Innovative Projects Realized

Newcomers and Community Organizations in Yorkton and Area

The East Central Newcomer Welcome Centre Inc. (ECNWC) is a non-profit agency located in Yorkton, Saskatchewan that provides information and services to newcomers, immigrants, and refugees who settle in east central Saskatchewan within a 150km radius of Yorkton. The ECNWC welcomes and assists newcomers to Canada to promote successful settlement and integration into the community. ECNWC strives to foster a sense of community by working with service providers, community groups, employers, and government partners to provide settlement services across the east central Saskatchewan.? They also connect with immigrants to help them adapt to life in Canada, Saskatchewan, and in their new communities. In September of 2021, the ECNWC received support to form the East Central Saskatchewan Immigration Partnership (ECSIP). ECSIP focuses on developing more welcoming and inclusive communities throughout East Central Saskatchewan through community collaboration. ECSIP acts as an incubator for ideas, identifying newcomer needs, and mobilizing community resources to meet those needs. The ECSIP’s mandate is to partner with organizations to share newcomer perspectives and promote the characteristics of a welcoming community through collaboration, partnership, and education.

ECSIP has been in operation for 4 years and is ready to expand their mission and their impact in east central Saskatchewan. The group collaborates with community organizations in Yorkton and area believes there may be a connection between newcomer involvement with community organizations and newcomers’ ability to successfully adapt, settle, and integrate into their new life and community.

Development of high-entropy cermet coatings in high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) and suspension solution plasma spray processes

With an ever-expanding demand for critical materials and minerals, it is crucial to find sustainable material solutions to well-established industrial requirements. High-entropy materials, i.e., materials that mix 5 or more constituents in near equi-atomic proportions, could mitigate these issues by offering highly resistant and stable materials. As a result, addressing the issues of critical materials could come from the replacement of certain materials by high-entropy counterparts made of non- (or less-) critical materials.
This project aims to specifically address the issue of ceramic-metals, also called “cermets”, that are often used as high-temperature seals or for tooling applications, with materials such as tungsten-carbide (WC). These materials are sought for their high hardness, high temperature resistance and high corrosion resistance. These applications are typically achieved by developing coatings via thermal spray, a high-temperature process in which melted or heated powder materials are sprayed onto a surface.
By relying on routine preparation methods such as gas atomization or high-energy mechanical alloying, this research project aims to develop high-entropy cermet coatings in high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) and suspension solution plasma spray processes. The project will explore the processing and spraying of the feedstock powders and as well as the through characterization of the powders and coatings.

Informality for food security in China’s poverty-alleviation resettlement

This research examines the intersection of post-resettlement experiences, informality, and food insecurity in China. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for developing policies that support the food security and well-being of resettled populations in rapidly urbanizing contexts. This research contributes to the broader literature on informality in developing countries by adding new insights from China’s nationwide poverty-alleviation resettlement practices, which have been referenced as potential lessons for other developing economies in the Global South. By exploring how resettled populations navigate food security through informal mechanisms, this study aims to enhance the global understanding of the role of informal economies in post-resettlement adaptation. The findings from this project will contribute to both Canadian and Ukrainian supervisors’ ongoing research and help them expand their academic networks with new data and findings that are not available in Ukraine. This new research collaboration will support their teaching and future publications related to China’s governance and social programs. The project will help build a strong connection between V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University in Ukraine and University of Waterloo in Canada. Since both research teams share an interest in China’s social development strategies, this project can become the starting point for long-term cooperation and academic exchange.

Fertility Pressures and Mental Health of Japanese Women Undergoing Assisted Reproductive Technology

By systematically reviewing and analyzing existing literature, data, and public messages on fertility and mental health in Japan, this project explores how the country’s pregnancy promotion campaign, known as ninkatsu, may create significant emotional strain for women pursuing fertility treatment. The study will involve a literature review, an environmental scan of media and policy, examination of available mental health data, and meetings with reproductive and mental health experts to guide and inform the work. The project will identify how cultural expectations shape women’s mental health and sense of self and will help inform the development of mental health resources that reduce self-blame, improve reproductive care, and advance reproductive justice in Japan. The goal is to translate evidence of gendered psychological burden into targeted mental health interventions for women undergoing fertility treatment in Japan and for women in other contexts with similar cultural pressures and stigma. This collaboration will allow McMaster University to expand its global health research and provide Niigata University with new feminist and cross-cultural insights, strengthening long-term partnerships between both institutions.

