Innovative Projects Realized

Expecting the Unexpected: Disaster Vulnerability and Evacuation Planning

While naturals disasters and extreme weather events continue to increase in both frequency and severity due to climate change, communities around the world continue to suffer major social, environmental and economic losses. However, rural communities in particular are struggling to develop adequate adaptation plans and perform risk reduction actions due to limited human and financial resources. As well, Indigenous communities continue to be disproportionately impacted by these events due to remoteness, dependence on the natural environment, and limited access to emergency services which highlights the need to build resilient capacity to reduce future disaster losses. This research project will run a trial vulnerability analysis in Siksika Nation, located in Southern Alberta, to determine what economic, cultural, social and geographic factors are needed to develop a comprehensive evacuation plan. It will also determine whether this strategy can be utilized in similar communities to facilitate knowledge sharing while creating disaster risk reduction plans.

Le Design Thinking comme approche à l’innovation en médiation muséale.

À l’heure actuelle, les musées se voient contrés à innover avec dans leurs pratiques de médiation avec les technologies numérique. Dans cet élan pour concevoir des alternatives adéquates en lien avec les publics et les objectifs de chacune de ces institutions, des laboratoires d’incubation de projets en médiation numérique destinés à accueillir des initiatives muséales ont commencé à voir le jour, dont PRISME, le laboratoire d’innovation numérique du Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal.
Ce projet s’intéresse donc à l’utilisation du Design Thinking comme approche à l’innovation utilisée laboratoire d’innovation numérique établi dans le Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal afin de réfléchir à son adéquation vis-à-vis des défis particuliers de la conception de dispositifs de médiation dans les musées.

Seismic performance of helical pile groups and their cost efficiency as alternative to driven piles

A new seismic hazard model of Canada will be incorporated in the NBCC2020, which will increase the seismic hazard by 50-100%. Meanwhile, helical piles are a reliable and cost-effective alternative to conventional driven piles because of their fast installation, lower cost and lower labour risk. They are suitable for retrofitting existing deficient foundations because they require smaller installation equipment that cause minimal vibration and noise during installation. Observations during recent strong earthquakes have demonstrated excellent performance of structures supported on helical piles with negligible damage. This research will aid in gaining better understanding of seismic performance of helical piles and pile groups under strong earthquakes and provide quantitative comparison between helical piles and driven piles in terms of performance and cost regarding seismic design. The research would produce performance-cost comparative charts of piles considering different ground conditions and levels of ground motion intensity.

L’OCDE et la gouvernance de politiques publiques d’éducation : une approche comparative entre la France et le Québec

Cette thèse a pour objectif d’analyser le poids d’acteurs supranationaux dans la mise à l’agenda de politiques nationales d’éducation, qui demeurent une prérogative étatique. Comment les pratiques d’acteurs supranationaux influencent-elles la mise à l’agenda de politiques nationales?? Afin de répondre à cette question, cette recherche se concentre sur l’influence des pratiques de l’OCDE (Organisation de Coopération et de Développement Économiques) sur la mise à l’agenda de politiques publiques d’éducation, dans une perspective comparée entre la France et le Québec. En s’interrogeant sur l’influence de l’OCDE sur la mise à l’agenda de politiques publiques d’éducation, cette thèse comporte trois objectifs. Sur le plan scientifique, notre étude cherche à valoriser l’interdisciplinarité. Elle souhaite faire dialoguer deux disciplines des sciences sociales qui se mélangent encore très peu, soit les relations internationales et l’éducation comparée. Aussi, d’un point vue théorique et empirique, cette thèse souhaite élargir la littérature émergente sur les politiques publiques internationales en utilisant le cas des politiques d’éducation qui demeure peu étudier en science politique. Enfin, cette thèse a pour finalité d’apporter des outils aux acteurs supranationaux quant à la diffusion de leurs pratiques institutionnelles et de leurs politiques éducatives.

Quantifying the role of internal climate variability in snow cover trends over northern Québec and Labrador

The climate of northern Quebec and Labrador is strongly influenced by natural variability on time scales ranging from years to decades. These internal modes of variability superimpose onto the anthropogenically forced global warming trend, thus making local climate variations difficult to anticipate in the short term. The communities living in Nunavik, Nunatsiavut and NunatuKavut are vulnerable to these changes, with food security in particular adversely impacted by diminished snow and ice cover from a warming climate. It is therefore a priority to better quantify natural variability in these regions to provide decision makers with the best available information for developing adaptation strategies. The objective of this project is to quantify the impact of internal climate variability on snow cover in northern Quebec and Labrador, which directly addresses a recommendation from the latest ArcticNet Integrated Regional Impact Study for Nunavik and Nunatsiavut.

