Using genomics to study polar bears and grizzly bears in the Canadian North
 The Transforming Arctic Conservation through Social Innovation (TACSI) project received three years of funding through Genome Canada’s 2017 SSHRC Partnership Development Grant competition. TACSI is led by Dr. Douglas Clark, an associate professor at the University of Saskatchewan’s School of Environment & Sustainability, and is conducting fieldwork in northern Manitoba, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
Genome Prairie is the project lead and they have a good profile of the project on their website.
Genomics to improve food safety
 To promote a better understanding and support decision making regarding issues of food traceability, Génome Québec asked the Quebec Centre for Biodiversity Science (QCBS) to produce a policy brief on the subject.
The QCBS brings together more than 120 researchers working at the forefront of the field both nationally and internationally. The brief points out how genomics can be harnessed to detect microbes and allergens, avoid food fraud, and cut agricultural waste. It concludes that work is still left to be done to develop standardized DNA sampling, storage, replication and validation techniques in order to make the most of the technology.
Read the brief here.
New President & CEO for Genome Canada
 It will be old news for many of you by now, but this is our first Genomics newsletter opportunity to say congratulations to Rob Annan on his new role heading up Genome Canada. He takes over from the retiring Marc LePage effective next month.
Read the media release on our website.
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New Director of Communications Nicola Katz
Nicola Katz joins Genome Canada from the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, where for the last six years she has managed their communications and membership team and developed a solid understanding of Canada’s research and funding ecosystem. She has nearly 20 years of communications and storytelling experience in both the private and not-for-profit sectors — including investment banking, high tech, healthcare, child welfare, and most recently the humanities and social sciences.
Nicola is well acquainted with communicating complex ideas, connecting stakeholders across sectors, and building strategic relationships with partners, influencers, media and the public. She is bilingual and has a BSc in International Relations from Georgetown University and an MBA in Marketing from McGill University.
Employment Opportunity
Ontario Genomics Sector Innovation and Research Program Advisor
 This position is responsible for supporting sector or sub-sector strategies relevant to achieve the deliverables and objectives as set out in the Ontario Genomics strategic plan. You should have a PhD in life sciences or equivalent combination of education and 3+ years of work experience and demonstrated organizational and project management skills.
View the complete job posting on the Ontario Genomics website.
Foosball at ARTC
 Genome Alberta’s two foosball teams, the Gnomies and the Foosball Genes, gave it a valiant effort but were unsuccessful in their bid to capture the ARTC tournament championship. Despite giving 110%, the underdogs teams could not capitalize in their chances.
The teams’ General Manager said that there may be a coaching change over the holiday break.
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On November 14th the Council of Canadian Academies released a report on the potential socio-economic impacts of antimicrobial resistance in Canada. 
The year after the “CRISPR babies” bombshell
University of Calgary researchers and alumni are piloting local solutions to reduce food waste and the environmental impact associated with food production. This includes methods to extract further nutrients and value from typical food waste, scalable to industry and in our own back yards.
The seventh annual CropSphere conference is a two-day event that takes place during Crop Week in Saskatoon. The conference features sessions on market outlook, research, and agronomy, along with sessions specific to each crop. Breakout sessions throughout the day ensure growers can select which sessions to attend so they can take away information that will benefit their unique business operations.
