Innovative Projects Realized

Synthesis and testing of co-polymer impregnators for improved plastination of flax fibers

Flax fibers and their composites are known for their mechanical properties comparable to many petroleumbased composites, such as high strength-to-weight ratios, while offering major sustainability advantages as bioderived and renewable materials. However, the natural fibers’ susceptibility to moisture uptake and degradation currently limits their use in many structural applications. Plastination presents a promising approach to impregnate and preserve these fibers against weathering, but their inherently hydrophilic nature makes this process challenging when using conventional polymer impregnation methods. This project aims to develop a novel polymer system with enhanced impregnation performance for flax fibers, enabling their use in industrial composite products such as vacuum infusion processed (VIP) panels for structural outdoor applications.

Les valeurs que les jeunes accordent au tourisme durable

En 2024, le nombre de voyages internationaux est revenu au même niveau qu’avant la pandémie, soit plus de 1,4 milliard de voyageurs. Au Québec, les touristes sont également présents malgré les contraintes économiques et sociales. Pensons à l’inflation ou à la crise du logement. Jeunes et moins jeunes se déplacent afin de découvrir le monde sur fond de défis environnementaux et de réchauffement climatique. Si l’industrie du voyage a développé des produits touristiques pour tous les segments de marché, force est de constater que le voyage représente une part non négligeable du budget. Pour les jeunes adultes, la proportion du budget à consacrer au voyage peut sembler à première vue fort importante, voir, impossible, mais l’on observe que malgré cette situation, le voyage représente une valeur marquante et un produit de consommation incontournable.

Women-Centred HIV Care Curriculum

This project aims to create and deliver an online curriculum which will teach clinicians about the Women-Centred HIV Care (WCHC) Model while help ensure clinicians provide more equitable, trauma-informed, gender-responsive, person-centred care to women and gender-diverse people living with HIV. Women and gender-diverse people living with HIV often face barriers such as stigma, discrimination, or gender-based violence, which can negatively impact their health outcomes and experiences within the healthcare system. Many clinicians do not receive formal training in recognizing or responding to these intersecting challenges. This project will close this gap by translating the WCHC Model into a series of 15-20 interactive, practical and accessible online e-learning modules that can be used in medical and nursing education. Each module will be approximately 10-15 minutes in length and present a different aspect of a woman living with HIV navigating care related to HIV. All the content will be rooted in the WCHC model and cover various topics, including trauma and violence-aware care, person-centred care, HIV care, sexual health, parenting planning, contraceptive use, menopause and menstruation, mental health, substance use, cultural responsiveness, trans and gender-diverse community sensitivity and care and peer support. By the end of the project, an online curriculum will be developed and rolled out to 50 clinicians and trainees. For Women’s College Hospital, this project will expand the reach and impact of its Women and HIV Research Program by transforming its research findings into a sustainable educational tool. The resulting curriculum will enhance training capacity and contribute to reducing health inequities for women and gender-diverse people living with HIV in Canada.

Recherche expérimentale sur la durabilité des systèmes électromécaniques pour outils à impact répété : cas d’un arrache-bardeaux motorisé

Recherche expérimentale sur la durabilité des systèmes électromécaniques pour outils à impact répété : cas d’un arrache-bardeaux motorisé

Sexual health education needs of youth and educators in the Yukon

Research findings demonstrate that comprehensive sexual health education (CSHE) can reduce negative health outcomes and increase positive health outcomes. In order to be effective, CSHE must address the unique cultural, geographic, and social needs of youth. There are currently no studies that explore youth or educator sexual health education needs within the Yukon territory. SIECCAN is partnering with the Victoria Faulkner Women’s Centre to identify youths’ sexual health education needs and educator barriers to administering sex education in the Yukon. The first half of the study involves conducting five focus group sessions with Yukon youth to understand their sexual health needs and experiences. Having support from Mitacs would enable SIECCAN to employ a MITACS intern and provide additional personnel to the project team, as a lack of personnel has been identified as a barrier to completing the project on time by SIECCAN. Specifically, a MITACS intern with a specialized background in sexual health education will ensure that the timeline for tasks associated with transcription and thematic analysis associated with the focus group data will be completed on time.

