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Current Affairs

Harvard and MIT scholars head to Canada, as Carney offers millions

Canada has awarded 64 global scholars with C$504 million (US$362 million) in funding to relocate their work to Canadian universities and advance projects in areas…

By Samantha Johnson / August 27, 2026

Canada has awarded 64 global scholars with C$504 million (US$362 million) in funding to relocate their work to Canadian universities and advance projects in areas such as health and artificial intelligence.

Some 48 of the researchers were poached from the US, including from elite institutions such as Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The other 16 researchers are coming from 12 other countries, including the UK, Germany, China and Japan.

“While certain countries are cutting research and turning their back on academic freedom, we’re doubling down on science and we’re doubling down on research,” Industry Minister Melanie Joly said in Vancouver on Thursday.

Canada’s effort to lure top research talent contrasts with recent US federal funding cuts that, combined with tightening immigration policies and clashes between the Trump administration and top-tier universities, have led some scholars to look for opportunities elsewhere.

Joly noted that 23 of the research chairs are also Canadians returning home.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa in March. Photo: The Canadian Press via AP
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa in March. Photo: The Canadian Press via AP

The announcement is part of an initiative Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government unveiled last year to boost Canadian universities, earmarking C$1.7 billion over 12 years to recruit more than 1,000 researchers.

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