Relationships with Regional NGOs and Government for SDG Policy
McMaster University has direct involvement in national and regional government organizations who address UN SDG policy development. By identifying problems and challenges, developing policies and strategies, modelling likely futures with and without interventions, monitoring and reporting on interventions, and enabling adaptive management, McMaster promotes best practices and supports the UN SDG goals.
McMaster Institute for Transportation and Logistics (MILT)
MITL conducts world-class, multidisciplinary, cross-sectoral, collaborative research in transportation and logistics to:
- Accelerate the identification, mobilization and adoption of knowledge and innovation;
- Identify and address pressing regional and national challenges in transportation and logistics including those of vulnerable populations;
- Educate the next generation of thought leaders in transportation and logistics;
- Foster long-term strategic partnerships between the academic, public and private sectors, and;
- Contribute to the international transportation and logistics research agenda.
MILT’s research areas include goods movements and multimodality, logistics, electric vehicles, disruptive mobility technologies, emissions/environmental sustainability, and urban transportation policy. Among its notable projects are:
- Metropolitan Traffic Congestion in Canada: Measures, Causes, Implications and Policies
- The Safety Impacts of Red Light Cameras in the City of Hamilton, and Benchmarking & Planning
- Promoting Transit-Oriented Intensification in Rapid Transit Station Areas
- Economic impact on manufacturing opportunities in Ontario, operational efficiencies (avoided costs), infrastructural requirements and changes in labour demands and skills
- Impacts of environment and health due to traffic-related emissions due to emerging new mobility technologies
Poverty and Employment Precarity in Southern Ontario (PEPSO)
The Poverty and Employment Precarity in Southern Ontario (PEPSO) research project is a joint university-community initiative led by United Way Toronto & York Region and McMaster University. This initiative is a partnership of over 30 university, community sector, labour, government and media partners. Starting in 2010, the goal of the PEPSO project has been to meet the research need of data on trends in precarious employment and to encourage policy debate and further research. PEPSO has successfully met these goals in multiple areas by garnering significant media coverage, influencing and impacting key policy decisions, expanding existing knowledge and serving as a foundation for further research.
PAHO WHO Collaborating Centre
McMaster School of Nursing has been recognized as a PAHO WHO Collaborating Centre. Focused in primary health care (PHC) nursing and health human resources, the Centre works collaboratively with faculty internally at McMaster across various disciplines, and with institutions in the Nursing and Midwifery Global Network. The PAHO/WHO strives to provide universal access to health for all.
McMaster Health Forum – WHO Collaborating Centre
The McMaster WHO Collaborating Centre works to increase the capacity of individual member states and their institutions to make better-informed decisions with regard to healthcare policy and delivery that ultimately improves overall heath throughout the world. The centre works with existing organizations such as research institutes, universities, and academies by providing training and educational activities, such as workshops, methodologies, and supporting the implementation of WHO programs at the country level to ensure that the best available evidence on pressing health-system challenges is incorporated into decision throughout the world.
Institute on Ethics & Policy for Innovation
At IEPI, we identify and address ethical challenges, ethics-related risks, and policy gaps that have the potential to undermine the impact of life-saving technologies and interventions in global health. We collaborate with the global health research community, partners, funders, and other stakeholders to navigate the ethical, social, and cultural challenges that arise from scientific and technological advancement — so that, ultimately, innovative health solutions reach those who need them most.
McMaster University is co-leading one of five interdisciplinary research hubs in Canada to prepare for the next pandemic and ensure the world is ready for the next novel pathogen. The hub is funded through the Canadian government with the aim of accelerating research and development of next-generation vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics and their commercialization, while supporting training to expand the pipeline of skilled talent.
“Unparalleled dedication to student growth and climate science” – Professor’s local initiatives have global impact
Dr. Altaf Arain, who’s now a professor in the School of Earth, Environment & Society and the Science Research Chair in Environmental Sustainability and Climate Change, was looking to test a potential solution to our climate crisis. In 2002, he launched the Turkey Point Environmental Observatory which has been collecting data every half hour ever since, making it an invaluable resource for hundreds of climate scientists around the world.
Seven years later, he founded the McMaster Centre for Climate – a centre he would lead for 15 years and build into a catalyst for interdisciplinary research, student engagement, science communication and community outreach.
Altaf met with politicians and government agencies, fielding interview requests from journalists and connecting with climate scientists, groups and organizations looking to collaborate or replicate what the centre was doing at their universities. He says the centre has become everything he had hoped for – fostering multidisciplinary research with local to international partnerships, championing science communication and inspiring the next generation of climate scientists.
Faculty associated with the centre have published more than 300 peer-reviewed journal articles, presented over 160 times at national and international scientific conferences, workshops and symposiums and secured more than $8.5 million in grants from Tri-Council agencies and the Global Water Futures Program.
Research, teaching and service for community priorities
McMaster’s Community Engagement office fosters ongoing collaboration between University and regional NGO partners to better understand and consider the issues identified as priorities by local and global communities. The office has a number of programs and initiatives that further excellence in community-campus partnerships that promote many SDGs.
Partnering for carbon-sink forests
The McMaster Carbon Sink Forest initiative will develop a model forest where 1,000 native tree species will be planted to facilitate maximum carbon sink capabilities while also taking into consideration promoting and preserving biodiversity, sustainability, and conservation. A team of faculty and students have partnered with Trees for Hamilton to track the growth and health of each tree for years to come and share this data with other researchers working to grow carbon -sink forests in Canada and around the world.