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Indigenous Mentorship Network Program of Ontario officially launched

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The Indigenous Mentorship Network Program of Ontario, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), was officially launched today at a ceremony at Western University. CIHR has invested $8 million in the program, which supports a Canada-wide mentorship network for First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples considering a career in health research.

The program will provide upcoming Indigenous health researchers at the undergraduate, master’s, doctoral and postdoctoral levels, as well as early-career Indigenous researchers, with culturally relevant learning opportunities and tailored mentoring. 

First Nation communities will use the knowledge and expertise gained through the program to harness information about their own collective health, says ICES core scientist and Indigenous health lead Jennifer Walker, who is also a professor of epidemiology at Laurentian University.

ICES has committed to host one Indigenous student scholarship per year as part of the program.

The launch of the program’s Ontario section makes available key learning and mentorship opportunities for Indigenous students and researchers, including: 

  • Graduate scholarships valued at $20,000 per year
  • Seed grants of up to $5,000 for Indigenous postdoctoral fellows and new investigators
  • An undergraduate health research workshop to be held in February 2018.

The network will also host webinars to support the mentorship of Indigenous students and new investigators, as well as an annual summer school beginning in 2018.

Application forms for graduate scholarships and seed grants are now available. The deadline to apply is March 2, 2018.

Jennifer Walker

Jennifer Walker

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