Congratulations to the ten UBC Arts researchers who have been awarded funding through the 2025 Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grants, Discovery Launch Supplements, Northern Research Supplements, and Research Tools and Instruments programs.
These grants support programs of research with long-term goals, recognizing the creativity and innovation that drive research forward. Learn more about the recipients and their projects below.
Discovery Grant recipients:
The NSERC Discovery Grants program supports ongoing programs of research with long-term goals rather than a single short-term project or collection of projects. These grants recognize the creativity and innovation that are at the heart of all research advances.
- Dr. Kalina Christoff, Professor, Department of Psychology
Project: Investigating spontaneous thought using precision fMRI
- Dr. Simon Donner, Professor, Department of Geography
Project: What is normal in a changing climate? Heatwaves, shifting baselines, and the effects on coastal ecosystems and society - Dr. Joelle LeMoult, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology
Project: Understanding how stress biases cognition - Dr. Catharine Rankin, Professor, Department of Psychology
Project: Determining and differentiating the mechanisms of forms of non-associative learning
Discovery Launch Supplement recipients:
Discovery Launch Supplements provide timely resources to support early career researchers (ECRs) as they establish a Discovery Grant-funded research program. The following projects were awarded additional Discovery Launch Supplements of $12,500.
- Dr. Aleksa Alaica, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology
Project: Archaeological scientific insights on diverse responses to climate and ecosystem (in)stability in the Andes - Dr. Kate Hale, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography
Project: Snowpack and hydrologic changes across earth’s natural water towers - Dr. Marysa Laguë, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography
Project: Terrestrial controls on global climate: Understanding the impact of land on near-surface climate, clouds, and atmospheric circulation - Dr. Joan Danielle Ongchoco, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology
Project: From the continuous to the discrete in mental life
Northern Research Supplement recipient:
Northern Research Supplements recognize the added costs unique to conducting research in the Canadian North. Dr. Kuhn is a recipient of the Discovery Launch and Northern Research Supplements.
- Dr. McKenzie Kuhn, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography
Project: Response of atmospheric methane consumption by Northern soils to climate warming
Research Tools and Instruments recipient:
The NSERC Research Tools and Instruments grants foster and enhance the discovery, innovation and training capability of university researchers in the natural sciences and engineering by supporting the purchase of research equipment.
- Dr. Jane Kiley Hamlin, Professor, Department of Psychology
Project: Urgent upgrade of UBC Centre for Infant Cognition
