Beyond Research: Recent Episodes
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The Beyond Research Podcast brings research to you. In each episode, we will bring you the story, beyond the research and introduce you to Canada-based researchers and community leaders whose work are intersecting in unexpected ways. Beyond Research is brought to you by Research Nova Scotia, an independent, not-for-profit corporation with the mandate to support, organize and co-ordinate the funding of research in Nova Scotia.
In a time when athletes are trying anything to find their competitive edge, research in sport is more important than ever. However, female athletes may come to find they are at a disadvantage compared to their male counterparts as the current body of sports literature is largely skewed to male athletes.
In this episode we explore this gap in sports research and discuss the role student research can play in the broader research ecosystem. We will hear from a Registered Dietician and personal trainer, a member of Canada's women's national under-20 soccer team, an established sports nutrition researcher, as well as a local student researcher who is striving to help level the playing field.
Virtual Reality continues to be embraced by researchers, health care providers, and patients alike. Although the field is still relatively new, there seem to be more and more examples of virtual reality having a positive impact on health care delivery, treatment, and training both here at home and around the globe. In this episode we will explore examples of how research in the area of virtual reality could help address current gaps and in our healthcare system and improve patient care today and in the future.
In this episode we speak with Dr. Jordan Sheriko, Medical Director of Rehabilitation Services at IWK Health and Megan Brydon, PACS Application Specialist at IWK Health. Jordan and his team are looking at leveraging VR to health provide power wheelchair training to young patients. Megan is researching how VR can be used to improve, develop, or elicit empathy in medical professionals. Listen as they explain how VR technologies could help strengthen healthcare delivery, expand training opportunities, increase access, advance treatment, and help practitioners better care for our most vulnerable populations.
In this episode, we explore how resilient our land-based farms and farm-related businesses are to the impacts of global climate change, as well as solutions researchers and farmers are exploring to help improve our ability to adapt long-term. We hear from industry experts on how climate change is currently impacting our agri-food industry, what solutions are being implemented successfully, and discuss how we can best prepare for future climate-related challenges.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Alana Pindar is the Weston Family Visiting Professor in Ecosystem Health and Food Security, appointed at Cape Breton University. Dr. Pindar is an entomologist with an expertise in pollinators.
Rosalie Gillis-Madden is the On-Farm Climate Action Fund Technical Project Manager at Perennia Food and Agriculture. Rosalie is a resource to producers on all aspects of vegetable production.
Research plays a vital role in creating economic growth, talent attraction, and youth retention. When properly executed, research investments also directly support provincial priorities. In this episode we explore the different ways research can create economic growth for both new and established companies. Listen as we discuss opportunities to further support research and innovation in local industries and institutions.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Daniel Boyd is an Associate Professor in Dalhousie University’s School of Biomedical Engineering, Co Founder & Scientific Advisor at IR Scientific, and Co Founder of ABK Biomedical.
Matt Cooper is the Chief Innovation Officer at Volta, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Matt has been developing and marketing products for over 20 years, including being a Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Swept, an innovative software for commercial cleaning companies.
Currently 4.4 million Canadians are living in food-insecure households and 1 in 6 households in Nova Scotia are food insecure. In this episode we hear from experts leading the way in research and response to food insecurity in Nova Scotia. Listen as we explore the concept of food security, the benefits of developing a food autonomy strategy, and research underway that can help us better understand and improve food security for all.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is a Professor and Director of the Agri-food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University. He conducts research in the broad area of food distribution, security and safety.
Karen Theriault is the Director of Development and Communications at Feed Nova Scotia, based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.
Nova Scotia and its 13,300 km of coastline is home to many coastal communities. Of these communities, some are already facing the impacts of changing sea levels, storm surges and climate change firsthand. In this episode you'll hear from leading researchers who are helping us better understand, plan, and prepare for rising sea levels in Nova Scotia. First, we explore coastal flood risk mapping and how it can help us gain a deeper understanding of how future scenarios will likely play out on our shorelines. Then, we look at the ways we can use this information to better plan and adapt to the world as it will be in the coming decades.
Listen as we explore how sea level rise has affected our province and propose collaborative approaches to mitigate the impacts on our communities, our industries, and our way of life.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Timothy Webster is the lead research scientist with Nova Scotia Community College’s Applied Geomatics Research Group, and a faculty member in remote sensing and GIS at NSCC’s Centre of Geographic Sciences.
Dr. Patricia Manuel is a professor in the School of Planning at Dalhousie University, and conducts research in a range of areas including environmental planning with a focus on climate change adaptation planning and wetlands interpretation and management.
