RMNI Partnerships

Since its inception, the Regenerative Medicine and Nanomedicine Initiative (RMNI) has been closely aligned with the priorities of CIHR and a large number of external organizations. RMNI's goals and activities have been set through close collaboration with these partners. This integrative model ensures that RMNI's goals and objectives remain focussed on the most relevant activities, while reducing overlap and duplication in funding programs through multi-partner collaborative efforts.

RMNI has partnered with a number of CIHR Institutes, branches, and divisions on joint funding programs and collaborative workshops, meetings and symposia, including:

• Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction (co-lead)
• Institute of Genetics (co-lead)
• Institute of Musculoskeletal Health & Arthritis (co-lead)
• Institute of Aboriginal Peoples' Health
• Institute of Aging
• Institute of Cancer Research
• Institute of Circulatory and Respiratory Health
• Institute of Infection and Immunity
• Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis
• CIHR Ethics Office
• CIHR Knowledge Translation Branch

RMNI also has served as a nucleus for engaging external partners. A number of voluntary health organizations (VHOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), government agencies, and Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCEs) have joined in sponsoring joint funding opportunities, including:

• ALS Society of Canada
• Canadian Space Agency
• Canadian Stroke Network
• Foundation Fighting Blindness
• Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
• Jacob's Ladder
• Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International
• Neuroscience Canada
• Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation
• Stem Cell Network

In addition to funding research, RMNI has worked closely with a large number of government departments and agencies to sponsor workshops and meetings on topics of common interest. These meetings bring together experts and stakeholders from different domains, aligned along common themes, to form connections between fields, disciplines and backgrounds. CIHR's partners in these planning and development activities include:

• Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research
• Alberta Ingenuity
• Canadian Federation of Biological Societies
• Environment Canada
• European Research Area and Canada Initiative
• Health Canada
• Industry Canada
• National Research Council Canada - National Institute for Nanotechnology
• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
• Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC)

RMNI is also part of CIHR's contribution to the Cancer Stem Cell Consortium (CSCC). The CSCC is designed to enhance research into cancer stem cells, and its partners include the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, Genome Canada, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI), the Stem Cell Network and research organizations in Canada and California.

As of December 2009, RMNI has committed a total of $65M in grants and awards funding. Additional funding opportunities are ongoing.