Professor Aimée Craft was awarded the University Research Chair on Nibi miinawaa aki inaakonigewin – Indigenous governance in relation to land and water, in 2021. The Chair supports her continued work on Indigenous water law, policy, and sustainability; the reclamation of Indigenous birthing practices as catalysts for wellness and the re-affirmation of territorial sovereignty; and the recognition of Indigenous understandings of treaties as part of the Canadian reconciliation imperative.
Professor Craft is widely recognized for her research on Indigenous laws, treaties, and water. Her work centers on interdisciplinary, land-based and community-led research that is grounded in partnerships and inter-generational knowledge transmission. Her recent scholarship has primarily focused on the philosophical underpinnings of Anishinaabe inaakonigewin (law) and Indigenous legal orders more generally. This research has implications in relation to health, social policy, Indigenous resurgence, political discourse, resource management, and administrative and judicial decision-making. Overall, Professor Craft’s priority in research is the equal valuation and recognition of Indigenous forms of knowledge through the application of Indigenous methods, language, development of community relationships, collaborative research, and creating opportunities for community and youth involvement in research.
University Research Chairs are given to the University of Ottawa’s best researchers in recognition of their outstanding and continuous accomplishments in research as well as the training of students. Professor Craft’s URC has been awarded for an initial five-year term, which began on May 1, 2021.
Professor Daly’s research programme aims to advance knowledge in the field of administrative law, developing principles to ensure that Canada’s administrative agencies work effectively and justly for the benefit of all Canadians. Canadians across the country are affected every day by administrative agencies. These bodies make thousands of decisions on everything from setting a fair price for electricity, to the amount of French-language content on cable television, to life-or-death matters such as whether and how refugees can settle in Canada. Dr. Daly’s research explores how these agencies can act reasonably and fairly as they interpret and use their vast powers.
Professor Flood’s research program aims to provide courts and government decision makers with a greater understanding of the implications and complexities of a two-tiered health system. She is building on her existing platform of scholarship to create a database of all extant laws and policies impacting two-tier health care in all 13 Canadian provinces and in Australia, France and the Netherlands. Professor Flood seeks to identify optimal regulation and policy for ensuring that physicians have sufficient incentive to treat publicly-funded patients on a timely and equitable basis. Her comparative research analyzes the impact of alternative ways of progressively financing health care to respond to key policy objectives like access, quality and cost.
Professor François Larocque’s research program aims to advance knowledge in the field of language rights and to contribute concretely to the development of legal standards related to language in Canada. His research analyzes the legal protection of minority language communities and their institutions, particularly with respect to the development and interpretation of constitutional, legislative and jurisprudential statutes. His research primarily addresses French language rights, but also incorporates Aboriginal languages.
Professor Lindberg’s research program builds upon the legal philosophies and principles of four participatory groups which retain and practice their inherent Indigenous laws, legal orders and traditions. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, as well as electoral promises made by the current Canadian government, necessitate research that defines the parameters of self-determination, community, and political and legal institutions. Researching and unpacking the inherent laws, legal orders and traditions that support and strengthen Indigenous governance will allow Professor Lindberg to study, understand and write about the notion of inherency and laws embedded in the land of Indigenous Nations, Communities and Societies. Bolstered by her international stature as a researcher and writer, the program represents a unique opportunity for academic comparative analysis of Indigenous laws of governance and citizenship.
Our lives have become digital and increasingly governed by algorithms. While they promise significant benefits, recent developments in automated and quantum technology have added to the significant challenges faced by modern societies. The omnipresence of algorithms demands research into the societal impacts of these technologies and how our legal systems can protect citizens consistently and effectively. Dr. Martin-Bariteau’s ambitious research program advances the law, ethics and policy of technologies related to the security, regulation and governance of artificial intelligence, blockchain and quantum technologies. More generally, his research focuses on the intersection of law and technology, with an emphasis on the emergence of an algorithmic law. Dr. Martin-Bariteau examines the use of automated technologies as tools for decision-making, governance and regulation, while studying their effects on democratic freedoms, access to law and justice. The Chair develops proposals for public policies anchored in rigorous research and deploys awareness-raising and outreach activities aimed at industry, public decision-makers and civil society.