Federal Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern
This policy will impact researchers submitting funding applications to the federal granting agencies (CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC) and CFI.
Starting in early 2024, research grant and funding applications submitted by a university or affiliated research institution to the federal granting councils and the Canada Foundation for Innovation involving research that advances a sensitive technology research area will not be funded if any of the researchers involved in activities supported by the grant are affiliated with, or in receipt of funding or in-kind support, from a Named Research Organization (NRO).
The list of named research organizations includes entities from China, Iran, and Russia that pose the highest risk to Canada's national security due to their direct or indirect connections to military, national defence, and state security.
HOW WILL THE POLICY IMPACT ME?
The STRAC policy will be effective May 1, 2024.
Affiliations: This policy applies to current and ongoing affiliations with the listed institutions. Past affiliations, for example, a researcher who previously obtained an undergraduate degree from an NRO but is no longer affiliated with it, will fall outside the scope of the policy.
Attestations: For grant applications where the proposed research will advance a sensitive technology research area, all researchers (e.g., applicants, co-applicants, and collaborators) named on the grant must provide an individual attestation indicating they are not affiliated with, or in receipt of funding or in-kind support, from any of the listed institutions. If a research team member has an active affiliation, they are required to formally end the affiliation in order to be eligible to apply for a federal grant. Efforts made to end an affiliation should be documented and retained by the individual for future reference.
Compliance: The Principal Investigator (PI) is responsible for collecting and submitting attestations to ORIS with the grant application. PIs are also expected to consult with ORIS and communicate any material changes to the project to ensure continued compliance throughout the duration of the project. Individuals involved in activities supported by the grant who are not named researchers on the original grant proposal are expected to comply with the policy. Still, they are not required to sign an attestation.
WHICH FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES ARE IMPACTED?
Currently, the STRAC Policy only applies to funding opportunities that fund research grants to university and university-affiliated institutions. A list of funding opportunities that will apply the STRAC Policy, as of May 1, 2024, is available here.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES