Standing (l-r): Toni Schmader, Jeremy Seamans, Christian Schoof, Carrie Ichikawa Jenkins, Srikantha Phani, Yvonne Lamers, Gabriela Cohen Freue, Carles Vilarino-Guell, Christina Laffin, Abel Rosado Seated (l-r): Jiaying Zhao, Carla Nappi, Susanne Clee, Martin Ordonez, Kiley Hamlin
Canada Research Chairs
The federal Canada Research Chair (CRC) program is specifically designed to “attract and retain some of the world’s most accomplished and promising minds.” In 2014, Professor Martin Ordonez became ECE’s most recent Canada Research Chair, joining ECE Profs. Tim Salcudean, Vikram Krishnamurthy, Purang Abolmaesumi and Kenichi Takahata. With a combined total of up to 186 Tier 1 and Tier 2 chairs, UBC receives well over $20m per year in research funding through the Canada Research Chairs program.
| As the Chair in Power Converters and Renewable Systems, Prof. Ordonez’s work aims to maximize the use of renewable energy from wind, solar, and the ocean by developing the next generation of power conversion and storage solutions to produce low emissions power. He and his students are contributing to UBC’s smart grid, helping to meet the University’s greenhouse gas targets. |  |
Back Row (l-r): Kaylee Byers, Sam Stiegler, Rowan Cockett, Richie Nojang Khatami Middle Row (l-r) Lindsey Heagy, Jackie Lerner, Jennifer Lay, Sabine Lague, David Twa, Kari Grain, Erin Macri, Miriam Matejova Front Row (l-r) Victor Li, Sahan Ranamukhaarachchi, Andrea Jones, Crystal Karakochuk, Alessio Gallina, Ron Darvin
Vanier Scholars
In 2008, the Canadian federal government launched the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS). The goal: bolster Canada’s ability to attract and retain the world’s best and brightest doctoral students and in doing so, underscore and advance the Canada’s centres of excellence in research and higher teaching — top-tier universities such as UBC.
ECE’s Sahan Ranamukhaarachchi, became one of UBC’s most recent Vanier Scholars. In 2014, 31 gifted UBC graduate students accepted Vanier Scholarships, more than were awarded at any other Canadian university. Beyond the obvious personal benefits of the award for each student, their time as scholars at UBC enriches the campus on all levels. Not only do they contribute to the university’s reputation as a global centre of research excellence but their leadership and influence extends to all students within graduate studies and beyond at UBC.
| Sahan Ranamukhaarachchi is developing a pain-free, potentially self-administrative microneedle that can offer the same level of vaccination protection as a conventional syringe for significantly lower vaccine doses. Ranamukhaarachchi hopes to pioneer a microneedle that will be able to deliver vaccinations to larger populations, ultimately cutting healthcare costs and saving more lives globally. Ranamukhaarachchi’s research, “Microneedles for Epidermal Vaccine Delivery,” is currently supervised by joint-Mechanical Engineering and ECE Professor Boris Stoeber and Pharmaceutical Sciences Professor Urs Hafeli. | |
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