Dr. Robert Hanlon and Dr. Saira Bano, faculty members at Thompson Rivers University (TRU), have been awarded two grants in support of their work with the Canada and Asia-Pacific Policy Project. This is a first-time achievement for TRU in securing awards from the Department of National Defence (DND) and Global Affairs Canada (GAC). The first grant from the DND, under the Mobilizing Insights in Defence and Security (MINDS) project provides $49,000 in funds for the facilitation of a prominent security and defence conference hosted at TRU. Dr. Bano notes that “this conference will bring together academic experts, policymakers and civil society representatives to assess security threats in the Indo-Pacific region and explore the best strategies for Canada to address these challenges.” The outcomes of this conference will involve the publication of a comprehensive report and special journal issue highlighting the key research findings and discussions.
The second grant is funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) through the Indo-Pacific Engagement Initiative (IPEI), under the Regional Connectivity Envelope (RCE). The funding allocates $88,000 to support the creation of a three-year partnership between the University of Colombo in Sri Lanka and TRU. Dr. Hanlon stated that “the research collaboration hopes to bridge the gap between South Asian and Canadian scholars to strengthen Canada and Sri Lanka’s understanding of human security in the Indo-Pacific region.” In terms of specifics, the funds will be used to facilitate a two-day conference in Sri Lanka that focuses on the topic of food security. The objective of this conference is to strengthen people-to-people ties and partnerships between regional stakeholders and their Canadian partners. Additionally, Dr. Hanlon describes that a part of the grant will be used towards the development of a long-term research project that disseminates their research findings through a variety of measures, such as peer-reviewed works, accessible conference records, and a conclusive policy report highlighting the conference’s major findings and future recommendations for development.
RCE funding to support Canada’s Indo-Pacific Engagement Initiative was announced by the Honourable Mary NG, Canada’s Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development at the Canada-in-Asia Conference (CIAC) held in Singapore earlier this year. The initiative is designed to assist academics, Canadian NGOs, as well as Indigenous organizations, in advancing initiatives with Indo-Pacific partners in key sectors of mutual importance such as trade, security, and the environment (see official news release linked at the bottom of page).
Official News Release. Global Affairs Canada: “Minister Ng strengthens trade, investment and nuclear partnerships in Singapore and Brunei under Indo-Pacific Strategy”: https://www.canada.ca/en/global-affairs/news/2025/02/minister-ng-strengthens-trade-investment-and-nuclear-partnerships-in-singapore-and-brunei-under-indo-pacific-strategy.html
