Author: Karen Kueneman

Western Research – COVID-19 Research Update

The Province of Ontario has recently revised its public health measures and advice to eliminate mandatory masking in public spaces. Western has similarly removed its mask mandate inside its buildings at this time.

Requirements for in-person research have correspondingly been modified to reflect these changes. Mask-wearing is now a personal choice except in on-campus clinics where patient care is delivered.

All research in clinics is to be conducted according to safety guidelines established by the clinic (e.g., dental clinics still require full PPE by dentists and staff). Please note that PPE must also continue in settings where this safety measure is required independent of COVID.

Medical-grade (ASTM level 3) masks must still be made available to all researchers and participants across all research models and spaces.

Western recognizes that Coronavirus Omicron variants continue to present serious risks and are working with public health officials to monitor these risks and to act accordingly. All researchers are encouraged to continue prioritizing safety in this context. Thank you for your continued diligence.

Additional notes:

23rd Annual Western University Graduate Symposium on Music- Call for Papers

The Society of Graduate Students in Music at Western University is pleased to announce the

23rd annual Graduate Symposium on Music (WUGSOM)
August 26 – 27, 2022.

Keynote:
“Rules, Rites, and Respect: Performing Black Moroccan Music and Culture.”

by
Dr. Maisie Sum
Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo

WUGSOM will continue to hold the conference online. The program committee invites graduate students from all institutions and disciplines to submit proposals for papers on any aspect of music, including but by no means limited to music theory, musicology, ethnomusicology, music cognition, music education, composition, and performance. They welcome papers on any topic and encourage a diversity of excellence in research across many fields.

The deadline for submission is Friday, June 30th, 2022 at 4:00 pm EST.

Presentations are limited to 20 minutes, with a 10-minute question period. All submissions must include the title of the paper and a proposal not exceeding 350 words. Proposals should not include supplementary materials or figures and should not include your name or other identifying information. Please send submissions using the form available at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSee-M8f6Q_ZxznZLMgqoRDhtaqEAck8AIY9kyv3Vlvbe2jonw/viewform.

Further information will be posted to the conference website as it becomes available: https://www.sogsim.com/conferences


Western’s 2022 Head & Heart Indigenous Research Fellowship Accepting Applications

The Head & Heart (H&H) Indigenous Research Fellowship offers Indigenous undergraduate and graduate students of various disciplinary backgrounds hands-on, 10 week, culturally-relevant research experience guided by a designated faculty supervisor. Grounded in Indigenous pedagogical approaches, the fellowship is explicitly designed to nurture and inspire Indigenous scholars through weekly co-curricular learning sessions focused on topics and skills development relevant to Indigenous scholars, including promising practices, innovations in research, and professional development.

Deadline: April 11, 2022 at 4:30 pm (EST)

Amount:
Each undergraduate award is valued at $8,400.00. The expectation of this award is that students will participate in 35 hours/week of research-based activity, which will include co-curricular activities over the 10-week period.

Each graduate award is valued at $10,000.00. The expectation of this award is that students will participate in 35 hours/week of research-based activity, which will include co-curricular activities over the 10-week period.

Additional information: 

Online applications:

International Policy Ideas Challenge 2022

The sixth edition of the International Policy Ideas Challenge call for proposals has just been launched.

Description: The objective of the program is to draw on the network of talented Canadian graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and early-career civil society researchers to identify concrete, innovative solutions to emerging international policy challenges faced by Canada.
The program offers applicants a chance to test their skills at translating academic expertise into policy language and insights.

Themes:Each proposal should outline a trend, dynamic, or research question affecting Canadian foreign policy in relation to one or more themes provided below that applicants believe needs additional study.

  1. Canada-led or- supported actions with close partners, including the G7 and NATO, and/or through Canada’s engagement with international organizations, including the UN, that aim to do 1 or more of:
    • promoting peace and security
    • responding to arbitrary detention, economic coercion or cyber-threats
    • responding to the international COVID-19 pandemic
  2. Canada-led or -supported international responses that advance support for democracy, rule of law, media freedom, inclusive governance and/or human rights, particularly those made in coordination with the G7 and NATO, which could include responding to foreign interference in democratic processes and/or egregious violations of human rights
  3. Applying lessons learned from COVID-19 response and recovery to informing and strengthening Canada’s international assistance in the areas of pandemic preparedness and recovery; you may focus on priority issues, such as:
    • strengthening health systems
    •  the One Health approach
    • education for refugees and forcibly displaced children and youth
    • prevention of gender violence
    • paid and unpaid care work
    • protections for migrant workers in the care economy
    • decent work and employment in a post-COVID-19 world
    • other social and economic considerations
  4. Ways Canada should further support developing countries in taking climate action through adaptation, mitigation and resilience, with particular emphasis on the needs and rights of women and marginalized vulnerable groups; you may focus on 1 or more priority issues, such as:
    • international climate finance, including blended finance
    • feminist approaches
    • nature-based solutions
    • biodiversity
    • small-island developing states
    • Africa-focused programming
    • Indigenous-led solutions
    • locally led climate solutions
    • climate change and security
  5. How Canada can help to build and safeguard an open and inclusive rules-based global trading system that will help raise the standard of living for all Canadians. You may focus on 1 or more priority issues, such as:
    • Strengthening and securing critical supply chains
    • Advancing Canada’s global leadership on critical minerals
    • Ensuring that Canada’s trading relationships are mutually beneficial economic relationships
    • Ensuring that Canadian businesses operating abroad do not contribute to human rights abuses
    • Combatting protectionism, unfair trade practices and economic coercion around the world
    • Positioning Canada as a top destination for global investment while balancing Canada’s national interests
  6. Ways to advance Canada’s export diversification strategy, to enable Canadian businesses to grow internationally and to create economic opportunities through increased and more diverse trade and investment. You may focus on 1 or more priority issues, such as:
    • Addressing bilateral trade issues with the United States
    • Developing a strategy for economic cooperation across Africa
    • Reinforcing economic cooperation in our hemisphere
    • Building stronger economic linkages as part of a new Indo-Pacific strategy
    • Negotiating a Canada-United Kingdom Trade Agreement
    • Advancing Canada’s inclusive free trade agenda

