Below we recognize a few of the honours our U of R researchers have received in recent months.
Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Métis/Michif Education.
According to the Statistics Canada 2016 census, Métis people were the fastest growing population in Canada between 2006 and 2016. However, less than two per cent of Métis people speak the Michif language, making Michif one of the most vulnerable Indigenous languages in Canada.
To increase research and teaching capacity in Métis/Michif education in the University of Regina’s Faculty of Education and to enhance academic engagement with the Gabriel Dumont Institute’s Saskatchewan Urban Native Teacher Education Program (SUNTEP), this summer the Faculty of Education announced Dr. Melanie Brice as their inaugural Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Métis/Michif Education.
Brice, a Michif born in Meadow Lake and raised at Jackfish Lake, Saskatchewan, has a strong understanding of Indigenous histories, cultures, languages and literacies, perspectives, educational experiences, and cross-cultural education issues.
“The establishment of this new Chair, the first in a faculty of education in Canada, is one of many actions the faculty is taking toward truth and reconciliation,” said Dr. Jerome Cranston, dean of the Faculty of Education. “The faculty continues to demonstrate a concerted and sustained commitment to teaching and research that is engaging faculty, students, and other education stakeholders in gaining a deeper understanding of our shared histories and a reconciliatory approach to a more just future.”
As Chair, Brice will undertake research seeking to understand and expand the scholarship of teaching and learning by building capacity in Métis/Michif education. Her research focus will be on learning, knowledge keeping, language and cultural revitalization, reconciliation, and inclusion with and by the Métis through formal education systems.
Brice, an assistant professor in Indigenous education, language and literacy education, and educational core studies with the University’s Faculty of Education, has been appointed as chair for a five-year term.
The mission of the Gabriel Dumont Institute is to promote the renewal and development of Métis culture through research; materials development, collection, and distribution; and the design, development, and delivery of Métis-specific educational programs and services.
University of Regina Chancellor’s Research Chair
Associate professor of biochemistry Dr. Mohan Babu, internationally recognized for his work focused on biomedical advancements in human health, is the inaugural University of Regina Chancellor’s Research Chair.
“One of my research objectives is to address the mitochondrial dysfunction in human diseases, including psychiatric (bipolar disorder), neurological (Parkinson’s disease, ALS), neurodevelopmental (autism spectrum disorder), breast cancer, and rare disorders (Autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay),” says Babu.
Since 2012, Babu and his collaborators have generated protein interaction network maps to gain insights into mitochondrial biology and disease pathogenesis, allowing them to identify new therapeutic targets for the treatment of many diseases caused by mitochondrial dysfunction.
“To offer hope, I also meet with patients and their families to create mitochondrial disease awareness, share findings generated from their samples, and discuss next steps in my research.”
“This evidence-based research will help communities develop a recovery plan that includes easy and inexpensive ways to monitor and manage COVID-19.”
In 2013, Babu founded a facility that is now part of the mitoSYSTEMS Research Centre for Chronic Disease in Saskatchewan, funded through a Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) 2020 Innovation Grant worth $3.5 million.
“The goal of the Centre is to support researchers and clinicians within and outside the province to address research problems—from basic science to clinical and complex systems biology—using innovative technologies,” explains Babu. “In eight years, the centre has assisted more than 100 researchers across Canada by analyzing more than 24,000 protein samples to decipher the role of mitochondria in diseases.”
Babu’s work also includes figuring out how the essential genes in bacteria interact to promote antibiotic resistance—another major health concern. His team is currently developing new broad-spectrum drugs to kill bacterial infections like E. coli.
With support from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and CFI, Babu has collaborated with researchers across the country to uncover SARS-CoV-2 salivary peptides that can detect COVID-19 in a matter of minutes, as opposed to days.
“This evidence-based research will help communities develop a recovery plan that includes easy and inexpensive ways to monitor and manage COVID-19,” says Babu.
Babu’s lab is actively involved in providing information from their research about CRISPR and other constructs to Addgene, a not-for-profit global plasmid repository. Their deposits are popular and have been shared with over 850 research labs around the world. In recognition of his dedication to openly sharing resources, Babu was honoured with Addgene's Blue Flame Award in 2018—an award that’s presented to researchers who have widely shared their resources to accelerate advancements in research.
Pam Klein, University of Regina Chancellor, says Babu’s research is helping make great strides toward a healthier future for everyone.
“The heart of Dr. Babu’s research program is to uncover the molecular basis of chronic human diseases, and then to translate those findings into therapeutics that have the potential to improve the health of millions of people worldwide,” says Klein.
The Chancellor’s Research Chair was established in 2020 to recognize emerging scholars who have received great distinction in research and community-based work, to encourage and sustain high levels of scholarly activity by faculty, and to retain faculty who have made, and will continue to make, exceptional contributions within the community.
Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
A film professor in the Faculty of Media, Art, and Performance, Dr. Sheila Petty has spent her career weaving together an interdisciplinary research program focusing on issues of cultural heritage, representation, identity, and nationhood in African and African diasporic film, television, and digital media artworks.
