91ºÚÁÏÍø

*This call specifically emphasizes water research focused on the St. Lawrence River*
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Overview

The Brace Water Centre invites proposals for innovative, interdisciplinary water‑related research projects that advance understanding, stewardship, and sustainable management of the freshwater reach of the St. Lawrence River. Projects must address critical environmental, social, or technological water challenges facing the river and its communities.

This call supports the initiation of large-scale collaborative research that will produce tangible benefits for policymakers, communities, industry, and/or non-governmental organizations. To facilitate societal impact, each proposal must include at least one non‑academic partner from the public, private, or non‑profit sector.

Program Objective

Available to Brace faculty members, seed grants aim to support multidisciplinary teams of two or more Brace faculty members pursuing medium or high-risk projects in applied water research focusing on the freshwater reach of the St. Lawrence River (extending from its source at Lake Ontario to just east of Île d'Orléans near Quebec City). Projects submitted under this call must advance one or more of the following objectives:

• Enhance ecosystem health and biodiversity of the St. Lawrence River.
• Improve water quality monitoring, prediction, mitigation, and management.
• Strengthen climate resilience, including adaptation to extreme weather, flooding, ice dynamics, and changing river hydrology.
• Advance nature‑based solutions and watershed management strategies.
• Develop or apply innovative technologies (e.g., sensors, modelling tools, remote sensing, data platforms).
• Address social dimensions of water, including transboundary governance, Indigenous knowledge, community engagement, recreation and environmental justice.

Available Funding

Each award will be funded up to $50,000 and is non-renewable. Up to six projects will be awarded funding, with all selected projects to begin May 2026.

Eligibility

To qualify for funding under the Brace Water Innovation Seed Grants program, the project must meet the following criteria:

• Principal Investigator (PI) and Team Composition
  • The lead applicant (PI) must be a Brace Faculty Member.
  • Teams must include at least two Brace Faculty Members from different 91ºÚÁÏÍø faculties to promote cross-disciplinary collaboration. Interested 91ºÚÁÏÍø faculty can apply for Brace membership prior to applying for this award.
  • Each proposal must include at least one partner from:
    • Government (municipal, provincial, federal)
    • Industry or private sector
    • Indigenous organizations or communities
    • Non‑profit or community-based organizations.
  • Additional collaborators, including postdoctoral researchers and graduate students are encouraged and may be included but will not count toward the minimum faculty requirement.

Project Scope

• Proposed projects must align with applied water research and contribute to advancing the thematic research areas of the center.
• Projects must fall within one of the following risk categories:
  • Medium Risk: Research ideas with preliminary data that require further development over 12–24 months to strengthen future grant applications.
  • High Risk: Innovative, potentially transformative ideas that may lack preliminary data but present significant potential for impact.

Funding & Duration

• The project duration must be 12-24 months.

Future Funding Commitment

• Awardees are expected to submit at least one major funding proposal to a granting organization (e.g., CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC, FRQ, Genome, Mitacs, ministries, municipalities, etc.) as a direct outcome of the seed grant.

Eligible Expenses

The funds may be used for research-related expenses following Canadian Tri-Council guidelines.

Evaluation Criteria

Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Scientific Merit & Innovation (30%)
  • Clarity and significance of the research question
  • Potential to advance applied water research.
  • Novelty and transformative potential, particularly for high-risk projects.
• Feasibility & Methodology (20%)
  • Soundness of the proposed approach and feasibility within the proposed timeline (12–24 months).
  • Adherence to cost breakdown requirements following Tri-Council guidelines.
• Multidisciplinarity & Collaboration (20%)
  • Strength of the research team and diversity of participating academic units.
  • Clear plan for collaboration and integration of expertise across different 91ºÚÁÏÍø faculties.
  • Clear plan for collaboration and engagement of non-academic partner(s).
• Potential for Future Funding & Impact (20%)
  • Commitment to submitting a funding proposal to an external granting agency.
  • Likelihood of securing follow-up funding (medium-risk projects).
  • Potential for significant scientific, environmental, or societal impact.
• Alignment with Centre’s Research Priorities (10%)
  • Clear connection to the centre’s thematic research areas.
  • Clear focus on water-related issues facing the St. Lawrence River and its communities.

Award Conditions & Reporting Requirements

In exchange for the financial support provided by the Brace Water Centre, the research team agrees to:

• Submit a project progress report to the Centre by filling out this follow-up form, within six (6) months after receiving the funding;
• Ensure the PI and trainees attend the annual Brace Water Day and present the research (i.e. student poster presentation, oral presentation, etc.);
• Provide materials such as brief project updates, for use on the Centre’s website and newsletter, when requested;
• Inform and engage (as applicable) the Centre in external communications related to the project;
• Acknowledge the Centre’s support during activities and presentations related to the project;
• Include the Centre’s logo in any presentations or promotional material related to the project;
• Indicate the project's affiliation with Brace Water Centre, in all communications regarding the project;
• Submit at least one funding request for this project to a granting organization (e.g., NSERC/SSHRC, FRQ, Mitacs, ministries, municipalities, etc.) as soon as possible.

To Apply

To apply for the Brace Water Innovation Seed Grant, candidates are invited to submit the following materials:

1. General applicant information including:
   • The title of the proposed research project;
   • The name, rank and department of the lead applicant and co-applicants (as applicable);
   • The name of the non-academic partner(s);
   • Names of the HQP involved, if known;
2. A 2-3-page (max) statement of proposed activities, including:
   • Summary of the research project including scientific merit, feasibility and methodology;
   • Potential for future funding and impact and project’s alignment with the Centre’s research priorities;
   • Expected deliverables and the overall project timeline including start and end dates;
   • The granting agency program to which a subsequent funding request would be submitted;
3. Short academic CVs of all Brace Faculty Members involved in the project (3 page maximum);
4. A signed Partnership Commitment Letter from the non-academic partner indicating their anticipated role in the project (e.g., contributing expertise, data, participation, implementation, and/or knowledge mobilization).
5. A breakdown of the requested budget (up to $50,000), in accordance with Tri-Council guidelines.

Submission Deadline: 22 April 2026. Awardees will be notified by 15 May 2026.

Submission Process: Completed applications must be submitted as a single PDF file to . Please save your document in the following format 2026_Brace Seed Grant Application [PI Last Name].pdf

Inquiries regarding the seed grants can be directed to Monika Skonieczny, Brace Water Centre Manager at monika.skonieczny [at] mcgill.ca.Ìý

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