CLARI network awarded $1M to tackle community challenges in NS
Woollen mill owner Ruth Mathewson and NSCAD Assistant Professor Jennifer Green, worked on ways to support a sustainable wool industry.
From Saint Mary’s University and the Springboard Content Lab
A unique collaboration of seven Springboard Network members has received $1 million from the Nova Scotia government to continue tackling social and economic challenges in the province.
The Change Lab Action Research Initiative (CLARI) at Saint Mary’s University pairs researchers with communities to solve real-world challenges such as mapping gaps in dementia care, using animals to reduce social isolation and revitalizing the Nova Scotia wool industry.
The provincial support will allow the CLARI initiative to continue providing modest research grants to help community partners engage with post-secondary researchers to address problems. CLARI has facilitated more than 130 collaborative community projects.
“This funding milestone reflects significant investment of post-secondary resources in Nova Scotia communities. That investment includes not only funding, but also the research expertise of faculty and students. More than 150 students have gained real-world experience working directly with community partners.”
Ray MacNeil, Network Manager at CLARI
CLARI researchers investigate how therapy animals can reduce isolation
A teacher at the Eskasoni Immersion School is showing students how to make a wooden whistle
CLARI is community led
The CLARI model is unique because it allows community groups to set project priorities. CLARI identifies faculty collaborators, provides grants and supports the partnerships through to completion.
“These projects show what’s possible when we stop asking, ‘What research do we want to do?’ and start asking, ‘What support do our communities need?’ “CLARI flips the usual model. It’s not about showcasing expertise, it’s about sharing it.”
Dr. Adam Sarty, Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research at Saint Mary’s
CLARI is headquartered at Saint Mary’s which is collaborating with other founding members:
A few projects supported by CLARI
- Investigating the role of therapy animals in reducing isolation in long-term care
- Creating resources to support men re-entering society after incarceration
- Making arts-based entrepreneurship programs more accessible to rural youth
- Developing trauma-informed responses for survivors of gender-based violence
- Collaborating with Mi’kmaw communities on land-based education and knowledge-sharing
Have a community project in need of research expertise?
If your community group has an idea for a research project that one of our partners could help with, Get Started Now or talk to us about your idea. CLARI is designed to support Nova Scotia-based community groups and partners, to the benefit of Nova Scotians.
To be eligible, a community partner will be:
- creating benefits in Nova Scotia.
- based in Nova Scotia.
- a community group, registered non-profit or social enterprise (in some cases some quasi-public institutions may be eligible).