In health research, the voices of people outside of the research team – the patients, caregivers, families – may be lost. In this episode, you’ll hear from leading researchers who are expanding the traditional definition of a research team and designing research programs focused on making an immediate impact. Although COVID-19 continues to be a major health care disrupter, it has also given researchers the space and permission needed to think outside of the box, expedite research projects, and arrive at new ideas and solutions that will serve us well beyond the pandemic. Listen to learn how conducting health research in real-time can health improve care and outcomes for patients, caregivers, and families.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Kenneth Rockwood is a Professor of Medicine at Dalhousie University, and a Senior Medical Director at the Nova Scotia Health Authority.
Dr. Marsha Campbell-Yeo is a certified neonatal nurse practitioner, an associate professor of Pediatrics, Psychology & Neuroscience at Dalhousie University, and a clinician scientist at the IWK Health Centre.
Stefan Leslie is the CEO of Research Nova Scotia, located in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Lisa Carr is an Infection Control Specialist at Northwood based in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
As Canada continues to deal with effects of Covid-19, concerns over the critical importance of the early years and the impacts on kids are growing. In this episode you’ll hear from researchers specializing in children’s mental health and development, each who will share unique insights on the status of children and family’s mental health throughout the pandemic. Specifically, you’ll learn about a growing area of research that is proving to be a critical support for children and youth during this difficult time: the power of play.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Alexa Bagnell is the Chief of Psychiatry at the IWK Health Centre, a pediatric hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and a Professor of Psychiatry at Dalhousie University.
Dr. Michelle Stone is an Assistant Professor of Kinesiology in the School of Health and Human Performance at Dalhousie University, and lead researcher for Play Outside Nova Scotia.
Did you know that in Canada, roughly 50% of the food produced is lost or wasted? In the latest episode of the Beyond Research Podcast, we’re exploring the ways scientific advancements in nutrition and food science are helping the agri-food industry better manage this growing problem. Listen to learn how local researchers Dr. Daren Burke of Outcast Foods and Dr. Marcia English of St.FX are working directly with the people who produce our food to create new products and generate new markets using food waste and by-products.
Featured Guests:
Dr. Marcia English is an Assistant Professor in Human Nutrition at St. Francis Xavier University where she leads the X Food Research Lab. She’s using her background in food chemistry to address challenges and add value to Nova Scotia’s farming and food production community.
Dr. Darren Burke is the founder and CEO of Outcast Foods, the first patent-pending zero waste upcycling technology company that is actively reducing food waste. Outcast works with local farmers, processors and retailers to create a supply chain where the less than perfect supply of fruits and veggies can re-enter the food chain, lighter and better than ever.
We begin the new season by learning about the connection between world-leading technology development and an urgent - and often hidden - social crisis: energy poverty. In this episode, you'll hear from the Mayor of Bridgewater, a small, rural town that is leading the charge on energy poverty, and two Nova Scotia researchers who are at the forefront of a global revolution in energy storage. You'll learn how their works is intersecting to help meet our climate goals and help some of the more vulnerable members of our community.
Featured Guests:
David Mitchell is the Mayor of Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, a small town with a bold idea: move the entire community toward efficient, clean energy through its Energize Bridgewater initiative.
Dr. Jeff Dahn is a professor of physics and atmospheric science at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and the Tesla Canada Industrial Research Chair.
Dr. Michael Freund is a Professor of Chemistry, the Harry Shirreff Chair of Chemical Research, and the Director of the Clean Technologies Institute at Dalhousie University.
Join us for season 2 of Beyond Research, where we will explore the ripple effect that research is having on our society at large. In each episode, we will bring you the story, beyond the research and introduce you to Canada-based researchers and community leaders whose work are intersecting in unexpected ways.
Cape Breton Island, now recognized for its natural landscapes and golf resorts, was once the industrial Heartland of Atlantic Canada. By 2000, its coal and steel industries shut down resulting in a host of social and economic difficulties for the region.
Listen as Dr. Lachlan MacKinnon, Assistant Professor of History and Tier II Canada Research Chair in Post-Industrial Communities at Cape Breton University, explains why preserving the history of Cape Breton's economic decline could help create a better future for postindustrial communities in Nova Scotia, Canada and beyond.
Coastal communities are increasingly having to better understand the marine environment, including balancing prosperous fisheries and endangered aquatic species. It's estimated that more than 90% of large oceanic fish have disappeared since the 1950s due to over exploitation, habitat destruction, and a changing climate.