This commitment to her field of scholarship has been honoured by her election as a fellow into the prestigious Royal Society of Canada (RSC).
“I am humbled and honoured to be elected by my peers as a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. I will both greatly benefit from and contribute to the goals and work of the RSC,” says Petty. “All my colleagues and students, past and present, at the University of Regina and beyond have contributed to helping build an extraordinary academic journey that knows no borders.”
One of the first scholars in Canada to research and write in the area of African cinema/Women in African cinema, Petty continues to produce exceptional and innovative work. Her new ways of thinking about African cinema, feminist theory, postcolonial film production, and digital media storytelling demonstrate her ethical engagement with and respectful approach to researching other cultures.
Petty’s work is highly original and significant.
Her first book, A Call to Action: the Films of Ousmane Sembene (editor), is used in African film studies courses around the world, while her subsequent book, Contact Zones: Memory, Origin, and Discourses in Black Diasporic Cinema, was shortlisted for the 2008 Saskatchewan Book Award for scholarly writing. It is widely used in U.S. and European African Studies courses.
“She has the ability to think, and produce scholarship, across disciplinary and geographical lines—because great research simply knows no bounds,” says McNutt.
Globally known and respected for her capacity to construct cross-disciplinary research teams, scholarship, and infrastructure, Petty founded the New Media Studio Laboratory in 2001, a Canada Foundation for Innovation-funded lab for research on interdisciplinary digital research spanning Fine Arts, Computer Science, and Engineering—at the time, an early and innovative move toward interdisciplinarity.
She has also curated film, television, and new media exhibitions for galleries across Canada, introducing film curating to audiences at a time when film and television were rarely programmed in galleries.
Over the course of her career, Petty has published and presented over 180 papers and attracted over three million dollars in external research funding.
Dr. Kathleen McNutt, Vice-President (Research) at the University of Regina, says that these exceptional accomplishments show Petty’s dedication to discovery and to seeing potential beyond the conventional.
“She has the ability to think, and produce scholarship, across disciplinary and geographical lines—because great research simply knows no bounds,” says McNutt.
University of Regina President’s Research Chair
Congratulations to psychology professor Dr. Gordon Asmundson, the University of Regina’s inaugural President’s Research Chair.
Asmundson’s research program focusses on mental health conditions considered public health concerns, such as anxiety-related and post-traumatic stress disorders, both with and without chronic pain, as well as on developing innovative treatments for those conditions.
“I have dedicated my professional life to achieving an evidence-based understanding of mechanisms that underlie fear, anxiety, and chronic health conditions so they can be strategically targeted to reduce distress and disability and improve quality of life,” says Asmundson, a committed mentor to a generation of mental health researchers and practitioners who share his goal.
Over the last two years, the majority of his research has focused on understanding, assessing, and alleviating mental health challenges related to COVID-19.
“We’ve tried to ensure that the public receives reliable information regarding important pandemic-related issues, such as panic buying, fear and stress responses, and anti-vaccination and anti-mask attitudes,” says Asmundson, a registered doctoral psychologist and fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
“Over the next several years I’ll prioritize working to even better understand the psychology of COVID-19 to help prepare for future viral outbreaks.”
With funding from both the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation, Asmundson and his team developed and released the Psychology of Pandemics Network website (www.coronaphobia.org), which provides the public with easy-to-understand summaries and infographics explaining their research.
“We also developed a simple COVID self-assessment for people, which includes recommendations for effective coping strategies tailored to their level of distress,” explains Asmundson. The self-assessment was based on the team’s COVID Stress Scales.
“Since launching our website in the spring of 2020, there have been thousands of monthly visitors,” says Asmundson.
And his COVID research isn’t yet done.
“Over the next several years I’ll prioritize working to even better understand the psychology of COVID-19 to help prepare for future viral outbreaks,” he says.
As editor of the Journal of Anxiety Disorders and Clinical Psychology Review, Asmundson is also shaping the future of clinical psychology research and practice globally.
“As top-tier journals in the field of clinical psychology, these journals have considerable influence on research and clinical practice,” says Asmundson. “My mandate is to identify and publish cutting-edge research from current leaders in the field and to help develop emerging leaders in a way that promotes equity, inclusion, and diversity in science. As editor, I’m in a unique position to achieve this mandate.”
University of Regina President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Jeff Keshen says Asmundson’s distinguished career makes him an ideal choice for the first President’s Research Chair, established to recognize exceptional individuals who have received great distinction in research.
“Dr. Asmundson’s dedication to his field at every level has been extraordinary,” says Keshen. “Since entering the academy, he has succeeded in continually conducting creative and impactful research locally, nationally, and internationally. In his role as a mentor, he trains and prepares the next generation of leaders in mental health research and practice.”
Established in 2020, the President’s Research Chair is intended to encourage and sustain high levels of scholarly activity by faculty and also to retain faculty who have made, and will continue to make, exceptional contributions to research in their field.
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