Royal Roads University (RRU) invites expressions of interest from those wishing to develop a Canada Postdoctoral Research Award (CPRA) application.

Royal Roads University

Royal Roads University is located on the traditional lands of the Lekwungen-speaking Peoples, the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. This land has been part of the fabric of the life of Indigenous communities long before Hatley Castle was built, and it will be long into the future. It is with gratitude that we now learn and work here, where the past, present and future of Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, faculty and staff come together.

Royal Roads research aims to inspire action and address real-world challenges such as those in education, technology, information, the natural world, and social systems as we prepare for a disruptive future. Our research is primarily inter- and trans-disciplinary, which by their nature are collaborative. Partnerships with those that may be impacted by, or use the research are critical. Research undertaken at Royal Roads knows no borders and seeks to inform both local and global contexts. Royal Roads recognizes the importance of, and need for, decolonization in terms of research – research areas, research design, research participation, access to research, and research dissemination – and is committed to practices of decolonization in research. We are committed to removing barriers for equity-seeking groups with regard to both their inclusion in the conduct and leadership of research and access to research. Our research is designed to be shared and to be developed with practitioners who may benefit from the findings and results. Research is integral to and inextricably linked with our learning and teaching model – research informs learning and teaching, and our teaching and learning is explored through research. In addition, research informs the university’s operations, our practice, and how we live and work at the university. We move forward with a spirit of inquiry, and a quest for knowledge and insight with a commitment to action.

Canada Postdoctoral Research Award (CPRA) Program

The Canada Postdoctoral Research Award (CPRA) program recognizes and supports the next generation of outstanding innovators, knowledge workers, creative thinkers and researchers at a pivotal time in their careers.

Please see the Canada Postdoctoral Research Award (CPRA) program website for more information.

CPRA award amounts of $70,000 (taxable income) per year for 2 years (non-renewable) are used to fund a postdoctoral researcher position at the university and are subject to MERCs (mandatory employment related costs).

Positions are conditional upon approval of the nomination by the funder.

The Tri-agency is in the process of transitioning to a harmonized postdoctoral research award. In the meantime, selected candidates will choose the agency to apply to which best represents their research area – i.e. CIHR, SSHRC, and NSERC. See below for a list of opportunities by agency. Only CIHR and SSHRC opportunities are available at this time.

RRU SEEKS EXPRESSIONS OF INTERERST SPECIFIC TO THE FOLLOWING RESEARCH AREAS:

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Cheryl Heykoop leads Anew, a national research program focused on transforming cancer care and support for adolescents and young adults (AYAs). Heykoop is seeking postdoctoral scholars with expertise in the following areas:

1. Participatory Action Research (PAR) and Implementation Science to establish a patient-oriented monitoring and evaluation framework for AYA cancer care and support program in BC.
2. Impact Evaluation and Theory of Change (ToC) to evaluate the impact of AYA cancer care and support interventions in BC, and inform a ToC to shape our provincial strategy.
3. PAR, arts-based research, and immersive performance to explore global AYA cancer care and support.
4. Expertise working with underrepresented and/or underserved communities in research and health care practice.
5. Expertise working with younger AYAs and navigating transitions in care between pediatric and adult health care systems.

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)

Dr. Juana Du is seeking a postdoctoral scholar to support her research interests which include the impact of cultural awareness and assumptions on intercultural experiences; communication and intercultural adjustment of sojourners, particularly around international students and business expatriates; organizational culture, learning and knowledge sharing in multinational and multilingual organizations in different cultural and institutional contexts. Her recent research projects examine organizational identification in global virtual teams and boundary conditions, with an emphasis on the role of emerging technology, and AI literacy at the hybrid workplace.

Dr. Catherine Etmanski - What does creative changemaking entail in social sciences, business, and management? Together with Dr. Amy Zidulka, I am seeking to work with a post-doctoral fellow to build the scope and interdisciplinary field of creative changemaking. At RRU changemaking is foundational to everything we do, and creativity is one of our core values. The successful applicant will support (1) research into the creative changemaking work already underway at RRU; (2) collaborating to host dialogues and events; and (3) co-generating related publications. The successful applicant must be a participatory researcher who has publications in arts-based research and engagement and/or social or organizational innovation.

