UWindsor Researchers Awarded Nearly $4M In Federal Funding

The University of Windsor has secured nearly $4 million in federal funding to support bold and impactful research projects.

Eighteen researchers at UWindsor have received grants from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) through its Discovery Grants and Research Tools and Instruments (RTI) programs. These awards, which span the next five years, reflect the strength of UWindsor’s research enterprise and its commitment to advancing knowledge and addressing complex global challenges.

“This investment from NSERC empowers our researchers to push the boundaries of their fields and fosters transformative opportunities for students,” said Dr. Shanthi Johnson, Vice-President, Research and Innovation. “It demonstrates confidence in the University of Windsor’s capacity to lead in scientific discovery and knowledge mobilization.”

The largest Discovery Grant was awarded to Dr. Cláudio Verani, Dean of the Faculty of Science, who will receive $305,000 to investigate directional electron flow through molecules—a fundamental process with implications for molecular electronics, quantum computing, and corrosion prevention.

“I am honoured to launch an NSERC-funded research program at the University of Windsor,” said Verani. “This support allows us to deepen our understanding of electron transport and mentor emerging scholars in this exciting field.”
The RTI program provided nearly $150,000 each to two projects enhancing UWindsor’s research infrastructure:

Dr. Scott Harroun (Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry) will acquire a Raman spectrometer to develop nanomaterial-based tools for biomedical diagnostics, including cancer screening. He also received a $195,000 Discovery Grant and a $12,500 Discovery Launch Supplement for his work on fluorescent nanoantennas and protein function.

Dr. Oliver Love (Department of Integrative Biology) will use RTI funding to establish a mobile Arctic lab, enabling the study of adaptive capacity in songbirds within changing environments. His co-applicants include UWindsor researchers Dr. Christina Semeniuk and Dr. Hannah ter Hofstede.

The 2025 Discovery Grant recipients represent a wide range of disciplines:

• Dr. Majid Ahmadi – Neuromorphic and cryptosystem design
• Dr. Nihar Biswas – Industrial wastewater treatment
• Dr. Xiang Chen – Autonomous control and optimization
• Dr. Sazzadur Chowdhury – Ultrasonic transducer arrays
• Dr. Jeffrey Dason – Lipid roles in synaptic plasticity
• Dr. Stephan Eichhorn – Organic dye materials
• Dr. Daniel Heath – Evolutionary biology of salmonids
• Dr. Yong Hoon Kim – Deep learning for traffic efficiency
• Dr. Chris Lee – Autonomous vehicle safety
• Dr. Roman Maev – Ultrasonic weld inspection
• Dr. Christina Semeniuk – Adaptive species behaviour
• Dr. Ruth Urbanic – Additive manufacturing processes
• Dr. Sherah VanLaerhoven – Blow fly community ecology
• Dr. Huiming Zhang – Binaural auditory processing