Innovative Projects Realized

Social aspects of biodiversity conflicts: the case of human-jaguar coexistence in Calakmul, Mexico

Biodiversity conflicts considering human-wildlife interactions have usually been addressed in regard to the impacts of animals on human beings or properties and, conversely, of humans on animals, with the ultimate goal of reducing those impacts. However, this has rarely lead to long term conflict resolution, which suggests that conflict management should reside further than in the material aspect of damages and could be mainly affected by the underlying human-human conflict. Through the case study of the biodiversity conflict occurring around human-jaguar coexistence in the Calakmul region, in Mexico, our research will look into more detail at the actors’ perceptions of their own and others’ positions, at their roles within the debate surrounding jaguar management, and how these social aspects influence biodiversity conflict. Ultimately, we want to know if the consideration of human-human relationships could lead to enhanced management of biodiversity conflicts in a way that can reduce biodiversity impacts, resulting in better conservation outcomes for wildlife.

L2M – AI Powered Seed Analysis

As part of the Lab2Market program, this project explores the commercialization potential of the group’s previous research pertaining to the use of computer vision, artificial intelligence and machine learning to precisely detect and identify seeds. Over the 4-month duration of the project, the team will participate in Lab2Market workshops, panels, and lectures from successful founders and entrepreneurs. This will provide the researchers with crucial training and aid in developing a business plan. Next, the team will conduct as many as 100 interviews with potential clients and customers, to learn more about the needs and use-cases associated with this technology. These interviews will enable the group to accurately assess product-market fit. In the last month of the project, the research team will analyze their findings from the client interviews and work with the Lab2Market team to determine a path forward, whether it be incorporating as a startup company, licensing the technology, or continuing in research and development. At this time, the group will complete a polished pitch presentation and discuss their results with the entirety of the Lab2Market cohort. Through this project, participants will learn important entrepreneurial skills that will serve them through future projects and research that have strong potential for commercialization in the Canadian technology sector.

Development of an Actigraph System for Sleep-Wake Identification

The main obj ective of this project is to design a proper algoritlun for analyzing COPD patient’s sleep data as an important feature in patients treatment procedure. The data would be gathered by a novel wrist wearable actigraph with high accuracy technology. The wearable wristactigraph will allow more reliable data collection because the subjects can use it in their own home environment and there is no limitation for the length of data collection period. The intern will receive the proper raw data gathered by the actigraph, and focus on the analysis part of the project. First, she will review the literature on sleep analysis and compare their algorithms and their accuracy based on the special object we have in our research. Next, she will design and implement an algorithm, which can benefits from the precision of our wrist actigraph data. Finally, she wi ll test the algoritlun and modify it to reach the intended accuracy. We aim for an accuracy over 90% considering both sensitivity and specificity of our analysis result.

L2M –Anchored Wellbeing: A Maritime Health & Safety Solution

Newfoundland and Labrador welcomes over 28,000 seafarers each year who support key sectors such as offshore energy, fisheries, and international trade. Despite the province’s deep maritime heritage, St. John’s remains the only major Canadian port without a dedicated Seafarers’ Centre. This gap limits access to essential welfare services, rest facilities, and communication support for visiting crews, many of whom spend extended periods at sea.

The project Anchored Wellbeing: A Maritime Health & Safety Solution seeks tohttps://apply.mitacs.ca/project/bsi/14097/internships address this need by developing a coordinated welfare model for the Port of St. John’s, combining a physical Seafarers’ Centre with a digital wellbeing platform. This innovative approach will enhance seafarers’ access to support while strengthening community partnerships.

Led by Morgane Sheppard, Station Manager of the Mission to Seafarers NL and researcher at Memorial University, in partnership with Dr. Desai Shan, Assistant Professor and expert in maritime occupational health and safety, the project brings together academic insight and frontline experience. The outcomes will provide an evidence-based framework for sustainable welfare delivery that can be replicated across Canadian ports.

Communicating Leadless Pacemakers

Leadless (wireless) Cardiac Pacemakers (LCPs) were developed to overcome complications of traditional pacemakers, such as lead fracture, dislodgement, and infection. Despite their advantages, current LCPs face major limitations. This project aims to recharge LCPs using electric fields, enabling advanced functions such as inter-device synchronization without increasing device size or altering established titanium encapsulation methods used for hermetic sealing. Unlike inductive pickup coils, this approach supports conventional construction techniques. The research will investigate coatings and methods to ensure sufficient electrical isolation from electrodes on the LCP case. Specific focus areas include optimizing hermetic sealing to protect sensitive electronics, developing ceramic and insulating coatings to prevent shorting while improving energy harvesting, and refining fabrication methods for thin-walled titanium housings suitable for implantation. The project also seeks to expand bioengineering research opportunities at MUN, where the field is underrepresented among engineering students and across Newfoundland. Collaboration with the University of Auckland, where the project is a priority initiative funded by New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, will provide valuable international connections. Partnerships between researchers at both institutions will advance this technology while fostering long-term collaboration in implantable medical devices.

Enzymatic hydrolysis of wheat straw derived xylo-oligomers stream into monomeric sugars

The proposed research project is around re conducting feasibility studies on the purification and conditioning of industrial hemicellulosic C5 sugars from a number of potentially commercial wheat straw liquor fractions. The research will propose experiments where data for the ultimate evaluation of enzymatic hydrolysis vs. a selected comparative list of acid hydrolysis can be included. The purpose is in acquiring a detailed analysis of the potential monomeric sugars.
With one representative product, we would also like to gain a preliminary understanding regarding the efficacy of enzymatic hydrolysis of a soluble wheat straw xylan stream. The end goal of this potential collaboration is to compare dilute acid to enzymatic hydrolysis and identify downstream impacts on proprietary catalytic hydrogenolysis conversion processes.

Geochemical, structural and (thermo)chronological controls on the Au-Ag-Cu-Pb-Zn-Mo metallogeny of the west-central Neotethyan Orogenic Belt: A deposit-district-belt scale approach

The proposed geological research project is collaboration between UBC and industry sponsors to evaluate the nature of metallic resources in NW Turkey. Undeveloped concentrations of gold, silver and copper occur in the study region; these occurrences are being actively explored by the partner organizations. In the interest of the partner companies this research project focuses on an area that completely covers mineral tenure licenses owned by the companies. Research conducted on the partner organizations mineral claims and the surrounding area directly evaluates the nature of mineral occurrences in NW Turkey, allowing comparison to a more regional framework for future exploration initiatives.

L2M-A Novel Portable Ozone Generator Using Tunable Piezoelectric Transformer for Ocean Water Purification

Aquaculture and coastal water treatment facilities across Atlantic Canada and beyond are facing increasing challenges in maintaining reliable water quality. Marine environments are burdened by nutrient runoff, pathogens, and pollution that directly impact fish health, leading to frequent contamination events and yield losses of 10–30%. These losses translate into millions of dollars in damages annually and jeopardize the growth of Canada’s aquaculture sector, which already represents a $2 billion industry in Atlantic provinces alone.
Conventional disinfection methods are inadequate for this context. Chlorine-based systems leave harmful byproducts that threaten marine ecosystems, making them unsuitable for aquaculture. While ozone is recognized as a powerful and residue-free disinfectant, current ozone generation technologies are large, stationary, and energy-intensive, requiring stable grid electricity and costly infrastructure. This limits their accessibility for smaller operators, remote coastal communities, and mobile facilities. The gap is structural: there is no compact, renewable-powered ozone generation system designed for direct ocean water treatment.
The partner organization, Lab2Market Validate, focuses on bridging the gap between research excellence and commercialization outcomes. It provides training and entrepreneurial support to transform academic research into innovative, market-ready solutions. The innovation challenge in this project is to validate and commercialize a novel portable ozone generator based on tunable piezoelectric transformers (TPT) and wide bandgap (GaN) power electronics. Unlike conventional systems, this solution can deliver stable, efficient ozone generation directly from renewable energy sources such as PV, batteries, or fuel cells, enabling operation in off-grid and variable conditions.
The expertise required to solve this problem spans advanced power electronics, renewable energy integration, and applied ozone generation technology. My lab has extensive experience in designing compact, high-efficiency power converters, which are critical for driving dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) chambers. This technical expertise, combined with Lab2Market’s commercialization support, uniquely positions this project to overcome current market barriers and create a eco-friendly solution.

Adversarially Resilient Federated Learning for Intrusion Detection in 5G Networks

This project will design and test a new privacy-preserving, attack-resilient cybersecurity system for 5G networks using Federated Learning (FL), an approach where multiple devices can train models together without sharing sensitive data. The goal is to improve protection against cyberattacks such as denial-of-service and model poisoning, which threaten the reliability of modern mobile services like autonomous vehicles, industrial IoT, and virtual reality. By working together, the University of Northern British Columbia and City, University of London will combine their expertise in machine learning, cybersecurity, and distributed systems to create a secure framework that benefits both institutions. The collaboration will provide valuable training for students, strengthen international research ties, and contribute to practical tools that can enhance cybersecurity for Canadian and global industries.

L2M – Silver Vantage Software – Fall Detection

This project will validate the market and technical feasibility of Silver Vantage Software’s privacy-preserving thermal fall-detection system for senior care. The system uses small thermal sensors to detect falls automatically without recording identifiable images, protecting resident privacy while improving response times. Through this project, we will engage healthcare partners and facility operators to confirm product requirements, pricing expectations, and installation workflows while testing the performance of our current pilot devices in real-world environments. The outcomes will help refine the product specifications, identify key adoption barriers, and create a clear path from pilot validation to commercial rollout. This will directly benefit the partner organization by reducing risk, guiding manufacturing and partnership decisions, and ensuring strong product-market fit before large-scale production.

L2M – MeasleScan Field Effect Transistor

MeasleScan FET is a portable biosensor that uses field-effect transistor (FET) technology to detect measles virus rapidly at the point of care. Unlike current tests such as PCR and ELISA, which are accurate but slow, costly, and lab-dependent, this device delivers real-time, label-free detection directly from clinical samples. The goal is to provide a low-cost, easy-to-use tool that can be deployed in clinics, hospitals, public health units, and especially in remote or resource-limited settings.

Implémentation d’un pipeline TALN pour la structuration de textes cliniques par concepts médicaux normalisés (UMLS, SNOMED-CT-CA)

Le projet vise à développer une infrastructure capable d’exploiter les informations cliniques contenues dans les dossiers médicaux électroniques. Une grande partie des données médicales du Québec est consignée dans ces dossiers, mais les textes n’ont pas de structure précise et restent difficiles à exploiter automatiquement. Cette complexité peut ralentir la prise de décision médicale et freiner les échanges d’informations entre les professionnels de la santé.
Le stage mené chez Omnimed consiste à concevoir les étapes de traitement permettant de lire automatiquement les dossiers de santé, et d’en extraire les éléments importants – par exemple trouver le nom d’un médicament ou la durée d’un traitement. Ces informations pourront ensuite être «traduites» dans un format commun que les logiciels pourront facilement partager.
Cette solution offrira à l’entreprise partenaire, Omnimed, la possibilité d’améliorer son service de dossier médical électronique en rendant les données plus structurées et de le rendre plus compatible avec les autres systèmes canadiens. À terme, elle facilitera le travail des professionnels de santé, qui passeront moins de temps sur la saisie manuelle, et permettra une meilleure coordination des soins entre les établissements de santé.