Cheryl Heykoop leads Anew, a national research program focused on transforming cancer care and support for adolescents and young adults (AYAs). Heykoop is seeking postdoctoral scholars with expertise in the following areas:

1. Participatory Action Research (PAR) and Implementation Science to establish a patient-oriented monitoring and evaluation framework for AYA cancer care and support program in BC.
2. Impact Evaluation and Theory of Change (ToC) to evaluate the impact of AYA cancer care and support interventions in BC, and inform a ToC to shape our provincial strategy.
3. PAR, arts-based research, and immersive performance to explore global AYA cancer care and support.
4. Expertise working with underrepresented and/or underserved communities in research and health care practice.
5. Expertise working with younger AYAs and navigating transitions in care between pediatric and adult health care systems.

Dr. Jaigris Hodson (Canada Research Chair, Digital Misinformation, Polarization, and Anti-Social Media) - While existing scholarship in gender and media studies has addressed the reproduction of masculine norms, this project builds on that work to examine the global resurgence of regressive and hypermasculine ideologies through a comparative analysis of three regional contexts—one in the Global North, one in Western Europe, and one in the Global South. Through case studies of public digital discourse—including influencers like Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson, and regional variants—this project investigates how masculinity becomes a site of reactionary identity-building and power retrenchment in response to perceived sociocultural shifts.

Dr. Frances Jorgensen - Workplace incivility (WI) is a growing concern for employees, organizations and society yet we know little about the effectiveness of WI interventions aimed at reducing WI and its negative consequences on employee health and wellbeing. The selected post-doctoral scholar will have an interest in WI and experience with mixed-methods research methods to support a team of highly respected international scholars on a recently funded SSHRC grant on WI interventions in Canadian healthcare institutions.

Dr. Julie MacArthur (Canada Research Chair in Reimagining Capitalism)’s research focuses on institutional and policy innovations to deepen economic democracy, with a particular focus on institutional innovations for climate action through social, solidarity economies and participatory public control. Her recent work focuses on community energy in comparative context, feminist climate policy, just transitions, and Green New Deal politics. She is recruiting a postdoctoral scholar with an interest in the comparative political economy of energy transitions. Research areas include: examining energy democracy and energy commons, alternatives to green growth policies, work and workers in energy transitions, comparative impacts of public ownership.

Dr. Moira McDonald and Dr. Sarah Wolfe are recruiting a postdoctoral scholar in the area of water tourism in British Columbia, which is deeply entwined with the province’s identity, economy, and ecosystems. From sacred Indigenous waterways and scenic coastal parks to winery irrigation systems and lake-based recreation, tourism's water footprint—defined as the total volume of freshwater used directly and indirectly by individuals, industries, or regions—offers a critical conceptual lens for understanding the pressures and potentials of water-based tourism and activities. Using comparative case studies in the Okanagan, Vancouver Island, and interior lake districts, the scholar will help assess the environmental costs and identify innovative practices, thus making visible the often-invisible flows of water that sustain recreation, culture, and industry.

Dr. Robert Newell (Canada Research Chair in Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainability) uses systems thinking to explore considerations, challenges and opportunities associated with integrating climate action and biodiversity conservation with broader sustainability goals. His research uses community-based participatory approaches, engaging regional and local governments and stakeholders to develop/test integrated planning tools (e.g., models, frameworks, visualizations) and to produce knowledge on how climate and biodiversity considerations relate to other local planning and policy priorities and objectives.

Dr. Tracy Smith-Carrier’s research promotes equitable and socially just public policies through studies on income security, disability rights, inclusive climate action, and population wellbeing. As Canada Research Chair in Advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals, her work aims to alleviate poverty and income inequality through robust income security infrastructure, strong social supports, and equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) policies and strategies. Through collaboration, knowledge mobilization, and public education, including the application of arts-based initiatives to increase public awareness, she seeks to shift narratives, foster change, and establish partnerships for a new research hub on income security in Canada.

Dr. Hassan Wafai is looking for postdoctoral scholars in the following three potential areas:

1. Examining the evolving landscape of doctoral education practices in Canada, with a focus on investigating current assessment practices, the impact of organizational structures, and the shifting role of theory and practice in doctoral education in Canada.
2. Critically examining the current AI governance initiatives in Canada and their relevance to AI supply chain governance structures, if any, highlighting potential uses of SCM-AI at the firm and system levels.
3. Studying Canadian supply chain resilience, including organizational and system-level capabilities for diversification into alternative global supply chains (GVC) away from the US, including new governance structures that can promote the collective resilience of Canadian firms.