Towards the development of automated wearable systems for closed-loop biologic drug delivery

Current wearable drug delivery systems are designed to deliver biopharmaceuticals in their liquid forms. However, many biologics are not stable as a liquid and must be stored in their freeze-dried, or lyophilized, form, which makes them incompatible with current wearable drug delivery systems. Although these drugs can be delivered manually, they require many steps to re-activate the lyophilized drugs, a time-consuming process prone to human error, which can lead to serious complications and even death in time-sensitive situations, such as acute hypoglycemia. Thus, this project investigates the design of a device integrated in wearable drug delivery systems to automatically and quickly administer lyophilized biopharmaceuticals to overcome these limitations. This will pave the way for broadening the set of drugs available for use in such wearable devices, thus decreasing the burden on the healthcare industry while expanding the clinical utility and personalization of wearable devices.

CadQ-3D : Prototype d’un Système d’Information Foncière 3D pour le Québec basé sur la reconstruction géométrique des parcelles

Face à l’intensification des aléas naturels induits par les changements climatiques — inondations, glissements de terrain, érosion côtière —, et à la pression croissante sur la gestion urbaine résultant des phénomènes de densification et d’étalement des villes, les territoires doivent s’adapter rapidement. Au Québec, le territoire est principalement représenté horizontalement par le cadastre. Une représentation verticale permettrait de mieux modéliser la topographie et d’intégrer des éléments liés au terrain (zones inondables ou à risque de glissements). Le projet CadQ-3D vise à concevoir un système d’information foncier alimenté par des modèles 3D de parcelle (terrain, bâtiments, limites) reconstruits à partir de données acquises par drone à faible coût, des données ouvertes et des règlementations foncières québécoises. Les modèles 3D reconstruits du territoire serviront de base à une spatialisation de réglementations foncières sous forme de limites linéaires/surfaciques dans un environnement tridimensionnel. Notre système centralisera de manière cohérente l’ensemble des modèles 3D produits (géométrique et foncier) dans une base de données géospatiales. Une interface web conviviale et interactive sera finalement mise à disposition des utilisateurs avec une visualisation combinée des modèles 3D, dans le but de faciliter la compréhension et soutenir la prise de décision en matière d’aménagement et de prévention.

Return on Investment (ROI) Analysis of Commercial EV Charger Installation in Edmonton

Develop a data-driven return on investment (ROI) financial model to transform commercial EV charger installation in Edmonton that underscores this undeniably smart investment to accelerate private-sector EV adoption. This project moves beyond the “why” of sustainability and into the “how” of business finance. The scholar would develop an ROI model that effectively communicates the justification to prioritize and allocate investment in EV chargers. This would involve both a literature review of case studies and an analysis of key variables specific to the Edmonton market.

Perception-Guided Planning for Long-Horizon Sequential Manipulation

The project explores how to enable robots to perform multi-step tasks in realistic, changing environments by integrating visual information in different aspects of planning. Instead of assuming a perfect internal map of all objects, we will use camera input both to understand the scene and to guide the robot’s decisions during planning and execution. Demonstrations and state-of-the-art vision models will be used to suggest useful intermediate goals and to notify the planner when something has gone wrong, like dropping an object during grasping. In the end, the goal is a robot that can plan its actions, monitor its progress visually, and recover from mistakes more reliably, which is important for practical use in homes, warehouses, and other everyday settings.

