May 15, 2026

The Government of Canada has invested $168M into the nation’s research ecosystem through the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) program, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), and the New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF). Of the funding, nearly $140M will support 165 new and renewed CRCs in strategic sectors. CFI has committed $5.8M to 25 research infrastructure projects at 16 institutions through the John R Evans Leaders Fund. The NFRF Exploration stream will distribute nearly $23M to support 92 high-risk, high-reward, and interdisciplinary research. “Building Canada’s resilience depends on world-class research teams making discoveries that keep our country competitive and ready to meet new challenges,” said CFI President Sylvain Charbonneau.

Keyin College has officially opened its new Stephenville Campus. Keyin Director of Rural Operations Andre Perrier explained that the college hopes that this campus will act as a community hub. Students at the college will learn through a hybrid model, completing coursework online and in person. “We will be offering our accounting payroll business administration program, we’re working on a new cybersecurity program, we have health care programs and many other offerings,” said Perrier. Bay FM states that nearly 90 students are already registered to study at the Stephenville Campus.

Simon Fraser University and InBC Investment Corporation have launched the SFU Innovates Venture Fund, which will invest in SFU researchers, students, and alumni who own early-stage companies. The fund will focus on companies in sectors with high economic potential including life sciences, deep technology, and cleantech. Government of British Columbia Minister of Jobs and Economic Growth Ravi Kahlon stated that the fund will enable recipient businesses to grow despite global uncertainty. The partners have committed an initial investment capital of $15M and hope to attract a further $5M in gifts and investments to raise the fund’s value to $20M.

Concordia University will be launching the Mark Pathy Space Institute with a $15M donation from commercial astronaut Mark Pathy, who was part of the 2022 mission to the International Space Station. The institute will focus on space engineering, and will be a hub for research, student training, and industry partnerships. Pathy has also donated an off-campus testing facility where experimentation can take place. “The Mark Pathy Space Institute will enable Concordia to carve out a leading role in the rapidly evolving aerospace sector in Canada and around the world,” said Concordia President Graham Carr. Concordia says that it will be the only university in Canada to have robotics, propulsion, human space health, and sustainability coexisting in a single research ecosystem.

Several institutions have shared that they are expanding their health care programs with provincial investments. Langara College has received a total of $11M in support from the Government of British Columbia and community supporters, including major investments in 2025 and 2026, to support the expansion of nursing education. In Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan Polytechnic and the University of Saskatchewan highlighted how they were expanding their health care and medicine programming with the investments they had recently received through the funds set aside in the Government of Saskatchewan’s 2026–27 budget. The Université de Saint-Boniface has received support from the Government of Manitoba to add 30 seats to its French‑language Bachelor of Nursing program.

UNESCO has released its inaugural Higher Education Global Trends Report, which examines the state of higher education using data from 146 countries. The report notes that enrolment in higher education has more than doubled in the past 20 years, reaching 269,000,000 learners in 2024. Despite this, the report notes large regional disparities: 80% of young people in Western Europe and North America had enrolled in higher education, compared to 9% in sub-Saharan Africa. The number of students attending higher education abroad had also tripled in the past 20 years and Canada was one of seven countries that, combined, hosted half of all international students. Though women outnumber men below the doctoral level, the report concludes that access for other under-represented groups remains a problem.

Assiniboine College has unveiled the Edna Edwards School of Nursing, named in honour of the late nurse and health education advocate Edna Edwards. Edwards’s husband Russ Edwards announced a $4M gift in honour of his late wife in a ceremony on Wednesday. The donation will be used to fund student experiences and research opportunities, as well as financial awards for students pursuing the RN bridging pathway. Assiniboine President Mark Frison described naming the school after Edwards, given her dedication to the field, as a “great honour,” and stated that the donation would support students for years to come.

Fanshawe College and Mount Saint Vincent University are each taking steps to reduce their costs in light of budget pressures. Fanshawe’s Chef’s Table restaurant will close during the summer for the first time due to lower student enrolment, which has resulted in fewer students attending classes at the downtown campus and available to work in the restaurant. Fanshawe is also reportedly looking at how it could renovate the space and consolidate operations with its café, which is in the same building. MSVU has reduced its workforce by a total of 24.5 positions, including the layoffs of seven administrative employees. MSVU has also increased tuition by 5% for graduate students and by 5% for all international students, starting in Fall 2026.

Western University has become the first non-European global partner of NeurotechEU, a group of nine European universities focused on neurotechnology. Together with NeurotechEU, Western will collaborate on neurotechnology research and explore cross-border training initiatives with members. “Especially in the neuroscience and neurotechnology fields, one institution is not going to be equipped to address these challenging research questions on its own,” explained Western VP Research Penny Pexman. Pexman added that the partnership will allow Western to explore collaboration with member institutions in other fields.

Several institutions have opened new labs and learning spaces on campus. Loyalist College officially opened its Integrative Health Centre this week, which will be used for hands-on health and wellness learning. The Université du Québec à Montréal launched a new laboratory dedicated to the digital humanities field, where the university research community can access relevant training, tools, and support. The University of Regina has opened a nursing virtual reality lab, where students will be able to build their confidence and skills by participating in realistic health care scenarios using advanced VR technology. This will complement their classroom instruction and clinical placements.