Business and Financial Process Support for Deacon Investments Ltd.

Deacon Investments Ltd. is a Newfoundland-based private equity firm engaged in a variety of business ventures. This project will focus on designing and piloting a standardized reporting and communication toolkit to improve consistency and efficiency across its businesses. The intern will help map current practices, design templates and workflows, and test the toolkit with selected business areas. These contributions will provide Deacon with new tools to strengthen efficiency, investor communications, and long-term portfolio growth, while giving the intern valuable hands-on experience in business operations and strategy.

Developing a centralized SQL-based data management system to modernize portfolio and risk management operations

Cortland Credit is a rapidly growing alternative investment manager specializing in private debt and public bond portfolios. Five years ago, the firm operated with fewer than 15 employees; today, the team has expanded to over 30 professionals. With this growth, the firm’s existing data management system – based primarily on Excel and CSV files stored on Microsoft SharePoint – has become increasingly inadequate for supporting portfolio and risk management operations. Cortland Credit plans to modernize its infrastructure by developing a centralized SQL-based data management system. This database will consolidate and standardize datasets, enforce consistent update processes, and provide structured permission controls across teams. Once implemented, this system will serve as the backbone of a Portfolio Management Platform that integrates portfolio analytics, risk management tools, and performance monitoring into a unified framework. A central component of this initiative is the development of a private debt pricing model that leverages the SQL-based platform. Unlike public bond markets, private loan markets currently lack standardized and widely adopted pricing methodologies. As a result, private debt valuations are often less transparent and less consistent across the industry. Cortland Credit, as one of Canada’s leading private debt managers, is uniquely positioned to address this gap by drawing on its extensive proprietary data and institutional expertise. The proposed model will be innovative in two key ways: 1. It will integrate real-time, multi-source datasets across origination, credit, and portfolio management teams, ensuring that valuations automatically update as new information becomes available. 2. It will establish a robust, market-based framework for private loan pricing, improving transparency and reliability in an area where only limited models currently exist. This innovation has the potential to benefit not only Cortland Credit but also the broader Canadian private debt industry by advancing best practices in credit valuation and portfolio risk assessment.

Advancing life cycle sustainability assessment for metal production from models to real-world impact

This project will create a new framework that combines process simulations with environmental, economic, and social life cycle assessments to evaluate the sustainability of metal production and recycling processes. By extending current methods beyond environmental analysis to also include costs and social impacts, the project will provide a more complete understanding of how new metallurgical technologies perform in real-world settings. The work will use magnesium extraction from dolomite as a test case and will benefit from close collaboration with Aalto University’s expertise and industry connections. Participating institutions will gain a cutting-edge tool that supports both academic research and industrial innovation, strengthens international collaboration between Canada and Finland, and positions them as leaders in developing practical solutions for more sustainable and responsible metal production.

Social Enterprise Exploration for Mi’kmaw Cultural Foundation

The Mi’kmaw Cultural Foundation Inc. (MCF) is a non-profit organization in Newfoundland and Labrador dedicated to preserving and revitalizing Mi’kmaw culture, language, and traditions through programs, education, and community events. To ensure long-term sustainability, MCF is creating a Business Development Department that will explore social enterprises aligned with Mi’kmaw cultural values, generating revenue while continuing to deliver cultural and community benefits. Since the Foundation currently depends heavily on external funding, this shift aims to strengthen financial stability and support future growth. Implementation of this requires student support and expertise in business strategy, social enterprise models, Indigenous-led development, and stakeholder engagement.

Estimation des forces musculaire lors du pédalage à bras en concentrique et en excentrique

D’après de nombreuses études, le mode de pédalage excentrique (longueur du muscle augmente durant l’effort) semble être un mode de travail intéressant pour le bas du corps, l’objectif est donc d’éclaircir la voie pour ce qui est du haut du corps. L’analyse comparative des forces musculaires permettra d’avoir une idée plus précise des atouts de chaque mode de pédalage, au long terme, cela pourrait se traduire, par exemple, par des recommandations sur des types d’exercices de réadaptation.

