ResearchNet - RechercheNet

Table of Contents

• Description
• Objectives
• Eligibility
• Guidelines
• Review Process and Evaluation
• How to Apply
• Contact Information
• Sponsor Description

Description

Canada has committed to legalizing and regulating the use of cannabis for non-medical purposes, with legislation expected to be enacted in the summer of 2018.

In December 2017, CIHR invested $1.4 million to support 14 projects to catalyze future research related to the health impacts of cannabis legalization. This catalyst grant funding opportunity had a specific focus on population health intervention research related to the legalization and regulation of non-medical cannabis in Canada. However, there still remain many unknowns about the health and safety effects of cannabis, as well as the behavioural, social, ethical and economic implications of legalization.

While the emerging field of cannabis-related research is broad, a number of urgent priority areas have been identified through focused consultations led by several CIHR institutes. This included a research priorities workshop held in September 2017, which brought together cannabis researchers from across the country and across themes of health research, as well as stakeholders from federal departments, regulatory bodies and other relevant organizations. Identified research areas include both the potential therapeutic benefit for specific indications and the potential risks of cannabis use in different populations.

Funds Available

CIHR and partner(s) financial contributions for this initiative are subject to availability of funds. Should CIHR or partner(s) funding levels not be available or are decreased due to unforeseen circumstances, CIHR and partner(s) reserve the right to reduce, defer or suspend financial contributions to grants received as a result of this funding opportunity.

• The total amount available for this funding opportunity is $3,000,000, enough to fund approximately 24 grants. This amount may increase if additional funding partners participate. CIHR 's contribution is $2,000,000; the Mental Health Commission of Canada and the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction will each contribute $500,000. The maximum amount per grant is $125,000 per year for up to 1 year.
• Of this $3,000,000:
  • $750,000 is available to fund applications relevant to cannabis and mental health
  • $250,000 is available to fund applications relevant to cannabis and pain management (Updated: 2018-08-10)
  • $500,000 is available to fund applications relevant to cannabis use and other drug/substance use
  • The remainder is available to fund applications in any of the indicated Research Areas in rank order of application. (Updated: 2018-08-10)

Objectives

This funding opportunity is expected to:

• Generate preliminary observations, data or knowledge into the potential benefits and harms of cannabis and/or cannabis use
• Support projects which have the potential to generate high impact results and/or innovative research proposals, research tools, techniques, devices, inventions or methodologies
• Facilitate consideration and application of new evidence to inform ongoing and future development of policies, practices and programs related to cannabis

Eligibility

Eligibility to Apply

For an application to be eligible:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant must be an independent researcher appointed at an eligible institution (see Institutional Eligibility Requirements for eligibility process and associated timelines).
2. While not a requirement for eligibility, teams are encouraged to include knowledge user(s) when appropriate. However, for any research applications involving First Nations, Inuit, Métis and/or Urban Indigenous populations, the research team must include at least one knowledge user who self-identifies as First Nations, Inuit, or Métis.

For general eligibility requirements for individuals, refer to the Individual Eligibility Requirements.

Guidelines

General CIHR Policies

Successful applicants funded through this funding opportunity and any other persons working on the project must fully comply with the applicable CIHR Funding Policies.

Allowable Costs

Applicants should review the Use of Grant Funds section of the Tri-Agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC) Financial Administration Guide for a complete listing and description of allowable costs and activities.

The following expenses will be considered eligible for funding received through this funding opportunity:

• Release Time Allowance: up to $25,000 per knowledge user, per grant;
• The Tri-Council Policy Statement 2 (TCPS 2 - Chapter 9 Research Involving the First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples of Canada) recognizes the importance of respecting the culture and traditions of Indigenous peoples and acknowledges the necessity to incur expenditures in that regard in the conduct of research. As such, the Agency considers these expenditures eligible for payment from the grant holder's grant funds (with appropriate backup documentation);
  • Costs related to community mobilization and engagement, including culturally relevant promotional items such as, tobacco, cloth, and cash reimbursements (in a method acceptable to the individual or community being reimbursed) to compensate community participation; and
  • Contracts and/or consultant fees for knowledge translation and communication activities for Elders, community members, and other Knowledge Holders involved in activities related to the Indigenous community.

