Supporting impactful research grants and awards

MHRC is committed to advancing mental health through co-funding research that has the potential for deep and broad impact in the lives of Canadians, and that bridges the gap between research and practice.

Read about ongoing research projects funded by MHRC through our grant processes below.

Winner of the MHRC-Atlas Research Award 2024

We are proud to have awarded a Research Award worth $138,000, in partnership with the Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families

Stories that INSPIRE: Reducing social isolation and loneliness through storytelling

Principal Investigator: Jenny Liu, Head of Scientific Development and Knowledge Mobilization at the MacDonald Franklin OSI Research Centre and Adjunct Research Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine, Western University

This initiative will be awarded $138,000 to support a project that aims to understand and address the experiences of loneliness and social isolation of both current members of the Canadian Armed Forces who are about to transition into civilian life as well as Veterans and their families.

Click the button below to learn more about the project!

Winners of the MHRC-IAM Mental Health Innovation Prize

Awarded $50,000 in funding from MHRC and the Institute for Advancements in Mental Health (IAM), as the winners of our joint Mental Health Innovation Prize, we are proud to support the following project:

Predicting opioid overdose risk using machine learning: Evaluation of an AI approach
Special thanks to ATB Financial for supporting this project based in Alberta.
Co-Principal Investigators: Giri Puligandla, Canadian Mental Health Association – Edmonton Region and Dr. Bo Cao, University of Alberta

Using digital phenotyping measures to predict the symptoms and functional outcomes in first episode of psychosis
Co-Principal Investigators: Dr. JianLi Wang, Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University and Dr. Phil Tibbo, Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, Dalhousie University and Clinical Director of the provincial Early Psychosis Intervention Nova Scotia (EPINS) (Nova Scotia Health)

The Mental Health Innovation Prize aims to support the development of predictive models and interventions utilizing AI, Machine Learning, and/or Big Data to better understand and align supports and treatments in the mental illness space. We jointly and proudly announce this Mental Health Innovation national prize in support of mental health innovation in Canada.

Winners of the 2022-23 MHRC-SHRF Solutions: Innovation Grant!

Awarded $49,986 in funding from MHRC and Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation as the winner of our joint 2022-23 innovation grant, we are proud to support the following project:

The Virtual Specialist and the Travelling Nurse Practitioner:
A Novel Consultation Model for Children and Their Families to Improve Access to Developmental Pediatric and Child Mental Health Care

Co-Principal Investigators:

About the project: This project will focus on testing a new way to use virtual care for patients needing consultation for developmental and mental health concerns, to decrease the wait for services and bring the specialist to the patient’s community with the help of a nurse practitioner.     

Click the button below to read more!

winner of the 2022-23 MHRC-SHRF Solutions: Innovation Grant

Winners of the MHRC- Knowledge Institute Ontario Youth Mental Health, Substance Use and Addictions Grant

We’re proud to have awarded two $100,000,Ontario Youth Mental Health, Substance Use and Addictions Grants in partnership with the Knowledge Institute.

These two projects aim each aim to address important mental health needs of youth in Ontario.

Project 1: Community capacity-building for trauma informed and addiction approaches for youth in Northern Ontario

Lead Investigators:

  • Dr. Tina Benevides, Data Analysis and Research Evaluator at Hands TheFamilyHelpNetwork.ca

  • Trish Mintz, MSW, RSW, Director of Child and Youth Mental Health at Hands TheFamilyHelpNetwork.ca

  • Dr. Andrew Weeks, Chair of the Psychology Department at Nipissing University

Project 2: Examining integrated youth services: an evaluation of the reach and delivery of services provided by The Grove Wellington Guelph

Lead Investigators:

  • Dr. Jean Costello, Director of Research and Evaluation at Homewood Research Institute and an adjunct faculty member in the School of Public Health Sciences at the University of Waterloo

  • Cyndy Dearden, Executive Director of The Grove Wellington Guelph and a Senior Director at CMHA Waterloo Wellington

    Click the button below to read more!

Winners of our MHRC-Health Research BC Convening & Collaborating (C2) Grant!

Awarded $15,000 in funding from MHRC and Michael Smith Health Research BC as the winner of our joint Collaborating & Convening (C2) grant, we are proud to support the following project:

Co-designing of climate distress services for young people

  • Dr Kiffer Card, Simon Fraser University

  • Arden Henley, Green Technology Education Centre

About the project: This project aims to facilitate a new partnership between The Green Technology Education Centre (GTEC), The Mental Health and Climate Change Alliance (MHCCA/SFU), and youth and young adults, aged 16-24.

Leveraging this partnership, the research team will convene and collaborate with youth to inform the development of potential GTEC campus- and digitally-based interventions for climate-related distress.

Click the button below to read more!

Winners of 2021-2022 MHRC-NBHRF New Brunswick Mental Health Impact Grant!

We’re proud to have awarded two $50,000, 2021-2022 New Brunswick Mental Health Impact Grants in partnership with the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation:

These two radically different projects aim each aim to address an important mental health need in their province: learn about their important and the service gaps they seek to address by clicking the blue “Learn More” button.

1) Acceptance and Commitment Therapy through Tele-Counselling for Caregivers in New Brunswick

  • Dr Pamela Durepos, University of New Brunswick

  • Chandra MacBean, Alzheimer Society of New Brunswick

2) Prioritizing targets for workplace MH interventions using routinely collected administrative data

  • Dr Ted McDonald, New Brunswick Institute for Research, Data and Training (NB-IRT)

  • Dr William Journeay, Dalhousie University NB

Enhancing mental health services in Saskatchewan:

Winners of our 2021 MHRC-SHRF Mental Health Impact Grant

We are pleased to announce three research projects being funded in partnership with the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation at $50,000 each.

These three impactful project each target a unique aspect of mental health to advance the quality of mental health services across the country. Read more about each project and what they aim to achieve by clicking the blue “Learn More” button.

1) Co-developing mental literacy and self-care resource for racialized newcomer youth in Regina, Saskatchewan: A youth- led participatory action research

  • Dr. Geoffrey Maina, University of Saskatchewan

  • Dr. Razawa Maroof, Regina Community Clinic

2) Take Up Space, You Matter!: Fostering (Re)Connection After the Pandemic through Trauma-Informed Community Arts Programming

  • Dr. Charity Marsh, University of Regina, Humanities Research Institute/Faculty of Media, Art & Performance

  • Danielle Sakundiak, Girls Rock Regina

3) Pathways and Barriers to Access and Utilization of Internet-Delivered Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (ICBT) by Diverse Ethnocultural People of Saskatchewan

  • Dr. Heather Hadjistavropoulos, University of Regina

  • Dr. Ram Sapkota, University of Regina (Online Therapy Unit)

Completed Grants

Click the link below to learn more about our funded that have been successfully completed

Interested in applying for Grants?

Hover over our “Apply” section in the drop-down and explore our open funding opportunities or click the link below!