Dr. Andy Tasker, well known Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC) professor and researcher at the University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), recently became Chair of the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC). This is the first time a for PEI representative to be Chair of the CCAC which includes representatives from more than twenty national organizations.

The CCAC is the national organization responsible for overseeing the care and use of animals in research, teaching, and testing in all universities and government agencies in Canada, as well as most industrial research programs.

"The CCAC is recognized and respected world wide for its programs and commitment to cooperative improvement of the scientific and ethical standards of animal use in Canada," says Dr. Tasker. "It is an honour to be able to further contribute to the organization and its goals."

Dr. Tasker has served as one of four representatives of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada since 2001 and last year was the CCAC Vice-Chair. His term as Chair runs from April 1, 2005 until March 31, 2006.

"Dr. Tasker's appointment as Chair of the CCAC is a considerable achievement," says Dr. Tim Ogilvie, Dean of AVC. "He is extremely committed to health research and I'm confident the CCAC will benefit greatly from Dr. Tasker's leadership and experience."

As AVC's past Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Research, Dr. Tasker played a significant leadership role in a number of successful initiatives, including achieving an all time high in graduate student numbers for the College.

Dr. Tasker's research is in the area of behavioural neuroscience. As, part of the Canadian Stroke Network, he is a member of a multi-researcher team actively developing a new class of drugs to help prevent brain damage caused by stroke. Dr. Tasker also leads a major federally and industry-funded research program to better understand the regulation of brain development and its relation to neurological diseases such as epilepsy.

Dr. Tasker is also one of the lead scientists of the new Atlantic Centre for Comparative Biomedical Research (ACCBR) at UPEI. This federally funded Centre will be the first of its kind in Canada and will bring together animal health and human health researchers to develop a better understanding of medical treatments and allow for discovery and development of new products for both markets. This centre will be housed with other AVC centres of expertise in a new 57,000 square foot research complex to be built as part of AVC's $32 million expansion and renovation project. AVC is gearing up to break ground this Fall.

The Master of Arts Programme in Island Studies (MAIS) and the Institute of Island Studies (IIS), both at UPEI, are pleased to host a public lecture on the theme of Local and Global Heritage in Island Cultures. The event will be held in the Faculty Lounge, ground floor, Main Building, UPEI on Wednesday June 15, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm.

The presentation will be led by Dr Philip Hayward, Chair of the Department of Contemporary Music Studies at Macquarie University, Australia. The session will be introduced by well-known Island Folklorist John Cousins.

Dr Hayward MA, PhD is also the coordinator of the Small Island Cultures Research Initiative (SICRI), an international network of scholars interested in the study and celebration of small island cultures, and which also manages an on-line reference resource on island cultures (www.sicri.org). Laurie Brinklow, a graduate student in the MAIS programme at UPEI, attended the inaugural SICRI conference held in Kagoshima, Japan, last February.

Dr Hayward has also authored or edited various books and papers exploring music, social history and cultural identity in islands, with a particular reference to Japan and the South Pacific.

The June 15 event is free of charge, and light refreshments will be provided after the lecture, courtesy of the Dean of Arts. For more information, please contact Laura Lee Howard at 566-0377 or lhoward@upei.ca

The work of three researchers at the University of Prince Edward Island has been recognized by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). Awards with a combined total of over $200,000 have been made to UPEI professors Jean Mitchell, Annabel Cohen, and Elizabeth de Freitas.

In announcing the award-winners from 77 universities and colleges across Canada, Marc Renaud, president of SSHRC stated, "The research funded truly demonstrates the wealth of creativity, innovation and expertise that exists in this country. Canadians from all walks of life will draw on this knowledgeto better understand our most pressing economic, political, social and cultural issues."

"These SSHRC awards represent much more than their monetary value," says Katherine Schultz, Vice President, Research and Development at UPEI. "They also recognize our strong commitment to research excellence. The proposals are all peer-reviewed which means that the award recipients have been selected because they are among the best in the country."

Dr. Jean, Mitchell from the Department of Sociology and Anthropology will research issues related to youth, development, and social change. Her project, "Working Flash: Youth, Migrant Labour and Consumption in Vanuatu" will focus on the Pacific island of Vanuatu but will also have important implications for policy-makers in other developing countries where there are almost one billion people between the ages of 14 and 25. The increasingly large numbers of unemployed youth in countries that are experiencing rapid social change are linked to domestic and global violence and instability. SSHRC has awarded Dr. Mitchell $48,562 to support this study.

"The Effects of Music and Environmental Sounds in Multimedia: Absorption, Inference, and Education" is the title of the research project being conducted by Dr. Annabel Cohen of the Department of Psychology. She has received $93,720 to research the mental processes underlying multimedia communication. Dr. Cohen's earlier work in this field, which primarily focused on music, has shown that sound effects are indeed significant in multimedia communication. The latest project will compare the roles of music and other sound effects on absorption, inference, and learning.

SSHRC has awarded $60,304 to Dr. Elizabeth M. de Freitas of the Faculty of Education for her research project, "A Narrative Inquiry into Mathematics Teacher Identity." As part of the study, thirty high school mathematics teachers from Nova Scotia and PEI will be selected to provide information about their experiences in math education. The research aims to increase our knowledge about the way that teachers understand the role of school mathematics in society and identify ways to support socially-conscious teacher identity.

SSHRC is an independent federal government agency that funds university-based research and graduate training through national peer-review competitions. SSHRC also partners with public and private sector organizations to focus research and aid the development of better policies and practices in key areas of Canada's social, cultural and economic life.

The 2005 UPEI Distinguished Visitor Speaker Series continues on Wednesday, July 13 with an intriguing presentation by Dr. Bruce Craig, author of Treasonable Doubt: The Harry Dexter White Spy Case, published by the University Press of Kansas. His presentation, "Lives of Lies: Espionage, Treason, and the Making of a Spy" will focus on Britain's Anthony Blunt of the famed Cambridge spies, Canada's Soviet defector Igor Gouzenko, and American spies Harry Dexter White and Alger Hiss.

Dr. Craig is Executive Director of the National Coalition for History in Washington, DC. He was plaintiff in a landmark US federal court decision that affirmed that grand jury records may be unsealed for historical research. He also played a major role in declassifying the records of the House Un-American Activities Committee in 2001. His weekly electronic newsletter, NCH Washington Update, is held in high esteem and is widely read by historians and archivists throughout the US. Craig is also an adjunct faculty member at the American University in Washington, DC, where he teaches policy history.

The "Lives of Lies: Espionage, Treason, and the Making of a Spy" presentation takes place on July 13 in the KC Irving Chemistry Centre Lecture Theatre, UPEI, 3:00 and#150; 4:00 pm. Admission is free. Tours of the historic UPEI campus are available after the presentation at 4:00 pm. Everyone is welcome. More information is available from Linda Callaghan at 566-0415 or lmcallaghan@upei.ca.

Throughout the summer and early fall, the UPEI Distinguished Visitor Speaker Series will feature weekly presentations by respected teachers, leaders, and innovators. The series was launched in 2004 to "inspire, educate, and celebrate UPEI's heritage which has been built upon the highest standards of excellence." On July 18, Karsten Voigt, Coordinator of German-North American Cooperation, will speak on the topic, "Where do we come from, what are we heading for: Transatlantic Relations in the New Geopolitical Context."

Two new scholarships will be available at the University of Prince Edward Island thanks to the generosity of a local farming family. The Minto and Vina Foster scholarships are aimed at graduate science students exploring plants that are important to the economy. In accordance with Mr. Foster's wishes, the award recipients will be students born and raised in Prince Edward Island.

Minto and Vina Foster spent their lifetimes farming in York, PEI. They were well known in the community for their gardens of flowers and market vegetables. Even after selling the farm and and#145;retiring' to town in 1980, Minto Foster continued to grow and sell his vegetables. He passed away in 2003 at the age of 101. Earl Foster, Minto's nephew, recently presented the $60,000 bequest to UPEI. Scholarship funding will be available from the endowed fund in 2006.