Conditions of Funding

• The applicant must consent to the use and disclosure of full application and nominative information to all funding partners for relevance review and funding decisions at the time of application.
• Applicants funded by partner agencies outside of CIHR may be required to complete a third-party agreement with the partner agency(ies).
• Participation in an end-of-grant workshop may be required to facilitate knowledge translation among stakeholders and researchers. Applicants must include the cost of two representatives participating at this workshop in their budget.
• The Nominated Principal Applicant will be required to submit an electronic Final Report to CIHR. This online report will be made available to the Nominated Principal Applicant on ResearchNet at the beginning of the grant funding period and can be filled in as the research progresses.
• All reports may be shared with partners supporting the grant.
• The Principal Applicants who are successful in this competition are strongly encouraged to actively participate in peer review, and as members of the CIHR College of Reviewers, when invited.

Review Process and Evaluation

Relevance Review Process

CIHR, the Mental Health Commission of Canada, and the Canadian Centre for Substance Use and Addiction will perform a relevance review to identify applications that are in alignment with the objectives and research areas of this funding opportunity. 

Applications that are not deemed to be relevant will be withdrawn from the competition.

Review Process

For information on CIHR's peer review principles, see the Peer review: Overview section of CIHR's website.

Evaluation Criteria

To support the strategic objectives of this funding opportunity, the following evaluation criteria will be used.

1. Research Approach
   • Clarity, quality and appropriateness of the research design (i.e., rationale, questions, approach and methodology).
   • Completeness of the literature review and relevance to study design/research plan.
   • Feasibility of the research approach (including recruitment of subjects, project timeline, preliminary data where appropriate, etc.).
   • Quality and appropriateness of the sex- and gender-based analysis (SGBA).
   • Quality of the proposed plan to include consideration of different population sub-groups (e.g., ethnicity, socioeconomic, sex, gender, minorities such as official language minority populations) and health equity.
   • Anticipation of difficulties that may be encountered in the research and plans for management.
2. Originality of the Proposal
   • Potential for the creation of new knowledge.
   • Originality of the proposed research, in terms of the hypotheses/research questions addressed, novel technology/methodology, and/or novel applications of current technology/ methodology.
3. Applicant(s)
   • Qualifications of the applicant(s), including training, experience and independence (relative to career stage).
   • Experience of the applicant(s) in the proposed area of research and with the proposed methodology.
   • Expertise of the applicant(s), as demonstrated by scientific productivity over the past five years (publications, books, grants held, etc.). Productivity should be considered in the context of the norms for the research area, applicant experience and total research funding of the applicant
   • Ability to successfully and appropriately disseminate research findings, as demonstrated by knowledge translation activities (publications, conference presentations, briefings, media engagements, etc.).
   • Appropriateness of the team of applicants (if more than one applicant) to carry out the proposed research, in terms of complementarity of expertise and synergistic potential.
4. Impact of the Research
   • Research proposal addresses a significant need or gap in health research and/or the health care system.
   • Potential for a significant contribution to the improvement of people’s health in Canada and the world and/or to the development of more effective health services and products.
   • Appropriateness and adequacy of the proposed plan for knowledge dissemination and exchange.

Funding Decision

Applications relevant to the three funding pools (i.e., cannabis and mental health, cannabis and pain management and cannabis use and other drug/substance use) will be funded from the top down in order of ranking, then all remaining applications relevant to the Research Areas will be pooled and funded from the top down in order of ranking as far as the budget will allow. (Updated: 2018-08-10)

Applications that receive a rating below 3.5 will not be funded.

Partner and Internal Collaborator Participation

The opportunity to add new partners and internal collaborators to this funding opportunity may arise after publication. These partners and internal collaborators may not be listed; however, the principles that govern relevance review, including consent to share information and funding decisions, will still apply.

How to Apply

• The application process for this funding opportunity is comprised of two steps: Registration and Full Application.
•  To complete your Registration, follow the instructions in the Grants - Registration Guidelines along with any additional instructions found below under “Specific Instructions”.
• To complete your Full Application, follow the instructions in the Grants – Application Guidelines along with any additional instructions found below under “Specific Instructions”.
• All application participants, with the exception of Collaborators, will require:
  • A CIHR PIN;
  • To complete the Equity and Diversity Questionnaire.

Specific instructions to complete your ResearchNet application

Step 1 – Registration:

Task: Identify Participants

• List all project participants in this task.
• For each participant (except Collaborators) link your CIHR Registration CV to the application by entering your CCV confirmation number.

Task: Complete Summary of Research Proposal

• Summarize your research proposal. Note that your summary cannot exceed one page.

Task: Apply to Priority Announcement/Funding Pools (optional)

• Selecting a funding pool is optional.
• More than one funding pool can be selected.