Multi-level systems and the fulfilment of international commitments

In the Copenhagen Accord of 2009, 23 parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) committed themselves to mitigating their greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. While the European Union will fulfil its commitment, other parties such as Australia, Canada and the US will not reach their envisaged targets. These four cases face the common challenge that emission mitigation concerns the jurisdictions of different levels of government. Consequently, the successful accomplishment of their commitments requires the cooperation and coordination with and the action of the provinces, States, Member States and regions, respectively. This project seeks to explain the EU’s capacity to fulfil its international climate commitments by especially focusing on the coordination and cooperation mechanisms between the EU, its Member States and the regional level. To better understand the functioning, dynamics and performance of these mechanisms, some 15 interviews with representatives of the EU institutions and of the EU Members States and regions will be conducted. The project will be carried out under the supervision of one of the leading experts in EU environmental and climate policies.

Athlete and Coach Perceptions of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport

Currently, the staff of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) is uncertain of

how Canadian athletes, coaches, and members the Canadian sport community perceives

their efforts and programs. This research will identifY if the current

policies and procedures for anti- View Full Project Description

Development of experimental test facilities and rigorous testing protocols to characterize non-linear pitot probe measurements in the vicinity of a deformable bluff body to be used at AeroLab Technology

Prediction of fluid dynamic phenomena is an area of research all on its own. A complete solution to the non-linear Navier-Stokes equations that governed fluid flow has yet to be found using modern mathematics. It is for this reason in order to characterize and test new aerodynamic sensors a test facility must exists where various parameters can be control in order to understand their effect. AeroLab Technology requires an intern with a background in fluid mechanics and experimental design to design and contruct of a wind tunnel to perform preliminary tests on current and upcoming sensors designs. In order to ensure high quality data the intern will additionally develop testing procedures for the new facilities in order to minimize the systematic error in performing experiments.

Industry Case Studies for Forest Biorefinery Design

Transformation of pulp and paper mills to the biorefinery is increasingly

being conSidered by many Canadian forestry companies. In this internship sponsored by the

MITACS Accelerate program, for approximately 4 months of the 8 month internship period,

Cedric Diffo will conduct an internship with West Fraser Timber Company and FPlnnovations

in order to better define issues related to product design and the lignin-based biorefinery. At

the West Fraser mill in Hinton Alberta, Cedric will evaluate the existing process as well as

product-process biorefinery opportunities. At FPlnnovations, Cedric will assist in the

operation of the lignin preCipitation pilot plant.

A Needs Assessment of Community Resources and Services for People with Cancer and Their Families in New Brunswick

This research is aiming to discover the experiences of people with a cancer diagnosis and their families in terms of accessing and receiving medical and support services and resources in New Brunswick, and any perceived gaps and barriers they have encountered during their journey. Additionally, this research will explore what a supportive care centre for people with a cancer diagnosis and their families would ideally look like in New Brunswick. The intern will conduct interviews and surveys to assess the cancer experiences of people with a cancer diagnosis, their families, and their formal/informal caregivers. The intern will then analyze the data through finding common themes and meanings in the participants’ shared experiences. This project will promote community partnerships between the University of New Brunswick and the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS). It will benefit CCS as the research findings will provide insight into the needs and experiences of people with cancer diagnoses and their families, and allow the partner organization to gain a greater understanding provincial resources and support services that can aid people through their cancer journey.

Understanding the School Transition Experiences of Adolescents Living in Armed Forces Families: A Service Parent Perspective

The purpose of this project will be to explore the types of experiences that service parents in England are having when moving and transitioning their adolescent(s) into a new school. This project will explore different factors (e.g., the child, the family, the school, etc.) that can influence the school transition process and experience. Individuals who meet the following criteria will be invited to participate in the project: (1) at least one parent in the family is currently serving as a Regular Force member in the Armed Forces, and (2) has an adolescent who is currently in Years 10-13 (Grade 9-12 equivalent in Canada) who has experienced a school transition in England during the past two years. Data will be collected from 8-10 service parents using demographic surveys and in-depth qualitative interviews. Since this project replicates one being conducted in Canada, the findings of both projects will be compared to deepen learning and to inform policy in both countries.

Examining the Washback Effects of TOEFL iBT on the Integrated English Skills for Academic Purposes

A growing number of language tests have been designed to assess four skills of language integratively rather than isolatedly. With the guidance of Green’s (2007) washback model on washback direction, variability, and intensity, this study adopts a two-phase embedded concurrent mixed-method design to investigate the influence of TOEFL iBT on students’ learning of integrated English skills for academic purpose. The findings will (a) inform us the nature of integrated English skills for academic purposes and further support students’ learning. A thorough understanding of the construct of integrated English skills and its washback will (b) add to the validity evidence of the interpretation and use of TOEFL iBT score for high-stake admission decisions. This study will also (c) contribute to the ongoing language difficulties international students experience in the academic contexts.