York University researchers will launch new collaborations, explore emerging research questions and foster knowledge mobilization with $3.5 million in funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).
Announced July 21, SSHRC will provide funding through three of its programs: Insight Development Grants: February 2026 Competition; Partnership Development Grants: 2025 Competition; and Connection Grants: May 2026 Competition.
More than $2.5 million will support 33 York-led Insight Development Grants for early-stage projects and help researchers pursue innovative questions, methods and approaches that can lay the groundwork for larger research programs.
Close to $1 million will support five York-led Partnership Development Grants, helping researchers build new collaborations with universities, community organizations, governments and industry partners. Knowledge mobilization will also be supported through Connection Grants, with close to $50,000 for a York initiative.
The projects cover a wide range of topics, including Indigenous health and decolonization, democratic discourse, climate adaptation, financial vulnerability, labour and social justice, migration, cultural identity and AI.
"These investments in research are investments in our collective future," says Amir Asif, vice-president research and innovation. "These projects empower researchers to test new ideas, forge meaningful partnerships and generate knowledge that addresses complex societal challenges. Together, they are laying the foundations for discoveries and innovations that will create meaningful benefits for communities in Canada and around the world."
The projects reflect York’s commitment to community-engaged research, interdisciplinary collaboration and generating knowledge that addresses real-world challenges.
Insight Development Grants
The 33 Insight Development Grants demonstrate the diversity and breadth of emerging research underway across the University. Among the funded projects are those that examine topics such as Indigenous knowledge systems, public health, democratic discourse, AI and financial vulnerability:
- Dayna Scott (Osgoode Hall Law School) – Visualizing Cumulative Effects: Anishinaabe Counter-Mapping on the Extractive Frontier
- Emily Kuang (Lassonde School of Engineering) – Multicultural and Multilingual Family Bonding and Knowledge Sharing Across Generations: A Culturally Responsive Approach to Generative AI Application
- Rémi Vivès (Glendon College) – Measuring Populist Discourse: Canada in Comparative Perspective
- Ashley Day (Faculty of Health) – Wiisokotaatiwin – gathering to re-imagine decolonial health education
- Peiya Cao (Faculty of Health) – Intergenerational Minority Stress and Child Well-Being in LGBTQ+ Families: A National Census-Linked Study in Canada
- Zissis Paraskevas Poulos (Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies) – Risk-Sensitive Learning and Tacit Coordination in Algorithmic Financial Markets
Other initiatives examine corporate accountability, Black Canadian history, labour law, climate resilience in public infrastructure, machine ethics, innovation and entrepreneurship, disability rights, migration, Indigenous knowledge systems and social inclusion. View the full list of recipients and their projects.
Partnership Development Grants
The six York-led Partnership Development Grants will support collaborations focused on financial vulnerability, youth in care, planetary health, workers’ education and Canadian computing heritage and include:
- Ida Ferrara – (LA&PS) Addressing Financial Vulnerability Through Inclusive Insurance
- Jennine Rawana (Faculty of Health) – Exploring the Needs of Youth Transitioning Out of the Care of Child Welfare Agencies
- Kate Tilleczek (Faculty of Education) – Planetary Health Partnership: Mapuche-Williche Youth-Led Research as Practices of Küme Mogen
- Katherine Nastovski (LA&PS) – Re-Imagining Workers’ Education in the 21st Century
- Mark Hayward (LA&PS) – Preserving, Promoting and Researching Canadian Computing Heritage
- Sarah Rotz (Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change) – Confronting Financialization, Consolidation, and Settler-colonial Agri-food Land Governance in Canada
York researchers are also directly involved as co-applicants for six other Partnership Development Grants totaling $1.19 million. See the full list of projects and recipients.
“The awards underscore York University's leadership in advancing research that connects disciplines, sectors and communities in pursuit of positive social change. By fostering collaborations across local, national and international networks, our researchers are generating knowledge and solutions that help build a more resilient, inclusive and sustainable future for all,” says Asif.
Connection Grants
SSHRC’s Connection Grants competition, which funds short-term knowledge mobilization initiatives, will provide $49,974 to Richard Saunders (LA&PS) to examine the social and environmental dimensions of critical mineral extraction through knowledge-sharing and public engagement activities through his project Image as Voice: Perspectives on Lithium Extraction in Argentina and Zimbabwe.
Two other projects that focus on aging and Asian Canadian studies include co-applicants from York. View the full list of recipients.