Listen as Dr. Sara Iverson, Scientific Director of the Ocean Tracking Network (OTN) headquartered at Dalhousie University, explains how the Nova Scotia based network has become the world's aquatic animal tracking network, deploying state-of-the-art ocean monitoring equipment around the world to inform conservation initiatives, including the protection of the North Atlantic Right Whale.
More than 50,000 Canadians suffer a stroke each year. Of those who survive, more than half will require ongoing assistance with daily activities due to cognitive deficits.
Listen as Dr. Anne Sophie Champod, an assistant professor of psychology at Acadia University, explains how her research team is working to develop more effective cognitive rehabilitation interventions, including a game called Peg-the-Mole, to improve recovery, independence, and quality of life for stroke patients.
Throughout the pandemic, front-line healthcare workers and public health officials have been taxed with making difficult decisions about where to expend their finite resources, like beds, test-kits, and eventually, vaccines. Dr. James Hughes is an assistant professor in St. Francis Xavier University’s department of computer science. Listen as he explains how his research team is using artificial intelligence help public health officials answer the question “Who should we vaccinate first?”
Featured Guest:
Dr. James Hughes is an assistant professor in St. Francis Xavier University’s department of computer science. His research team is leading a study that will use artificial intelligence (AI) to select best strategies for COVID-19 vaccination, testing, and treatment in Nova Scotian communities.
To learn more about this project and access the source code, visit: epidemi.ai.
Since the on-set of the pandemic, researchers around the world in diverse fields of study have pivoted their work to support the fight against COVID19. Dr. Amina Stoddart, an assistant professor in Dalhousie University’s department of civil and resource engineering and researcher at the Centre for Water Resources Studies, is no different. Listen as she explains how her research team is using their expertise in water treatment to design an ingenious method to detect the COVID-19 virus. This research supports front-line healthcare workers and may be a critical piece in controlling the spread of the virus.
Featured Guest:
Dr. Amina Stoddart is an assistant professor in Dalhousie University’s department of civil and resource engineering and researcher at the Centre for Water Resources Studies. Her research team is leading a project aimed at detecting the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19 in human wastewater, helping to identify the potential presence of the virus quickly and before it can spread.
As the Director of the Canadian Center for Vaccinology and Primary Investigator of the Canadian Immunization Research Network, Dr. Scott Halperin is at the forefront of efforts to provide Canada with the national capacity to undertake vaccine and infectious disease research. In this episode of the Research Nova Scotia podcast, you'll hear how Scott and his team of over 130 investigators at 50 institutions are working on important COVID-19 research urgently needed by Canadians.
Aquaculture is growing rapidly and within the next decade, over half of the world’s seafood will be farmed. A major challenge in the industry is making sure that fish are provided with adequate nutrition to yield a healthy nutritional source for humans while ensuring minimal negative impacts on the environment.
Dr. Stefanie Colombo is an assistant professor at Dalhousie University’s Agricultural Campus and the Canada Research Chair in Aquaculture Nutrition. Listen as she explains how her research team is working to discover novel solutions in nutrition to improve aquaculture and contribute toward healthier, environmentally sustainable, and economically viable farmed seafood.
N95 respirator masks are critical in the fight against COVID-19. Amid the pandemic, as borders began to close and global exports began to drop, Canadian healthcare workers were scrambling to secure an adequate supply of masks and personal protective equipment (PPE) to help keep them safe. In response, a team of Nova Scotian chemists got to work on a homegrown solution.
Dr. Christa Brosseau, a professor of chemistry at Saint Mary’s University and Tier II Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Chemistry & Materials, hopes to develop PPE out of Nova Scotian softwood lumber. Listen as she explains how her research team is striving to meet the needs of front-line healthcare workers and support the struggling Nova Scotian pulp and paper industry, while developing an ecologically conscious product.
World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from 1 to 7 August, not just to encourage breastfeeding, but to raise awareness of the different cultural and socio-economic challenges to breastfeeding that caregivers face world-wide. Nova Scotia has its own challenges. Our province has among the lowest breastfeeding rates in Canada, with less than one quarter of infants receiving Health Canada’s recommended 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding. We wanted to explore what local researchers are doing to contribute to our collective understanding of breastfeeding practices and culture here.
To take part in this conversation, we’re speaking with Dr. Kyly Whitfield, Assistant Professor of Applied Human Nutrition at Mount Saint Vincent University and lead researcher of theMilk and Micronutrient Assessment Lab, also known as the MAMA Lab. Kyly's passion for maternal and infant care began in grad school where her doctoral research focused on a life-saving solution to address maternal thiamin deficiency and infantile beriberi in rural Cambodia. Since then, her research has expanded into a cross-cultural analysis of breastfeeding in Nova Scotia and Cambodia that goes beyond "breast is best" to focus on the supports required to achieve optimal health in both mama and baby.