President Wade MacLauchlan, on behalf of the Board of Governors of the University of Prince Edward Island, has announced the extended appointment of Dr. Katherine Schultz as Vice-President of Research and Development, and of Dr. Vianne Timmons as Vice-President of Academic Development. They are key members of the UPEI Senior Management Group and have played pivotal roles at the university during a period of unprecedented development. Both appointments have been extended for five years.

Dr. Katherine Schultz joined UPEI in May 2001 after seven years as Associate Vice-President, Research and Graduate Studies, at the University of Winnipeg. In addition to her position as Vice-President of Research and Development, Dr. Schultz is also an associate professor in the Department of Psychology at UPEI. Her research focus is on spatial problem-solving. She is a council member of the National Research Council of Canada, a member of the Advisory Board for Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information (CISTI), and a member of the Canadian Association of University Research Administrators.

"Katherine Schultz is a highly-talented colleague and member of UPEI's senior team. As our inaugural Vice-President, Research and Development, she has provided leadership during a time of unprecedented growth in our research portfolio," says President MacLauchlan. "She has also been an important contributor to regional and national initiatives and partnerships, to the benefit of UPEI and Prince Edward Island."

Dr. Vianne Timmons leads academic planning at UPEI. She is also at the forefront of the internationalization efforts of the university. She previously served as Dean of Education at UPEI, and Chair of Education at St. Francis Xavier University. Dr. Timmons is the founder of the Children's Health Applied Research Team (CHART). She has developed a family literacy program for rural PEI and is developing a family literacy program for rural Mi'kmaq communities. Her research is funded by the Social Science Humanities Research Council and the Canadian Institute of Health Research. She has led numerous conferences, workshops, and symposia, provincially, nationally, and internationally, on literacy and inclusive practices.

"Vianne Timmons is a wonderful leader for our core vocation of teaching and learning," says President MacLauchlan. "Her diverse portfolio embraces student success, all of our academic support departments, and academic innovation, outreach and partnerships. It is more than a coincidence that UPEI is increasingly being recognized as a very special place for teaching excellence and student success."

In national Maclean's rankings of primarily undergraduate universities, UPEI now ranks eighth in Canada. Enrolment levels have reached an all-time high, and the number international students has increased substantially. The University has also undergone a tremendous surge in research activity and ranked 10th last year among Canada's top 50 research universities for its growth in annual funding for research.

The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada recently announced that UPEI was successful in its proposal to take part in the Canada Corps University Partnership Program. This program is financed by the Canadian International Development Agency, and "is a way for Canadians to work together to promote good governance and institution-building in developing countries."

Working in partnership with the Mikinduri Children of Hope Foundation (Cornwall, PEI) and the Tigania Widows Support Group (Mikinduri, Kenya), Shannon Burke, a third-year nursing student, will spend the upcoming summer in Mikinduri, Kenya. She will be assisting Sister Elizabeth Kilemba in the local medical dispensary, and helping to facilitate the opening of the much-needed Maternity Ward clinic. Shannon will be working closely with expectant mothers and other women in the village, providing educational sessions on good health practices. Shannon has recently completed a maternity rotation as part of the UPEI Nursing program and will be able to draw on her experiences with prenatal care, labour and delivery, and postnatal care. She is very much looking forward to this opportunity. "This is a very unexpected but exciting opportunity. I'm sure it will be a life-changing experience and am confident that I will gain a great appreciation for all of the modern conveniences available in Canada. I look forward to sharing my experiences when I return."

Ted Grant, President of the Mikinduri Children of Hope Foundation, is delighted by the announcement. "This project will be a great support to the people in Mikinduri, who struggle daily with shortages of good food and clean water. The Mikinduri Children of Hope Foundation's many supporters on PEI can take great satisfaction from knowing their efforts truly are making a difference in this village."

The University has made a strong commitment to internationalization, and the Canada Corps Partnership Program allows UPEI to reach out to another part of the world and benefit from Shannon's internship. UPEI looks forward to sharing Shannon's experiences with the university community, as well as with the Island community at large, upon her return to Prince Edward Island.

