Meeting the moment with research that matters
To this end, we have moved quickly and collaboratively to position É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ for success across major federal research funding programs, including the Canada Excellence Research Chairs, Canada Research Chairs, and Canada Impact+ Research Chairs programs. We hope these efforts will bring new strength to É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ in the years to come in areas where research and innovation excellence can help advance Canada’s long-term resilience and prosperity.
We have also deepened our engagement in research and with partners that support Canadian sovereignty. From our home on the East Coast, where ocean, naval and aerospace strengths are core parts of provincial life, É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ has a distinctive role in turning discovery and talent into national capacity.
At the same time, we continued to focus on the systems and supports that make research possible. Through the Pursuing Research Excellence Initiative, we are working to improve processes, reduce administrative friction and make it easier for researchers to focus on the work itself, from grants to compliance and research security.
We have also laid the foundation for a strengthened approach to research partnerships through the creation of Dal Partners which focuses on building productive relationships that drive public value, and Dal Commercializes, which supports researchers in advancing their ideas through to commercialization.
As this report shows, our research enterprise is already on course to meet the moment we find ourselves in, embracing the challenges and opportunities set out in A Rising Tide: É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥â€™s Promise to Nova Scotia and the World, É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥â€™s new strategic framework. Across Health, Discovery and Civic Strength, our achievements reflect the talent, ambition and public purpose of our research community. They also point to the work ahead, continuing to turn excellence into impact for the people, partners and communities we serve.
Healthier lives, stronger communities
This year, É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ advanced health and well-being through research and partnerships shaped by the needs of Nova Scotia. Across disciplines, our work supported groundbreaking discoveries, better care, healthier environments and more equitable systems that help people, families and communities flourish close to home and around the world.
Breakthroughs in genetics
New Member of the Royal Society of Canada College
Tracking Pathogens, Protecting People
Computer Scientist Dr. Finlay Maguire uses genomic data to understand and outsmart infectious diseases. His computational tools help hospitals and public health professionals make faster, better-informed decisions on antibiotic use and outbreak control.
Focusing on Black Health
Discovery that powers progress
É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ researchers turned discovery toward action, mobilizing knowledge, talent and partnerships to address urgent challenges across research domains from quantum science to national security and from climate-smart agriculture to ocean-based carbon removal. Over the past year, our research enterprise strengthened Nova Scotia’s capacity for innovation while contributing solutions with national relevance and global reach.
Quantum leaps
Research in service to sovereignty
New Fellow of the Royal Society of CanadaÌý
Catalysts that Power Innovation
From pharmaceuticals to agricultural products, Chemist Dr. Mark Stradiotto’s catalysts are transforming how essential molecules are made — faster, more efficiently, and more sustainably. His work bridges fundamental discovery with real-world impact, enabling the production of materials and medicines that support a cleaner, more innovative future.
An environment for innovation
Civic strength
É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥â€™s research and innovation community helped strengthen bonds with the public and supported social justice and democratic life by connecting scholarship with the communities it serves. Through evidence, creativity, dialogue and partnership, our work supported more informed public discourse, elevated diverse perspectives and demonstrated the university’s enduring responsibility to act in the public good.
Creating equity in mental health
Empowering innovators
is É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥â€™s entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem offering an expansive network of programs to meet participants wherever they are in their venture creation journey. Extending beyond the university, Dal Innovates connects entrepreneurs and innovators across the region, country and globe.
Dal Innovates
2025-26 program teams
Creative Destruction Lab-AtlanticÌý
2025-26 program teams
Centring our impact
É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ established several new Centres and InstitutesÌýto maximize impact beyond the university, including: the MicroResearch Institute (featured below), Atlantic AI Institute (A2I2), Centre for Jewish Studies, Atlantic Institute for Digital Agriculture, and Centre of Excellence in Fisheries Science.
Commitment to community
New Fellow of the Royal Society of CanadaÌý
Rediscovering lost voices
MusicologistÌýDr. Jennifer Bain’s research traces how medieval plainchant travelled across cultures, including Indigenous communities in Canada, using digital tools to preserve the complex global history of sacred sound.
