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Public announcement of Canada Research Chair appointments
When can chairholders and institutions publicly announce new and renewed Canada Research Chair appointments?
In keeping with standard Government of Canada practice, new and renewed Canada Research Chair appointments cannot be released to the media or formally announced by institutions or chairholders until the Government of Canada has made its official public announcement. These public announcements are held once or twice a year, and are done in collaboration with institutions to gain maximum media exposure for all involved. Prior to this public announcement, Canada Research Chair appointments are confidential and should not be formally released to the public in any form.
However, chairholders may “informally” use their titles before official announcements in certain cases, including when recruiting students, on business cards, at conferences, on their CVs, when applying for research funding, on their personal websites, etc.
When can institutions hold public announcements?
Institutions may only schedule a public announcement or event after the Government of Canada's national announcement.
Do institutions need to inform the Canada Research Chairs’ communications staff about their public announcements?
Yes. We ask that all institutions inform us of their plans for chairholder-related announcements and events, at communications@chairs-chaires.gc.ca.
Does a Government of Canada representative need to be present at a public announcement held at an institution?
A Government of Canada representative should be invited to public announcements and other major chairholder-related institution events.
Before inviting Government of Canada officials, contact communications@chairs-chaires.gc.ca.
The likelihood of securing a local member of Parliament or minister to attend your event is greatly increased if the event is held when the House of Commons is not sitting.
Chairholder titles
When can chairholders use their chairholder title?
In keeping with standard Government of Canada practice, information about the appointment and/or renewal of chairholders cannot be released to the media or formally announced until the Government of Canada has made its official public announcement. See Public announcement of Canada Research Chair appointments above for more information.
Chairholders may use their title from the effective date of their appointment for the duration of the award. Chairholders may “informally” use their titles before official announcements in certain cases, including when recruiting students, on business cards, at conferences, on their CVs, when applying for research funding, on their personal websites, etc. Once a chairholder’s term has ended, they may be referred to as a “former Canada Research Chair” or as “former Canada Research Chair in (previous title).”
The title of each Chair must include the term “Canada Research Chair”; more specifically, “Canada Research Chair in (area of research)”.
The title should not use symbols or short forms, e.g., “and” instead of “&”. It should also be short enough for the media to understand and use.
What is the benefit of using chairholder titles?
By making a conscious and continuous effort to use Canada Research Chair titles, chairholders are spotlighting their status as a researcher of excellence. By doing this, they elevate both their reputation as a world-class researcher and the value of the Canada Research Chairs Program.
What if a chairholder is jointly funded and needs to refer to their other source of funding in their title?
If a chairholder is jointly funded, we ask that they put the other funding partner’s name first, followed by “Canada Research Chair”, to keep the integrity of the title.
Examples of jointly funded Chair titles include:
- Canadian Light Source-Canada Research Chair for Materials Analysis
- National Research Council-Canada Research Chair in Attosecond Photonics
- Rotman-Canada Research Chair in Philosophy of Science
- Zandmer-Canada Research Chair in Hydrogen and Catalysis
Can a chairholder title be changed?
Yes. It is possible to make a change to chairholder titles. Title change requests can be submitted by email by the chairholder or the institution. If submitted by the chairholder, the institution must be included on the email request.
* Any title changes made after an application has been submitted will only be reflected in the Canada Research Chairs Find an Expert online database, and on the chairholder’s publicly available profile webpages that are part of this database.
To make a chairholder title change, contact information@chairs-chaires.gc.ca so we can check for possible duplications and that the title is in line with title guidelines. If a translation of the title is already available, include it in the email. If a translation of the title is not yet available, we will translate it.
Publications, presentations and conferences
We ask chairholders to identify themselves as a Canada Research Chair and acknowledge the contribution of the program to their research as follows:
“This research was undertaken, in part, thanks to funding from the Canada Research Chairs Program.”
When invited to speak publicly, we ask you to ensure you are identified as a Canada Research Chair in official event documentation (such as programs, scenario, pamphlets, advertisements, etc.). If the topic of the chairholder’s remarks lends itself to it, we ask that they mention that they are a Canada Research Chair and how this benefits their research (the impact on their research and on the graduate students who work with them).
Websites, business cards, letterhead and email signatures
If a chairholder has their own website, they should refer to their Canada Research Chair title and hyperlink this mention to the Canada Research Chairs website. We also ask that any reference to their Canada Research Chair on their institution’s website be hyperlinked to the Canada Research Chairs website, www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca.
Institutions should provide a link to the Canada Research Chairs website (www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca) on both their institution’s website and any electronic public relations materials, including new releases, email and newsletters. Doing this reinforces the partnership between the program and institutions.
We encourage chairholders to identify themselves in media interviews as “Canada Research Chair in (research discipline) at (name of institution)”, to wear their Canada Research Chairs lapel pin, and to include their official chairholder title in their publications (including op-eds, articles, etc.).
We also encourage chairholders and institutions to interact with the Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat (TIPS) on social media, when relevant, so that we can engage with and share interesting content that helps demonstrate the impact of chairholders’ research:
Institutions’ communications offices are also encouraged to include chairholder titles in any documents issued to the media that refer to the chairholder’s research.
Although not a requirement, we do welcome materials on chairholder-related news and events and the media coverage they generate, as well as copies of chairholder-related advertising. Send them to communications@chairs-chaires.gc.ca.
Canada Research Chairs visual elements and toolkit
Use our communications products to promote your chair:
For help with the above, contact communications@chairs-chaires.gc.ca.
Note: Use of the Canada Research Chairs logo and the Canada wordmark is regulated by the Federal Identity Program of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat.
Chairholder web profiles
Profiles of chairholders are featured in the Chairholders section of the program’s website.
Research summaries that appear on the program’s website are drawn from the executive summaries and proposal summaries submitted with the nomination. TIPS will translate and post English and French versions of the summary. Photos and authorization forms are no longer required.