Task: Complete Peer Review Administration Information

• Suggest reviewers that have the expertise to review your application.

Step 2 – Full Application

Task: Identify Participants

• List all participants in this task
• Provide a Canadian Common Biosketch CV for each of the participants with the exception of Collaborators.
• All CVs must be submitted using the Canadian Common CV confirmation number.

Task: Complete Summary of Research Proposal

• Summarize your research proposal. Note that your summary cannot exceed one page.
• The Research Proposal is limited to ten (10) pages, not including references, charts, tables, figures and photographs. Please refer to the evaluation criteria to describe how the proposal addresses the objectives of this initiative.

Task: Enter Budget Information

• Provide a detailed budget justification in relation to planned activities.
  • Applicants must allocate sufficient funds for at least two representatives to attend a workshop in central Canada (Ottawa/Toronto).
• For release time allowance requests (if applicable), you must include a letter (upload as “Other Supporting Documents”) from the recipient's organization certifying that the individual for whom the release time allowance is requested:
  • Is a knowledge user on the grant whose primary responsibilities do not include an expectation to engage in research (i.e., as part of their regular employment);
  • Has their organization's approval for the research time on the project that would justify the allowance; and
  • Is engaged in the activities for which funds are being disbursed.

Task: Attach Other Application Materials

• List of publications (optional)
  • List a maximum of ten (10) publications from the last five years relevant to the proposal (one page maximum).

Task: Apply to Priority Announcement/Funding Pools (optional)

• Selecting a funding pool is optional.
• More than one funding pool can be selected.

Task: Print/Upload Signature Pages

• Required signatures
  • Signatures must be included for all applicants (except Collaborators), and individual(s) with signing authority from the Institution Paid.
  • Original signatures are not required. The scanned signed signature pages and the Routing Slip must be uploaded in the Print/Upload Signature Pages task in ResearchNet prior to submitting your application.

Contact Information

For all inquiries please contact:

CIHR Contact Centre
Telephone: 613-954-1968
Toll Free: 1-888-603-4178
Email: support@cihr-irsc.gc.ca

Sponsor Description

Note: Additional partners/collaborators, including partners/collaborators from industry and the private sector may join this funding initiative over the coming year.

Partners

Canadian Drugs and Substances Strategy
The Canadian Drugs and Substances Strategy is a comprehensive, collaborative, compassionate and evidence-based approach to drug policy.

Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction
The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) was created by Parliament to provide national leadership to address substance use in Canada. As an independent, third-party organization, CCSA provides guidance for decision makers by harnessing the power of research, curating knowledge and bringing together diverse perspectives.

Mental Health Commission of Canada
The Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC) leads the development, dissemination and scale up of innovative programs and tools, and advances research and evidence to support the mental health and wellness of Canadians. Through its unique mandate from the Government of Canada, MHCC supports federal, provincial, and territorial governments, as well as organizations in the implementation of sound public policy.

Internal Collaborators

Canadian Institutes of Health Research
At the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), we know that research has the power to change lives. As Canada's health research investment agency, we collaborate with partners and researchers to support the discoveries and innovations that improve our health and strengthen our health care system.

CIHR – Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction
The Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction supports (INMHA) research to enhance mental health, neurological health, vision, hearing, and cognitive functioning and to reduce the burden of related disorders through prevention strategies, screening, diagnosis, treatment, support systems, and palliation.

CIHR – Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health
The Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health (IHDCYH) supports research that ensures the best start in life for all Canadians and the achievement of their potential for optimal growth and development.

CIHR – Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis
The Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (IMHA) supports research to enhance active living, mobility and movement, and oral health; and addresses causes, prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, support systems, and palliation for a wide range of conditions related to bones, joints, muscles, connective tissue, skin and teeth.

CIHR – Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health
The Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health (ICRH) supports research into the causes, mechanisms, prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, support systems, and palliation for a wide range of conditions associated with the heart, lung, brain (stroke), blood, blood vessels, critical and intensive care, and sleep. The ICRH vision is to achieve international leadership by fostering an environment of openness, excitement, energy, commitment and excellence in highly ethical, partnered initiatives focused on research, research training, and research translation for the circulatory and respiratory sciences and for the betterment of the health of Canadians.

CIHR – Institute of Gender and Health
The Institute of Gender and Health (IGH)'s mission is to foster research excellence regarding the influence of gender and sex on the health of women and men throughout life, and to apply these research findings to identify and address pressing health challenges.