Drs. Sarah Wolfe and Chris Ling are interested in supporting postdoctoral researchers for the following two projects:

Project A: As cities face climate change, shifting demographics, and green space pressures, cemeteries are emerging as vital but overlooked urban landscapes. Our research explores how cemeteries intersect with climate resilience, cultural practice, and sustainability through case studies in Victoria, Halifax, and Ireland. The postdoctoral scholar will help examine cemeteries’ evolving roles—as biodiversity hubs, cooling zones, heritage sites, and spiritual spaces—amid planning challenges like land scarcity and climate risks. Using mixed methods, including mapping, ecological testing, and community engagement, we assess public receptivity to adaptive uses. This work will inform culturally sensitive strategies for managing cemetery lands as part of resilient urban infrastructure and ecological planning.

Project B: Our research investigates how emotions shape individual and community responses to climate change and development. The postdoctoral scholar will join a transdisciplinary team exploring how emotional dynamics influence resistance to planning initiatives, drawing on cognitive science and psychology. Using mixed methods, including interviews and photo-voice, the postdoctoral scholar will study emotional responses to landscape change across five diverse sites. This work will support the development of emotionally informed planning tools, helping municipalities engage communities more effectively. The findings will be relevant not only to Vancouver Island but to other regions facing growth, ecological stress, and planning conflicts.

Dr. Sarah Wolfe – We’ll investigate the emotional dimensions of public discourse around climate change by analyzing online comments on climate and environmental articles in Canadian media over the past decade. We focus on emotions—anger, fear, hope, cynicism, grief—as reactions that reveal worldviews and polarization. We ask: (1) which emotions emerge in response to climate reporting, and (2) how these emotions reflect orientations toward environment, institutional trust, social values, and identity. Our analysis will examine how emotions structure arguments, reinforce identities, and shape collective responses to the planetary crisis, illuminating the affective politics of climate communication.

Royal Roads University Diversity Statement

The diversity of our common humanity enriches our communities. It expands our learning, teaching and research. Diversity challenges us, strengthens our creativity and improves our adaptability.

We celebrate the intersectionality of our identities, experiences and perspectives. We want Royal Roads to be a community where we relate to each other and the natural world, recognize our interdependence and can find a sense of belonging.

We invite you to join us in building a safe, caring and courageous university community where we uphold dignity, celebrate our common humanity and learn from different ways of knowing and being in the world.  

 To achieve this, we will:   

• Facilitate learning, research and work environments that reflect and benefit from our diversity
• Encourage critical thought and dialogue that helps us to challenge existing structures and worldviews and enact justice
• Engage in shared leadership with open, inclusive, accountable, respectful and equitable conditions where ideas and people can flourish

To fulfil these commitments, we will support each other, especially members of equity-deserving groups. We are all in different places along our journeys and this work is difficult, complex and ongoing. Together we will cultivate a whole, thriving community greater than the sum of its parts.   

To find out more about Human Rights and Accessibility informed actions at RRU, go to: https://www.royalroads.ca/Human-Rights-Accessibility.  

***Please ensure you meet the CPRA eligibility requirements before submitting an application.

Application Instructions

To apply, please submit the following documents:

• A cover letter clearly confirming:
  • your proposed supervisor (from the list above),
  • date of PhD award or expected date of completion,
  • that you do not hold, nor have you ever held, a tenure or tenure track faculty position, and
  • If you are not a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada, or protected person under subsection 95(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada), please confirm that you will, when you apply, be:
    • currently enrolled in or have completed a doctorate or health professional degree at a Canadian institution; or
    • conducting postdoctoral research at a Canadian institution.

The CPRA program provides applicants with an opportunity to describe any exceptions to their doctoral degree completion eligibility to a maximum duration of three years. Please see the eligibility section of the CPRA website for further information.

• A copy of your academic CV, including a full list of publications and scholarly activities (books, book chapters, peer reviewed journal articles, conference proceedings, other knowledge mobilization outputs, etc.)
• A draft of your proposed research program and how it relates to one of the research opportunities noted above (2 pages max.)

******* Incomplete applications will not be accepted. *******

PLEASE NOTE: Selected candidates will work with the relevant faculty member to prepare the formal application according to the program guidelines. The Office of Research & Innovation will coordinate administrative aspects of the competition.