Operating Grant: NWHRI: Innovation Fund (2024)

Eligibility

For an application to be eligible all the requirements stated below must be met:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant must have an active position/mandate in the area of women's health and be one of the following:
   1. An independent researcher or knowledge user, affiliated with a Canadian postsecondary institution and/or its affiliated institutions (including hospitals, research institutes and other non-profit organizations with a mandate for health research and/or knowledge translation).

      OR

   2. An individual affiliated with an Indigenous non-governmental organization in Canada with a research and/or knowledge translation mandate;

      OR

   3. A Canadian non-governmental organization (including Indigenous community organizations) with a research or knowledge translation mandate.
      • Organizations working primarily with Indigenous, racialized, elderly, immigrant, sexual and gender minority and/or disability communities or demonstrating evidence of having prior meaningful and culturally safe involvement with these communities are especially encouraged to apply. A point of contact at the organization must be identified in the application form. Organizations that are unclear about their eligibility to apply are encouraged to contact CIHR's Contact Centre for clarification.
2. The NPA must have their substantive role in Canada for the duration of the requested grant term.
3. The Institution Paid must be authorized to administer CIHR funds before the funding can be released (see Administration of Funds).
4. The research must be co-led by an independent researcher and a knowledge user.
   • If the NPA is an independent researcher, the Co-Lead must be a knowledge user identified as a Principal Knowledge User (PKU) and hold an active position at the time of application developing or implementing women’s health programs, services and/or policies.
   • If the NPA is a knowledge user or an organization, the Co-Lead must be an independent researcher identified as a Principal Applicant (PA) and hold an active position in women’s health at the time of application.
   • Inclusion of more than one Principal Applicant or Principal Knowledge User is optional.
5. The Nominated Principal Applicant and all the Principal Applicants must have successfully completed module 2 or 3 of the sex- and gender-based analysis training modules^* available online through the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health and have submitted a Certificate of Completion (see How to Apply section).
6. Co-Applicants may be independent researchers; knowledge users; trainees; People with lived and living experience (PWLLE); or other.
   • The addition of a trainee is encouraged.
   • Inclusion of one or more Co-Applicants is optional.
7. An individual or an organization cannot submit more than one application as an NPA. If the NPA submits more than one application, CIHR will automatically withdraw the last application(s) submitted based on timestamp of submission.

Summary

The purpose of this funding opportunity is to fund innovative applied health research to address implementation gaps and progress interventions towards real-world impact that improves access to health care and ultimately improves health outcomes for women, girls, and gender diverse people across Canada.

The overall objective of the Innovation Fund is to support research in areas of women's health that have been chronically underfunded and under-researched. It includes two funding opportunities: 1) Biomedical Discovery Grants, launched earlier in 2023; and 2) Operating Grants to support translational research and implementation science research in women's health. This funding opportunity focuses on the Innovation Fund - Operating Grants.

Of note, all funded research projects will be required to link with the Pan-Canadian Women’s Health Coalition to identify emerging knowledge mobilization opportunities to support improvements in policy, practice, services, and healthcare for women. This collaborative model will help to ensure that evidence improves women’s care and health outcomes, while also establishing an intersectional approach to research and care to effectively tackle persistent gaps for all women, girls and gender diverse people and inform better policy and decision making.

Note that this application is piloting the Harmonized Tri-Agency CV.

Overhead

N/A

Pre-application deadlines

RSO internal deadline

Pre-application program deadline

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

Submission Process:

Registration due directly to CIHR via ResearchNet by 6:00PM Calgary time on February 13, 2024. No RMS needed for this step.

Full application, plus approvals in RMS, will be required by RSO by noon on March 8, 2024. Please be sure to select "Submitted for approvals" (Under Save & Progress) in RMS in enough time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the internal RSO deadline. Consult your department and faculty for more information on their approval processes and timelines.

Do not submit through ResearchNet until RSO's signature has been granted!! 

Once institutional signature has been obtained, a copy of the CIHR signature page will be available via the RMS record, under Documents. Upload the CIHR signature page and routing slip in the Print/Upload Signature Pages task in ResearchNet by 6:00PM Calgary time on March 13, 2024.

Webinar

CIHR will be hosting the following webinar to support participants with the requirements of this funding opportunity and to answer questions on how to apply.

When: January 10, 2024 at 11:00 am MT | Join
Duration: 90 minutes

RESOURCES

Support for projects involving Indigenous Research:

Support with the development of your grant application is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST). Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Support for Knowledge Engagement:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation is available through the Knowledge Engagement Team. Applicants can reach out by email to the KE team at knowledge.engagement@ucalgary.ca. For more information, please visit the KE team webpage.

Support for Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca OR research.data@ucalgary.libanswers.com.

Support for EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice. Contact Erin.OToole@ucalgary.ca for more information.

Support for Research Security:

The new Research Security Division is available to offer guidance and support on safeguarding research and ensuring that principles of research security are upheld while conducting leading edge research. Learn more on their webpage or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application