Investing in ideas that could change the future
The National Research Council of Canada's (NRC) researchers are forward thinkers who work at the leading edge of research and technology to set a new standard for innovation.
The Ideation Fund enables NRC researchers to explore transformative research ideas in collaboration with external partners such as academic institutions and small and medium-sized enterprises. Every year, through the NRC's New Beginnings and Small Teams initiatives, projects led by NRC researchers are funded to help drive innovative research and development in a wide range of areas.
Snapshot of Ideation collaborative R&D
200
projects funded
72
unique collaborating organizations
$11M
G&C agreements signed
as of March 31, 2023
Spotlight on projects and people
Fibre optics sensing technology has potential to make Canadian railways safer
Meet Merrina Zhang whose project on the buildup of stress in railway tracks using Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDA) is making Canadian railways safer.
Resilience and Adaptation to Climatic Extreme Wildfires
A team of NRC researchers and international collaborators studies how communities can better plan for and mitigate the impact of wildfires in Canada and abroad.
Learn more about the NRC story Resilience and Adaptation to Climatic Extreme Wildfires
Show more projects and people
Innovative pollution remediation: microplastics
Meet Dr. Vahid Pilechi, whose project on microplastics is aiming to demonstrate how numerical modelling and machine learning technology can be used to predict potential sources, pathways, and the fate of plastic in aquatic environments.
Learn more about the NRC story A new beginning for innovative pollution remediation: microplastics
A new beginning for innovative chemistry
Meet Dr. Benoit Simard whose project on Boron Nitride Nanotubes involved conducting chemistry on this novel material for structural composites without the use of solvents, to reduce chemical waste and their manufacturing costs.
Learn more about the NRC story A new beginning for innovative chemistry
3D antennas promise a faster cellular connection
Meet Dr. Bhavana Deore whose project on 3D printed antennas for high-frequency 5G applications is aiming to facilitate fast and reliable internet service.
Learn more about the NRC story 3D antennas promise a faster cellular connection
New Beginnings
The New Beginnings Initiative supports small-scale exploratory research projects led by individual NRC employees working with external collaborators who possess complementary capabilities.
Proposals for projects of up to 18 months in duration are selected and awarded up to $25,000 in operating funding and their external collaborators awarded up to $25,000 in grant funding. A total of $2 million is available per year to support projects that aim to encourage, test and validate transformative research ideas.
Calls for NRC proposals open annually in May.
Small Teams
The Small Teams Initiative supports the exploration of transformative ideas by NRC teams working with external collaborators who possess complementary capabilities.
Full proposals of research centre-nominated projects are developed then evaluated by an external peer review process. Selected projects will be awarded a maximum of $1 million in operating funding and $1 million in grant and contribution funding over 3 years. A total of $4 million is available per year to support projects that aim to make transformative advances in knowledge or technology.
Calls for NRC proposals open annually in May.
View all funded collaborative R&D projects.
Interested in collaborating?
Potential collaborators interested in contributing to an Ideation Fund project are invited to learn more about grant and contribution funding and contact the NRC's National Program Office at NRC.IdeationTeam-Equipeideation.CNRC@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca.