Minister Aglukkaq Encourages Northern Students To Study Science

For immediate release- 2009-02

Iqaluit (February 6, 2009) – The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health, today participated in a science workshop for students at Aqsarniit Middle School in Iqaluit sponsored by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). The Minister used the opportunity to highlight Government programs that help young people pursue careers in the sciences, including health research.”Canada’s future lies in a knowledge-based economy. Young people in all parts of Canada are expanding both their imaginations and their job horizons by learning science,” said Minister Aglukkaq. “We want to help young Canadians who dream of becoming health researchers. That’s why we are investing in students pursuing graduate degrees in the health sciences.”

Canada’s Economic Action Plan, Budget 2009, provided CIHR with an additional $35 million to expand its Canada Graduate Scholarships program.

The science workshop attended by Minister Aglukkaq was supported by Synapse, CIHR’s youth engagement program. The program creates a scientific junction – a synapse – by encouraging CIHR-funded researchers, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to teach young Canadians about the value of science and health research.

Through the program, CIHR partners with non-profit organizations to provide students with education and hands-on training across Canada. Synapse mentors teach students through lab visits, instruction by computer, lectures at school, or by acting as judges at science fairs. With its national partner, Actua, CIHR reaches Aboriginal youth in northern communities throughout Nunavut, the Yukon and Northwest Territories. In 2008, over 4,000 kids participated in hands-on health research workshops delivered in 30 northern Canadian communities.

“We’ve learned over the years that, to create great scientists, we need to get kids excited about science at an early age,” said Dr. Cornelia Wieman, a member of CIHR’s Governing Council and co-director of the Indigenous Health Research Development Program at the University of Toronto. “CIHR’s Synapse program makes science accessible to kids living in all parts of Canada – especially those living in rural or remote communities, who might not otherwise get this opportunity.”

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Further information:

Josée Bellemare, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, 613-957-0200
David Coulombe, Media Relations, CIHR, 613-941-4563
Leslie Cuthbertson, Director of Partnerships and Communications, Actua, 613-882-4779