Renewed agreement will fund community-based research internships that connect students with organizations working to improve mental health outcomes across Canada
Toronto, ON — Mitacs and Mental Health Research Canada (MHRC) are renewing their long-standing partnership that helps students and postdoctoral researchers pursue careers in mental health research. The partnership allows students and postdoctoral researchers to work directly with community organizations to address the challenges they see every day.
First launched in 2021, when the pandemic made existing gaps in mental health support hard to ignore, the Mitacs–MHRC partnership has supported more than 70 students to date. The renewed agreement will continue to make research more connected to practice by giving early-career researchers hands-on experience with community partners, postsecondary supervisors, and people w,th lived experience.
Through the renewed collaboration, MHRC will work with research and community partners to submit applications under Mitacs programs. Students supported through the partnership share their time between academic institutions and partner organizations, helping ensure projects are shaped by community needs.
Partnership has dedicated Indigenous mental health research stream
One stream of the partnership is dedicated to Indigenous mental health research and is co-funded through the Mitacs Indigenous Pathways program. The stream opens each year in connection with the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and supports Indigenous students conducting community-grounded research with Indigenous communities, governments, service providers, and local organizations. More than 20 Indigenous students have participated since the initiative began. The renewed agreement commits to funding at least two Indigenous-focused internship projects each year.
Across the Indigenous mental health stream, projects are advancing community-grounded research in many different contexts. The following are just three examples:
At Carleton University, Inuk researcher Karen Aglukark partnered with Aqqiumavvik Society in Arviat to explore Inuit understandings of healing, trauma and social support. Guided by the Aajiiqatigiingniq Research Methodology, the project centred Inuit leadership and community perspectives in defining how the work was carried out. Its findings are helping inform more culturally respectful mental health research and practice for Inuit communities in Nunavut.
University of Saskatchewan PhD student Dante Carter, a Cree scholar from Onion Lake Cree Nation, is examining how colonial economic structures intersect with economic abuse, safety and mental wellness in the community. Her project considers how Cree perspectives on economics and wealth, alongside community-led responses, may inform healing and economic development. It aims to strengthen community-grounded understanding of the conditions that shape well-being.
At Memorial University of Newfoundland, Inuk social worker and PhD student Jill Williams is exploring how sewing circles and land-based gatherings support connection and collective well-being for Inuit women in Nunatsiavut. Working with the Nunatsiavut Government and an Inuk Elder and knowledge holder, her research centres on Inuit ways of knowing and relational accountability. The project will contribute community-informed insight on peer support, land-based wellness and decolonizing research practice in northern and remote communities.
MHRC’s public impact profiles show the breadth of the work supported through the partnership. Together, these projects demonstrate how student-led research can help organizations ask better questions, test evidence-informed approaches, and move knowledge closer to people who can use it.
Quotes
“Mental health affects every community in Canada, and addressing the challenges people face requires strong connections between research, lived experience, and practice. Our renewed partnership with MHRC connects emerging researchers to apply their knowledge where it can make a meaningful difference, while building the skills, networks, and experience they need to become tomorrow's leaders in mental health research.” Dr. Stephen Lucas, CEO, Mitacs
“At MHRC, our role is to support the research—and the researchers—that can improve mental health outcomes in communities across Canada. Our partnership with Mitacs puts that role into practice by giving Indigenous students and other early-career researchers the funding, relationships and practical experience to pursue community-grounded questions and turn their work into evidence that strengthens mental health supports.” Michael Cooper, Vice-President, Data & Partnerships, Mental Health Research Canada
About Mental Health Research Canada
As an independent national charity, Mental Health Research Canada works to enable a future where mental health in Canada is transformed using evidence, data and stakeholder engagement. We turn mental health research into real-world solutions by bringing together researchers, communities and people with lived experience, producing national population polling and rapid data reporting, and building partnerships that inform policy and improve outcomes. We also invest in the next generation of researchers through fellowships and studentships and foster collaboration between academia and communities. Upstream investments drive downstream solutions, because without research, it’s just guesswork.
About Mitacs
Mitacs delivers the return on innovation Canada needs now by connecting big ideas, people, and ambition to turn potential into results. Mitacs co-funds innovation partnerships that get Canada’s businesses and researchers where they need to go.
Mitacs partners innovate faster. Commercialize sooner. Compete globally. Scale and grow stronger. We open the door to opportunity, creating jobs and equipping students and postdoctoral researchers with skills, industry experience, and professional networks.
A not-for-profit organization founded in 1999, Mitacs is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Yukon.
