research & innovation at lakehead orillia

research & innovation week: an experience of discovery

by kathy hunt, lakehead orillia communications officer

(mar. 14, 2012) working at a university means that i am surrounded byenergy, intelligence, expertise, passion, creativity, and, if i pay attention,myriad opportunities for learning on a daily basis.

the wealth of knowledge and inspiration at the campus is quite impressive and was emphasized recently during the university's research & innovation week, which took place last month. i attended some of the events, including a welcome address by dr. tim kaiser, associate professor with the interdisciplinary studies program. dr. kaiser's remarks were intriguing. i found out how much research activity actually takes place among the faculty at our campus and how this research covers the wide range of possibilities in research and innovation.

dr. kaiser explained that research activity can be categorized into four main areas: research that leads to innovation; innovation that leads to research; research that leads to research; and innovation in research. when dr. kaiser examined the research by lakehead orillia faculty, he found examples for each type and also was able to estimate that the research output by faculty amounted to 2.5 pieces per person per year. this research output (totalling 1,396) includes journal articles, books, chapters in books, conference papers, technical reports, patents, and museum or gallery exhibitions.

it was also pointed out that over one third of all the papers presented during research & innovation week discussed research into freshwater systems, a reflection of the orillia campus' emphasis on environmental sustainability. the university hopes the orillia campus will one day become a "centre for sustainable communities." judging from the presentations at this year's research & innovation week, the university is on the right path to realizing this goal.

when i explored the gallery of poster presentations, i was impressed by the number of projects not only related to sustainable communities, but to our local communities. 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 in dr. chris murray's general science class worked as teams with community partners on a number of local environmental issues.

"many of the student research projects showcased were based on finding solutions to real-life problems," explained dr. murray. "it was all secondary, literature-based research, but it was still legitimate discovery, as opposed to an exercise aimed at finding an expected answer printed at the back of a text book." the research posters presented findings on topics such as municipal brownfields, green parking lots, urban tree planting and green roofs.

collaboration in research was something that dr. kaiser highlighted in his introductory remarks. research is typically conducted with 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 , other scholars, professionals and members of the community.

when community partners are involved, research becomes especially relevant, making it very meaningful- and exciting. it is also a way for the community to share in the innovation that is experienced on a daily basis at the campus and for the university to help meet community needs.