Congratulations to Dr. Nika Shakiba from the School of Biomedical Engineering and Dr. Lyndia Wu from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and School of Biomedical Engineering and on being appointed Canada Research Chairs, amongst 20 chairs at UBC.
The Canada Research Chairs Program invests up to $311 million per year to attract and retain some of the world’s most accomplished and promising researchers in engineering and the natural sciences, health sciences, humanities and social sciences.
Dr. Shakiba’s research is focused on understanding the social lives of stem cells. Her lab applies a combined systems and synthetic biology approach to reverse- and forward-engineer the competitive interactions between cells in developmental systems. Beyond her research and teaching, she is passionate about providing equity in mentorship and advice access through her project, Advice to a Scientist.
Dr. Wu’s research program focuses on the biomechanics of mild traumatic brain injuries, known more commonly as concussions, using wearable sensors. She also investigates the short- and long-term neurological effects of head trauma.
Tier 2 Chairs are given to “exceptional emerging researchers, acknowledged by their peers as having the potential to lead in their field.” For each Tier 2 Chair, the institution receives $100,000 annually for five years, with an additional $20,000 annual research stipend for first-term Tier 2 Chairs.
This year, 224 new and renewed Canada Research Chairs were appointed at 48 institutions across Canada.