Exploration efficace pour la conception de systèmes de transmission de données à énergie minimale

Les codes de correction d’erreurs (CCE) sont utilisés dans la plupart des systèmes de transmission et de stockage de données, car ils permettent une réduction significative de la puissance du signal émis (ou stocké), ce qui permet à l’émetteur de consommer moins d’énergie. Cependant, les CCE efficaces nécessitent une quantité d’énergie importante pour être décodés à la réception. Il existe donc un compromis entre l’énergie économisée à l’émission et l’énergie additionnelle requise à la réception. Notre projet de recherche se concentre sur le cas fréquent où il est primordial de minimiser conjointement la consommation de l’émetteur et du récepteur, par exemple dans le cas de deux objets alimentés par batterie qui doivent communiquer. À cette fin, nous développons un outil d’exploration efficace pour la conception de systèmes de transmission de données à énergie minimale, basé sur des modèles énergétiques des circuits émetteurs et récepteurs. Cet outil permettra ensuite de développer des solutions de transmission de données à plus faible consommation d’énergie pour diverses applications, contribuant ainsi à réduire l’empreinte énergétique du secteur des technologies de l’information.

Développement de réseaux de neurones événementiels sur plateforme hybride pour l’automatisation intelligente

Ce projet développe une plateforme neuromorphique innovante qui associe des circuits analogiques (CMOS et memristors) à des circuits numériques sur FPGA pour créer des réseaux de neurones inspirés du cerveau, capables d’apprendre de manière autonome. Cette technologie permettra des systèmes embarqués plus rapides, plus économes en énergie et plus fiables, adaptés à la robotique et à l’automatisation industrielle. Pour le Canada, ce projet renforce l’expertise en IA embarquée, génère des données inédites et positionne le pays comme un leader dans les solutions Edge AI durables.

Démocratisation des savoirs : transfert, mobilisation et création autour des projets Wikimédia

Ce projet s’inscrit dans la continuité d’un projet de recherche intitulé Protocoles de pluralisation culturelle des savoirs : comparaison des Wikipédias en français et en anglais, financé dans le cadre d’une subvention CRSH Savoir. Le projet CRSH propose une analyse des politiques, règles et recommandations établies dans Wikipédia pour inclure diverses perspectives culturelles dans l’édition de l’encyclopédie — soit ce qu’on appelle les protocoles de pluralisation culturelle des savoirs.

L’objectif général du projet est d’étudier la relation entre les protocoles éditoriaux et les processus effectifs de pluralisation culturelle en comparant les deux Wikipédias les plus significatives pour le contexte canadien: c’està-dire les encyclopédies en anglais et en français. Les objectifs spécifiques sont les suivants: 1) caractériser le rôle de ces protocoles dans la gouvernance de Wikipédia; 2) comprendre comment ces protocoles sont mis à l’épreuve dans des situations de dispute, autrement dit comment ils sont mobilisés, débattus, justifiés et critiqués lors de conflits d’édition entre contributeurs; 3) expliquer la manière dont la justification de ces protocoles est influencée par les répertoires culturels des contributeurs (idéologies politiques, représentations
collectives de la différence culturelle et de la technologie).

Le projet CRSH mobilise une méthodologie fondée sur une enquête qualitative. Dans une approche d’ethnographie des mondes numériques, nous mobilisons deux outils de collecte de données. Premièrement, deux corpus de pages de Wikipédia (un sur les protocoles et un sur les disputes entre contributeurs) sont analysés pour produire une typologie des protocoles et de leurs principes de justification. Deuxièmement, des entrevues semi-directives avec des wikipédiens canadiens (francophones et anglophones) visent à expliciter leurs schémas culturels d’interprétation de ces principes. Une analyse croisée des deux encyclopédies par tableaux synoptiques fera ressortir les contrastes heuristiques entre ces configurations socioculturelles.

A comprehensive survey of meteorite flux to Earth using the Global Meteor Network

This project aims to perform the first modern, comprehensive survey of meteorite flux to Earth using the Global Meteor Network (GMN), leveraging its unprecedented spatial coverage, and calibrated observations. By collaborating with Prof. Denis Vida at the University of Western Ontario in Canada, I will apply advanced measurement techniques to re-analyse the trajectories of all GMN-observed fireballs, derive a calibrated flux of meteorite-dropping fireballs from different compositional classes (stony, carbonaceous, iron, etc.), and constrain meteorite source regions in the Solar System from the orbital information.