Life on the ocean
Success in numbers
Research funding administered: FY2025-2026
Total research funds administered, 2022 to 2026
Supporting our researchers
Through the Pursuing Research Excellence Initiative, É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ advanced work to strengthen research administration, harmonize core processes and improve service delivery. The initiative is helping build more consistent, efficient and responsive supports for researchers across the institution.
*REB - Research Ethics Boards, UCLA - University Committee on Laboratory Animals
Recognizing excellence: Awards 2025-26
External awards
African Academy of Sciences Fellow
Dr. Rita Orji
Barer-Flood Senior Career Prize in Health Services and Policy Research
Dr. Jill Hayden
Bhagirath Singh Early Career Award in Infection and Immunity
Dr. Francesca Di Cara
Canadian Academy of Health Sciences Emerging Leaders in Health Sciences
Dr. Leigha Rock
Chemical Institute of Canada Keith Laidler Award
Dr. Mita Dasog
Companion of the Order of Canada
Dr. Ford Doolittle
Discovery Awards
Emerging Professional: Dr. Ejemai Eboreime; Innovation: CarbonRun, Dr. Shannon Sterling and co-founders; Hall of Fame: Dr. Jean Gray; Science Champion: Dr. Paola Marignani
ENI Energy Transition Prize
Dr. Jeff Dahn
Foresight’s Canadian Cleantech Awards: Atlantic Canada CleanTech Supporter of the Year
Drs. Sonil Nanda and Michael Metzger
Killam NRC Paul Corkum Fellowship
Dr. Kimberley Hall
Partnership for Women’s Health Research Mid-Career Excellence in Women’s Health Research Award
Dr. Natalie Rosen
É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ awards
Distinguished Research Professors
Drs. Penny Corkum and Andrew RogerÌý
President's Research Excellence Award: Research Impact
Drs. Rita Orji, Ajay Parasram, and Derek Tittensor.Ìý
President's Research Excellence Award: Emerging InvestigatorÌý
Drs. Stacy Allison-Cassin, Ejemai Eboreime, Hannah Harrison, Ruth Musgrave, Michael Metzger, Alexa Yakubovich, and Chongyin Yang
É«ÃÃÃÃÖ±²¥ Research Advisory Council
Chair: Dr. Graham Gagnon
Vice President Research and Innovation
Dr. Jennifer Bain
Associate Vice President, Research
Dr. Christian Blouin
Dean, Faculty of Grad Studies
Dr. Jamie Baxter
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of Law
Dr. Megan Bailey
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of ScienceÌý
Dr. Shelley Brown
Managing Director, Research Services
Dr. Stefanie Columbo
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of AgricultureÌý
Marc Comeau
Head of IT Partnerships - Faculties and Research
Dr. Eileen Denovan-Wright
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Mark Filiaggi
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of DentistryÌý
Dr. Kerry Goralski
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of Health
ÌýHilary Harron
Acting Managing Director, Dal Partners
Ìý
Ìý
Dr. Robert Huish
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Jeff Larsen
Assistant Vice President, Innovation & EntrepreneurshipÌý
Elaine MacInnis
Dean of Libraries
ÌýDr. Frank MacMaster
Vice President Research & Innovation, IWK Health
Dr. Jennifer Morawiecki
Director, Global Research Engagement
Dr. Balakrishnan Prithiviraj
Associate Vice President, Global Relations
ÌýDr. Jeannie Shoveller
Vice President Research, Nova Scotia Health
John R. Sylliboy
Vice-Provost, Indigenous Relations
ÌýDr. Peter VanBerkel
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of Engineering
Dr. Catherine Venart
Associate Dean Research, Faculty of Architecture & PlanningÌý
Trevor Weissent
Managing Director,ÌýFinance & Administration
ÌýDr. Dominika Wranik
Associate Dean of Research, Faculty of Management