Marina and Professor Hawboldt are researching an alternative energy source to petroleum that recycles typically discarded natural resources, including forestry residue from sawmills and pulp and paper plants, as well as fish oil from fish processing plants.

Marina is investigating extraction methods to create high-quality fuel from these resources, and this fuel can then be used for cars or as a means to treat waste water.

“Certainly searching for a job is much more than sending resumes and waiting for an interview. The business skills I’ve learned through Mitacs Step have provided me with valuable communication and networking abilities, the know-how to create impactful resumes and business cards, as well as appropriate manners and etiquette during an interview or at a industry event, all of which I’ve applied to my present job hunt.”

It is this notion that drew Boyang to study Municipal and Environmental Engineering at China’s Harbin Institute of Technology.

After hearing about Mitacs from previous Globalink Research Interns and finding a project that paired perfectly with her academic background, Boyang could not resist the chance to come to Canada.

Under the guidance of Jesse Zhu, a professor at Western University’s Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Boyang is contributing to research on wastewater treatment technologies.

Under the guidance of Dr. Janet Light, Abhishek is researching how to use signal processing to detect when an individual is about to fall. The research has the potential to change the way we approach healthcare for the elderly and those living with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s by reducing overall dependence on caregivers and keeping potentially harmful accidents at bay. Alongside Dr. Light and her team of researchers, Abhishek is investigating microsensors that capture data from foot pressure and brain signals as a way to monitor when a subject loses balance.

Originally from Poland, Dr. Kaminska moved to Canada in 1986 and held a professor position at Polytechnique de Montréal for fourteen years, before heading to the United States with her start-up company OPMAXX.  After the company’s acquisition, she returned to Canada and was awarded a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair. She has been based at School of Engineering Science at Simon Fraser University since 2005.

Dr. Kaminska found Mitacs Accelerate as the perfect fit to advance her own research and apply it in an industrial setting.

Coming from the Birla Institute of Technology & Science in India, he is completing a five year degree combining a Bachelor of Electrical and Electronics Engineering with a Masters of Economics.

“Mitacs Globalink is very well known in my college back home and it has a great reputation.  For students, it’s a big deal to be accepted for an internship because it is so competitive.  I’ve been to Canada on holiday before with my family and really love the country and the culture here and was very happy at being able to return.”

It is this knowledge that Kamloops-based firm West Edge Engineering Ltd. was looking for when they approached UBC Okanagan’s School of Engineering.

There, they were teamed up with Engineering Masters student Konrad Duerr, through a Mitacs-Accelerate internship.

Konrad worked on implementing seismic hazard assessment computer software at West Edge, allowing the company to carry out earthquake risk assessments on buildings – something they had not been able to do before the internship.

Airbags have been widely used to prevent injuries in automobile accidents for many years and Vancouver-based Mobisafe Systems Inc. has been examining ways to make wheelchairs safer using similar technology.

They approached the School of Engineering Science at Simon Fraser University, seeking academic research expertise on how to develop an “airbag” safety system for wheelchairs using a foam cushion.

Having hosted Globalink students from India and Brazil at the CARIS Lab in 2010, 2011 and 2012, Dr. Croft was impressed by the strong work ethic and quick learning ability of the undergraduate visitors with whom she worked.

“Hosting a Globalink student helps my Masters and PhD students to learn and grow by giving them teaching and supervisory experience. But mostly, they gain from the diversity of experience and the different kinds of questions that our Globalink student brings every year.”