Kim Critchely, Dean of Nursing and Shannon's supervisor for this project, is also excited by this project. "This is an excellent opportunity for Shannon. Such international experiences are wonderful as they prepare nursing students to provide culturally competent care - care that reflects the unique understanding of the values of diverse populations and individuals."

This year marks the pilot phase of the Canada Corps University Partnership Program and is designed to "foster a new generation of Canadians committed to applying our country's values and expertise to help build a safer, more prosperous and more democratic world."

The first meeting of the founding board of the Prince Edward Island BioAlliance was held recently in Charlottetown. The BioAlliance is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to building the PEI economy through bioscience products and services. It brings together local bioscience-based businesses, research and academic organizations, and government agencies to create the right conditions for job creation, retention and economic growth. Rory Francis is Executive Director The Chair is Dr. Regis Duffy. UPEI is represented on the board by President Wade MacLauchlan.

"Research excellence in the biosciences and the availability of skilled human resources are crucial to our success in this area," said President MacLauchlan. "That's why we have been expanding our research facilities, hiring great scientists and emphasizing student retention." The value of research and development at UPEI has increased by 450% over the past five years, with a leading role played by researchers in the bioscience area.

"This is Prince Edward Island's bridge to the new economy," said Rory Francis. "We all recognize the limits of our natural resource base to further expand our economy. We're an Island, after all. Now it's time to work with the limitless opportunity in really understanding natural biological processes and, from that, develop new products that improve health and quality of life."

Products being produced by PEI's biotech businesses range from pharmaceutical ingredients used in the treatment of diseases, to replacements for antibiotics in animal feeds, fish health vaccines, nutraceuticals and non-pharma health products. Taxol, extracted from Ground Hemlock, is used in one of the world's most important cancer treatments.

Dr. Regis Duffy, founder of DCL BioVectra,and Chair of the UPEI Board of Governors, said that the application of new technologies of biological systems are solving problems and creating new business opportunities in human and animal health care, nutrition, food safety and environmental protection around the world.

"We have a choice in PEI: to be the providers of scientific expertise and new products for these markets, or to purchase them from others at a net cost to our economy," he said. "If we aren't active participants in developing these new technologies and products, we'll be like PEI at the end of our prosperous shipbuilding era: we can pretend steamships haven't been invented, but not for long."

The Canadian bio-based economy is the second largest in the world, with revenues of $4 billion, currently growing at 15% annually. Already, PEI has 15 companies, with sales of over $60 million per year and over 400 employees. This does not include the bioscience-related jobs and economic impact at research and academic institutions like the new NRC Institute for Nutrisciences and Health, the Food Technology Centre, UPEI's Science Faculty and Atlantic Veterinary College, and Agriculture and Agrifood Canada's research facilities.

Other BioAlliance Board members include Alan Andreason (Fortius), Garth Greenham (Aquahealth-Novartis), Shane Patelakis (Progressive BioActives), Pete Desai (Desai and Desai Inc), Brian MacMillan (Holland College), Michael O'Brien (Development and Technology), Joan Kean-Howie (National Research Council), and Manon Proulx (Agriculture and Agrifood Canada).

Over the next several months, the Prince Edward Island BioAlliance will work to identify and implement some of the key initiatives necessary to ensure the growth and development of the bio-economy in Prince Edward Island.

The University of Prince Edward Island has appointed a new Dean of Nursing. Dr. Kim Critchley officially takes over the position on July 1. She joined UPEI in 1996 and has served as Acting Dean of the School of Nursing since August 2004. Her new appointment is for six years.

"Kim Critchley has been a fine leader for UPEI's Faculty of Nursing during her year as Acting Dean. Our Faculty is on a very positive track at a time when it is so important to the entire community to have excellent education and research in the field of nursing," says UPEI President Wade MacLauchlan.

