Welcome to our first edition of The Community Connector - a newsletter for everyone interested in the health research landscape in our Windsor-Essex region, and beyond. The Community Connector will keep you updated on the exciting research that is happening in our own community, share events that you might be interested in, and highlight ways that you can be involved and connected.
Since the official launch of WE-SPARK on March 9th, our research community has been very busy! Hundreds have been working on
WE-SPARK Igniting Discovery research projects. Researchers have been sharing their expertise with one another during our virtual
WE-SPARK conversations series. And we launched a
COVID-19 Resource Hub to provide our Windsor-Essex community with up-to-date reliable information.
We've also been building
tools to help make it easier for everyone to navigate the research processes across our four partner institutions, while planning
events to build and support research teams and help identify funding opportunities. You can learn about our member's research projects, WE-SPARK grant programs and more by visiting
www.wesparkhealth.com.
WE-SPARK CELEBRATION LAUNCH
Photo credits: Mychailo, Snapd Windsor
WE-SPARK Team and Partners
Lisa Porter, WE-SPARK Executive Director
L to R: Caroline Hamm, Federica Nazzani, Rita LaCivita, Dora Cavallo-Medved
At WE-SPARK Health Institute, our
mission is
a thriving and engaged research community driving advancements in health. One of the ways we're doing this is through our Community Engagement Committee. Made up of members from each of our four partner organizations, they're committed to increasing awareness and interconnectivity of our health research community. To learn more about who they are and how they're working together, please
visit our website.
We would love for everyone to get involved with WE-SPARK, and there are many ways to do that. The first step is to
become a member. You'll receive our newsletter, be the first to know about upcoming exciting events and be informed about research projects that you may want to be involved in. Following and sharing on our social media sites
Facebook,
Twitter,
LinkedIn and
Instagram is always a great way to stay informed and be involved.
Local Health Research Highlights
COVID-19 Rapid Response Grants
Responding quickly to support local COVID-19 research, WE-SPARK created
COVID-19 Rapid Response Grants awarding $143,000 for projects ranging from designing Personal Protective Equipment, to optimizing rapid detection of COVID-19, to examining the psychological and physical impact of the pandemic.
For details of all the projects including the varied and interesting backgrounds of the people involved visit our WE-SPARK
website. Many have used these grants as an initial investment in future projects, applying to national funding agencies to help further their research ideas. We're looking forward to sharing the results of these innovative projects in the months to come!
In The News
We celebrated the official launch of WE-SPARK Health Institute with the leaders from the University of Windsor, St. Clair College, Windsor Regional Hospital and Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare. Read all about it in local media and national media.
A unique partnership between volunteer group The Windsor Essex Sewing Force and our local healthcare and educational institutions to produce Personal Protective Equipment with the help of a
WE-SPARK Grant.
Read more here.