Featured Guest:
Dr. Kyly Whitfield, Assistant Professor of Applied Human Nutrition at Mount Saint Vincent University. Dr. Whitfield is the lead researcher of the Milk and Micronutrient Assessment Lab, also known as the MAMA Lab where her and her team are working on a cross-cultural analysis of breastfeeding in Nova Scotia and Cambodia that goes beyond “breast is best” to focus on the supports required to achieve optimal health in both mama and baby.
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More than a quarter of Nova Scotian children are starting school with a developmental vulnerability. Due to a growing understanding that the early years of a child’s life set the foundation for lifelong learning, health and wellbeing, Nova Scotia has seen an increase in supports for early childhood education and research.
On May 21, 2020, Stephanie Reid, Director of Marketing and Communications at Research Nova Scotia, had a virtual conversation with Dr. Jessie-Lee McIsaac. Dr. McIsaac is the Tier II Canada Research Chair in Early Childhood: Diversity and Transitions and leader of the Early Childhood Collaborative Research Centre at Mount Saint Vincent University. Her team of researchers are actively engaging policy makers, early childhood educators, and families across the province to enhance child wellbeing.
Listen as Dr. McIsaac discusses how research, policy and practice are coming together to provide Nova Scotians with supports like the pre-primary program, to improve our understanding of early childhood nutrition, and to support families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Featured Guest:
Dr. Jessie-Lee McIsaac is the Tier II Canada Research Chair in Early Childhood: Diversity and Transitions and leader of the Early Childhood Collaborative Research Centre at Mount Saint Vincent University. Her team of researchers are actively engaging policy makers, early childhood educators, and families across the province to enhance child wellbeing.
Due to the extraordinary nature of this pandemic, the significant health risks, and the considerable economic consequences already being felt around the world, we need to be nimble and act decisively to support urgent frontline research. Now more than ever, it’s important we unite around a common mission.
On March 17, 2020, Stefan Leslie, CEO of Research Nova Scotia, visited Dr. David Kelvin at his Dalhousie University lab in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Dr. Kelvin is an infectious disease expert with an international research program that carries out studies around the world. His team of researchers is currently focused on COVID-19. Specifically, the goal of Dr. Kelvin’s research is to help healthcare professionals better determine which patients have the highest chances of developing a severe illness through the identification of biomarkers. If successful, this research would help give high-risk patients priority for hospitalizations and/or admission to intensive care units. Dr. Kelvin’s primary focus is developing a point-of-care device that in a very short period of time can designate which patients should go to hospital which in turn will help alleviate strain on our healthcare systems. The work will be conducted through the Canadian COVID-19 Research Network, which also includes researchers from China, Vietnam, Spain, Italy, Morocco, Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia, Côte d'Ivoire, Mozambique and the United States.
In a wide-ranging discussion, Dr. Kelvin talks about how research is leading the fight against COVID-19, what it’s like to be at the forefront of a medical crisis, how his team is searching for a better way to treat patients and is contributing to the quest for a vaccine, and how you can help.
Research Nova Scotia Contribution
To further contribute to the Government of Canada and the Province of Nova Scotia’s efforts to address the COVID-19 outbreak, Research Nova Scotia (RNS) will be contributing $600,000 in rapid response match funding from its Research Opportunities Fund to Dr. David Kelvin of Dalhousie University. Dr. Kelvin, along with his international network of research colleagues, are looking for a way to quickly identify the severity of the virus in those who test positive for COVID-19. RNS is joining the Canadian Institutes of Health Research’s COVID-19 funding initiative, which has committed $1 million to the project, and the Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation (DMRF) which made a recent gift of $250,000 to support the project.
“As we all know, this outbreak continues to evolve daily and Dr. Kelvin’s research could have a direct impact on patient outcomes, Leslie says. “Although these funds will have a positive impact on current research capacity, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to ensure this world-class research can continue to thrive. “We’re hoping this support from Research Nova Scotia will encourage other people, provinces, and countries to also contribute to this urgent research".
To contribute to this research, please visit https://dmrf.ca/about/our-stories/conquering-coronavirus/.
Thank you to Dr. David Kelvin, Dalhousie University, and the Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation for making this episode possible. To learn more about Research Nova Scotia visit www.researchns.ca.
This episode was produced by Podstarter.
Featured Guest:
Dr. David Kelvin is a Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Dr. Kelvin is an infectious disease expert with an international research program that carries out studies around the world. His team of researchers is currently focused on COVID-19.