Développement mécanique d’une plateforme d’entraînement à résistance active

L’évaluation et la rééducation musculaire rencontrent actuellement des défis importants en termes de précision, de personnalisation et d’objectivité. Les méthodes d’évaluation traditionnelles reposent principalement sur des tests subjectifs de force statique réalisés par le physiothérapeute. Ces approches présentent plusieurs limitations : elles ne fournissent pas de données quantitatives précises et évaluent le travail musculaire uniquement en tension statique et dans une seule amplitude de mouvement.

Il est aujourd’hui reconnu que le mode de contraction excentrique — durant lequel le muscle s’allonge tout en étant sous tension — est plus efficace que le mode concentrique — où le muscle se raccourcit sous tension — pour le renforcement musculaire. Cependant, sa mise en œuvre est plus complexe, car elle exige au préalable une contraction concentrique pour charger le muscle, avant de permettre son étirement contrôlé.

Le présent projet a pour objectif le développement mécanique d’une plateforme innovante permettant de réaliser plusieurs mouvements spécifiques, ciblant différents modes de contraction musculaire. Cette plateforme est conçue pour offrir une résistance venant du bas, et permettre une exécution fluide et contrôlée de ces mouvements. Elle sera équipée d’un système capable de récupérer en temps réel des données sur l’intensité et la qualité de la contraction musculaire, afin d’optimiser l’entraînement et la rééducation.

Technical Business Intern working within cross functional teams to commercialize AI-powered solutions in the Public Services Sector

AltaML builds artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled solutions to business problems. We work with organisations, bringing together their data and domain expertise with our AI expertise, to develop AI solutions that are deployed in their operations. We also commercialize AI-enabled products business via industry-specific ventures, yielding scalability from our investment in the first solution. AltaML’s AI Lab for Government, also known as GovLab, is a talent accelerator for public service professionals, post-secondary students and recent graduates. GovLab.ai’s mission is to set a global example of how to transform the public sector through applied AI, and is designed to encourage the growth of technical and business AI skill sets that are in high demand across Alberta and around the world. AltaML’s Venture Studio is an incubator program that works with founders and co-founders in the emerging tech industry to scale ideas, build venture products, and launch AI/ML startups across numerous industries; this includes our venture partners at Brilliant Harvest (AgTech), Jurisage Group Inc. (Legal Tech), and Prevoir (Fashion Tech).
The intern listed (Rachel Wang) on this particular application will continue to work alongside the Government of Alberta team to further develop our use case labelled “Document Classification” using Machine Learning. The goal is to enable the Information Management team in the Government of Alberta to automate the labeling of hundreds of millions of documents with a document classification taxonomy based on function and activity.
? Focus: Using Object Character Recognition, and Natural Language Processing techniques along with Large Language Models, this pilot will train ML models to recommend a classification label for each document. Additional deliverables include front-end development for bulk classification, architecture design for secure training based on privacy requirements, and efficient design for cost savings at scale.
? Value: The GoA stores an estimated 500-600 million documents, many of which are unclassified. The goal of this PoC was to explore classifying documents with machine learning so they may receive an appropriate retention schedule. A machine learning solution would ensure documents are classified, making them easier to find and mitigating productivity loss. The solution would also reduce the cost of storing documents that should have been disposed of.
The intern listed (Veronica Garth) on this particular application will work alongside the Government of Alberta Health team to further develop and pilot our use case labelled “Health Demand Forecasting” using Machine Learning. The goal is to enable the Alberta Health team to accurately forecast the demand for seasonal immunizations and healthcare resources, ensuring sufficient supply coverage while minimizing waste.
? Focus: Using time series analysis, unsupervised clustering, and supervised learning techniques, this pilot will train ML models to predict the number of immunizations required based on emerging trends, seasonal outbreaks, and population health indicators. Additional deliverables include developing forecasting dashboards, designing scalable architecture for secure data handling, and optimizing the models for real-time prediction and integration with supply chain systems.
? Value: The Alberta Health system faces fluctuating demand for immunizations and medical supplies due to seasonal and demographic factors. A machine learning solution would provide accurate forecasts to support better planning and resource allocation, reducing waste and improving public health outcomes. This approach would enable proactive decision-making, ensuring Albertans have timely access to immunizations while improving efficiency across the healthcare supply chain.