Eligibility: current graduate students (Master’s or PhD level) and post-doctoral fellows at a recognized Canadian post-secondary educational institution; must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada

Deadline: May 20, 2022

Amount: $3000

More information and how to apply…

Questions: contact Global Affairs Canada at: IPIC-CIPI.POR@international.gc.ca.

American Musicological Society Travel and Research Grant Applications

The American Musicological Society (AMS) is now accepting applications for travel and research grants. These are primarily for doctoral candidates.

Deadline: 11:59pm ET, 15 April 2022

More information and applications…

COVID-19 Research Update: Return to Full Capacity

Effective March 1, 2022, Western will again increase capacity in research spaces to 100 per cent, provided all personnel continue to follow PPE, vaccination, screening and cleaning requirements.

These changes include face-to-face human studies involving high ventilation rates (e.g., exercise testing or training), which still require the use of rapid tests prior to entering the research space and appropriate filtering of intake and exhaled air. All other previously permitted research models may also continue.

Western Complex Systems Conference 2022

Along with Western Research, the Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS) Lab is pleased to host the inaugural Western Complex Systems Conference (WCSC) on March 30, 2022. This one-day conference highlights the application of complexity theory and systems thinking across disciplines. Across vast diversity in fields, methodologies, and domain expertise, the common thread is curiosity about the ways that nonlinear dynamics and systemic thinking invite us to understand and respond to our world.

March-30, 2022, 9:00 AM-5:00 PM
via Zoom

Western Library Webinars for Research

Western Libraries is offering 2 workshops this week that may be of interest.

Finding Statistical Data Sources at Western

Date:  Tuesday, February 15, 2022
Time:  1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Location:  Zoom (register here)

This session will explore how research questions can be answered using data resources, such as secondary data collected from sources such as Statistics Canada. Resources supported by Western Libraries will be featured as will other sources.

Research Data Management: Plans, Tools, and Grants

Date: Thursday, February 17, 2022
Time: 10:30 am – 11:30 am
Location: Zoom (register here)

The Canadian Tri-Agency Research Data Management Policy, released early in 2021, introduced new requirements for researchers applying for grants from CIHR, SSHRC, and NSERC. The various requirements can be intimidating, but data management doesn’t need to be a headache. This workshop will cover current and anticipated requirements, teach you about the most important elements of a data management plan, and discuss data sharing and archiving. This workshop will also introduce a new Western-customized assistant for writing Data Management Plans that will help you choose the most appropriate, locally supported technologies.

See all upcoming workshops

2022 Canadian Japanese Mennonite Scholarship – Human Rights in Canada

Every year Mennonite Central Committee Canada, in partnership with the National Association of Japanese Canadians, offers the Canadian Japanese Mennonite scholarship to a student enrolled in a graduate degree program that is engaged in research concerning human rights in Canada.

Amount: $2,000

Deadline: April 1, 2022

More information: mcccanada.ca/scholarships.

Updates to the Western Research Ethics Manager (WREM) system

Western Research has updated some of the forms within the WREM system, which will become active at 4pm on January 28, 2022. The updated forms include:

  • The HSREB & NMREB amendment forms;
  • The HSREB/NMREB Continuing Ethics Review Form;
  • The HSREB/NMREB Study Closure form; and
  • The NMREB Initial Application form.

Changes have been made to reflect ongoing feedback from users for clarity, to hopefully reduce recommendations and to assist in expeditious review.

When you log in to WREM you will notice the following message appear in the Work Area at the top of your screen in a pink bar: “Warning: The Project Owner must update your project in order to submit this form.”

The Project Owner (i.e., the user who created the project) will need to accept the update prior to a) submitting an application and/or b) completing an application the study team has been working on when the message appears.

Are there any implications to updating the form(s)?

Consider these three scenarios:

  1. The form has not been submitted, and is still unlocked
    Updating the project will have little to no effect except for any questions that have been updated in the form you are completing. It will not affect the information that has been inputted into questions that have not been updated.
  2. The form has not been submitted, but the form has been locked by a signature request
    Updating the project will break these signatures requests. Once the project has been updated, a signature will need to be requested again to submit to our office for review.
  3. The form has been signed and submitted
    Updating the project will have no effect on any submitted forms.

Registering an application with ReDA

Since WREM’s launch, ongoing confusion has been identified regarding when study teams should submit to ReDA.

If you are conducting a research study that also requires oversight from Lawson Health Research Institute (per criteria), the study team MUST first register the study with ReDA prior to exporting it from ReDA to WREM. For more specific information, please contact Lawson at lawsonapproval@lawsonresearch.com

Further information and contacts

To access WREM training material and FAQs please visit the website and WREM.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to any member of the Research Ethics team, or email ethics@uwo.ca.