"As a leader, I embrace life-long learning, humble self reflection, careful listening, and openness to new ideas," says Critchley who holds a doctorate degree from the University of Helsinki. Her thesis work involved cardiovascular rehabilitation and lifestyle modification following a myocardial infarction. Her clinical areas of expertise are emergency and critical care nursing. Primary health care, cardiovascular rehabilitation, Aboriginal and children's health are her research areas of interest.

Dr. Critchley is co-director of the Children's Applied Research Team at UPEI. She is president elect of the Atlantic Region Canadian Schools of Nursing and the co-principal of the Atlantic Research Training Centre which offers masters and doctorate degrees in applied research. She is co-investigator for an international nursing student exchange program between Canada, the U.S., and Mexico and she represents UPEI on a similar exchange involving universities in Sweden, Finland, England, and Estonia.

Dr Critchley was born and raised in Cape Breton Island. After nursing and teaching for several years in Alberta and British Columbia, she is delighted to make PEI home for herself and her children.

Internationally-Known Scientists Attract Close to $2 Million for Health and Environmental Research

The University of Prince Edward island has added two internationally-known scientists to its rapidly-growing pool of research talent in the Faculty of Science and at the Atlantic Veterinary College. Dr. Michael van den Heuvel and Dr. Cai Song have been named Tier 2 Canada Research Chairs. Their appointments were announced today by the Honourable David L. Emerson, Minister of Industry and minister responsible for the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Program.

"Our universities are vital centres of cutting-edge research and innovation," said Minister Emerson. "The ideas generated at these institutions extend the frontiers of knowledge and create a deeper understanding of the complex world in which we live. Communities all over the country will see the benefits of the work done by the more than 1500 Chairholders who conduct research at Canadian universities."

Combined with infrastructure support from the Canadian Foundation of Innovation (CFI), the new funding to UPEI will add up to $1.25 million over the next five years. This federal support will be complemented by contributions of over $ 625,000 from provincial, regional, and national industry and agency partners.

"The Canada Research Chairs program is having a tremendous impact on the University of Prince Edward Island. Our Chairs are further enhancing UPEI's research capacity, and extending our reputation for research excellence. In a small university context, this program has facilitated drawing national and international research expertise to Prince Edward Island where our Chairs and their colleagues work to address the kinds of environmental, economic and health issues of fundamental importance to us all," said Dr. Katherine Schultz, Vice-President of Research and Development at UPEI.

Canada Research Chair Cai Song is an internationally-known researcher in the emerging field of psychoneuroimmunology, which is the study of how the immune and nervous systems affect mental health. Dr. Song and her research team are working to understand the causes of brain inflammation, which often leads to disturbances in thinking, memory, and behaviourand#151;all symptoms of degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

"The great benefit of receiving a Canada Research Chair is that it will enable me to focus on devising effective treatments, with minimal side-effects, that can halt the progression of these diseases, and even prevent them from developing in the first place," she said.

Dr. Michael van den Heuvel is UPEI's incoming Canada Research Chair in Watershed Ecological Integrity. He is joining UPEI from the New Zealand Forest Research Institute to focus on the health of the freshwater and near-shore marine environments of PEI. His research will be based on the observation that animal populations respond in unique and predictable ways to changes in their environments. Through observing these biological responses in aquatic animals, scientists can better understand the causes of adverse changes to the environment. Dr. van den Heuvel's research will address questions about how to monitor environmental problems and develop effective solutions to ensure a sustainable future.

UPEI now has a total of five Canada Research Chairs. Dr. Alastair Cribb, Canada Research Chair in Comparative Pharmacology and Toxicology, is investigating the molecular factors that underpin adverse drug reactions, with an overarching goal to improve drug safety. Dr. Godfrey Baldacchino, Canada Research Chair in Island Studies, focuses on the comparative, trans-national, and critical study of islands. Dr. Franck Berthe, Canada Research Chair in Aquatic Health Sciences: Mollusc Health, explores the complex interactions among molluscs, pathogens, and their environments. His research works to support the development and sustainability of the mollusc fisheries and aquaculture industry in PEI, the Atlantic region, and around the world.