Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

The Robbins-Ollivier Award for Excellence in Equity recognizes the contributions that Marjorie Griffin Cohen, Louise Forsyth, Glenis Joyce, Audrey Kobayashi, Shree Mulay, Susan Prentice, Michèle Ollivier and Wendy Robbins have made to increase the level of equity within the Canada Research Chairs Program (CRCP) and Canada’s research ecosystem more broadly, by way of their 2003 Canadian Human Rights complaints and their concerted efforts in the mediation processes, which led to both the 2006 Settlement Agreement and its addendum in 2019.

Three awards valued at $100,000 are conferred annually through a peer review process led by the program’s Advisory Committee on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Policy. 

SFU has been invited to nominate an eligible faculty member or a team of eligible faculty members, each year, who will lead bold and potentially game-changing projects that will challenge the status quo, spark change and take action to address persistent systemic barriers in the research ecosystem and academia.

We applaud this initiative, which reflects SFU’s commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion and Canada’s Dimensions Charter to which SFU is a signatory.

Internal call for proposals

All SFU faculty members who work to remove barriers to a more equitable, welcoming, and inclusive academy are encouraged to submit a proposal for consideration for institutional nomination to this award. There is no limit on the number of internal submissions from any department or Faculty. 

Faculty members must be eligible to receive Tri-Agency funding and be in good standing with the agencies and have a full-time appointment at the time of nomination and for the duration of the award. Nominees must have a track record of leadership in EDI institutionally and/or in their community. Current and former CRCs are eligible, as are individuals who are not CRCs.

To be included in SFU's candidate pool, the faculty member leading the project/initiative must:

1. Register an expression of interest by emailing a max. 1000-word summary of the proposed project/initiative to awards@sfu.ca with a cc to the Chair/Director and Associate Dean, Research by May 2, 2022
2. Submit a draft nomination package to awards@sfu.ca by May 30, 2022, which includes a max. 4-page project description, 1-page budget, 3-page nomination rationale, and 2-page statement of the nomination process and support for the initiative from the nominee's Faculty.

For more details on this opportunity, the internal process and internal submission requirements, please visit https://www.sfu.ca/research/robbins-ollivier-award-excellence-equity or contact awards@sfu.ca.