurisdictions, such that stakeholders in TBI across the world can monitor TBI occurrence in their population in a resource-friendly fashion. With this new knowledge I will complete my next thesis goal which is to evaluate the impact that policies geared toward the clinical management of TBI have on individuals and the healthcare system.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am honoured to have been recognized as a Vanier Scholar. The support provided by the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS) will allow me to dedicate my time and effort to my doctoral research. Since this scholarship recognizes future researchers with strong leadership skills, I believe that both local and international stakeholders in TBI will be more attracted to collaborate on my research endeavors at McGill. This teamwork will ensure that my research is cross-jurisdictionally relevant and widely disseminated. For these reasons, I believe that the Vanier CGS will have an important influence on my quest to becoming a clinician-scientist.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
My plan is to continue with my project on PCBP2 and the hepatitis C virus - I have established a cell culture system to knock down or overexpress PCBP2, and I am currently optimizing assays to tease out how the different stages of the viral life cycle are affected by a depletion or an abundance of this protein. Once I have identified the step(s) of virus production that require PCBP2, I’ll use the same system to overexpress PCBP2 constructs with inactivating mutations in the protein’s RNA-binding domains - this will allow me to pinpoint the structure(s) necessary for PCBP2’s effect on the viral life cycle. Eventually, I will use this experimental system to explore whether PCBP2 interacts with other elements known to be necessary for HCV replication, such as the cellular microRNA miR-122. I also hope to generate some preliminary data about PCBP2’s effect - or lack thereof - on the replication of the dengue and Zika viruses.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​I am honoured and grateful to have won a Vanier Graduate Scholarship. This award will allow me to focus fully on my research without worrying about securing other sources of funding, and will also give me the means to attend conferences and training opportunities that I otherwise could not afford. These will be great opportunities to expand my network and to disseminate my findings within my field’s research community.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
Since learning I was awarded the Vanier, I completed my comprehensive exams and obtained ethics approval for my project studying the process of ethics approval (the irony did not escape me!). My research plans for the next three years involve conducting an in-depth case study through document reviews and interviews with key stakeholders from six pediatric genomic projects funded in Canada. I will compile descriptive statistics on time and costs of ethics approval, as well as better understand how the approval process influences researchers’ propensity and abilities to share research data. I plan to conduct on-site data collection with PIs, research teams and ethics review committees across the various cities in which the six pediatric projects are head quartered. My affiliation with the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health will further allow me to engage international partners in developing the pediatric data sharing policy framework.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​To be sure, being awarded the Vanier Graduate Scholarship is my greatest academic achievement to date and for which no words of gratitude to the mentors who supported me in the process could suffice. Yet the designation carries with it for me an even greater commitment to actualizing the social promises of the academy generally, and directing scientific progress through leadership in science policy, specifically. The Vanier Graduate Scholarship is a privilege to pursue areas of research that fascinate me most—namely where science, biomedicine and society intersect—but more importantly deepens my commitment to being a young scholar who is globally engaged. Similar to the ways in which data sharing is a collective good, the Vanier Graduate Scholarship is a vehicle for me to generate social goods through translating new knowledge into (science) policy. I anticipate the Vanier Graduate Scholarship will open doors I once thought out of reach in research and academia. Particularly exciting are the prospects the Vanier has made possible to enhance the visibility of women leaders in science policy and university administration. As an international student recipient, I am afforded the financial security that, without it, so often compromises the professional development of young women scholars like me. Addressing this disparity in a local capacity at McGill will be a focus of mine as a Vanier recipient.

What are your research plans for the next three years? 
I am currently in Spain, conducting 18 months of fieldwork. I’m already working in a vineyard, learning all the subtleties of the regional challenges to viticulture and winemaking. During my time here, I will also spend time with the shepherds’ and their flocks, the districts’ horticulturalists, and the marketing experts that oversee labelling processes. Following this period, I will also participate in food and wine fairs all over the world in order to follow the commodity chain of the district’s products. Following these 18 months of fieldwork, I will begin writing my dissertation. In this stage, I will attend conferences and publish my results in international journals as well as engage with my research subjects to create a public discussion about my research findings.

How do you feel about winning a Vanier Graduate Scholarship – what difference will this make to your research path or your contribution to the global community?
​My research greatly benefitted from the Vanier Graduate Scholarship. The scholarship allows me to extend the duration of my fieldwork, as well as to extend fieldwork beyond its initial geographical limits. This way, I will be able to locally and internationally follow those processes that entail rural rebranding through regional labelling – a process of high relevance to vast rural areas of developed countries.