The Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR) is recruiting a candidate to be nominated for a Canada Impact+ Research Chair in the development and management of smart and decarbonized ports, a field that sits squarely at the heart of MEL’s expertise and research agenda.

The successful applicant will be granted $1M CAD per year for 8 years. That leads to a total of $8M in institutional funding, with approximately $500K/year dedicated directly to the chair holder’s research program, on top of any additional grants the researcher secures independently. Also, for truly outstanding profiles (think Nobel laureate or Turing Award-level researchers) the Government of Canada can increase the award beyond the standard envelope.

The program is explicitly designed for researchers with a strong track record of working with port authorities, industry, and public stakeholders. Impact and knowledge mobilization are central evaluation criteria. French is not a requirement at the outset, but the university does expect the chair holder to develop sufficient fluency over time. This, however, will not a barrier for an initial strong candidate. Only candidates currently based outside Canada are eligible, making your international network directly relevant.

UQAR offers direct access to the Canadian Arctic, the St. Lawrence maritime corridor, and a well-established research ecosystem in marine and coastal sciences. For a researcher focused on port decarbonization and smart infrastructure, this is a one-of-a-kind field laboratory. It also opens concrete avenues for collaboration such as joint research projects, Horizon Europe partnerships, Fonds Nouvelles Frontières en Recherche funding, and research mobility for graduate students and postdocs between our institutions.

The timeline is tight but manageable. The internal deadline for an initial expression of interest is May 16. This means a very light submission (CV + 2-page research program outline + potential contributions statement). The full application follows on June 29 (with registration by June 15). So we need to have someone in mind very soon.

Full details and the official call in English are available here: https://www.uqar.ca/emploi/call-for-applications-canada-impact-research-chairs/