Fulbright Canada News

For countless generations, Indigenous knowledge has been passed from Elders to youth through stories, relationships, language, and direct experiences on the land. Yet in many communities, opportunities for these intergenerational teachings have become increasingly rare. Through her 2025 Fulbright Canada–Maple Leaf Foundation Community Action Program project, Dr. Michele Lacombe sought to help renew those connections by creating a space where Indigenous youth could learn directly from Knowledge Keepers, engage with traditional plant medicines, and deepen their understanding of culture, language, and community. The result was a transformative learning experience that brought together Elders and youth in a shared journey of discovery, healing, and cultural resurgence.

In the Inuit communities of Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, and Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, language carries far more than words; it carries history, identity, culture, and the knowledge of generations. Yet as Inuinnaqtun, an endangered dialect of Inuktitut spoken by fewer than 500 people, faces an uncertain future, opportunities for young children to learn the language have become increasingly limited. Through her 2025 Fulbright Canada–Maple Leaf Foundation Community Action Program project, Anne-Michelle Engelstad sought to help change that reality.

Dr. Diane Jakacki’s career sits at the lively intersection of early modern literary studies and the evolving landscape of digital humanities, a field she has helped shape with equal measures of technical fluency, historical insight, and collaborative spirit.

Fulbright Canada is pleased to announce the appointment of three distinguished leaders, Dr. Melanie A. Woodin, Dr. Elissa Strome, and Ms. Chantal Lamoureux, to its Board of Directors. 

Fulbright Canada, in partnership with the Maple Leaf Foundation, is proud to announce the 2026 recipients of the Community Action Program (CAP) grant, an initiative that empowers Fulbright and Killam alums to translate academic insight into meaningful, community-driven impact across Canada and the United States.

Supporting Future Leaders, Advancing World-class Research, and Connecting Communities Around the World

Honouring Nations Canada (HNC), an initiative of Fulbright Canada, is now accepting applications for its 2026 awards recognizing excellence in Indigenous governance, innovative community practice, and Indigenous ways of knowing. The deadline for submissions is April 30, 2026.

Fulbright Canada is pleased to announce the launch of the 2027–2028 U.S. Scholars Program, inviting distinguished American academics, researchers, and professionals to apply for prestigious awards that support collaborative research and lecturing opportunities at leading Canadian institutions. This year’s competition underscores Fulbright Canada’s enduring commitment to advancing academic excellence and strengthening U.S.–Canada relations through intellectual exchange.

Fulbright Canada is pleased to announce the launch of the 2026 Fulbright Canada–Maple Leaf Foundation Community Action Program (CAP), now open to applications from alumni and current participants across Canada and the United States.

Fulbright Canada is pleased to announce the appointment of a new cohort of Alumni Advisory Committee members, bringing together a vibrant group of accomplished alumni from across Canada and the United States.

The promise of AI in healthcare is immense, but its progress hinges on something far more fundamental than algorithms: access to complete, clean, and compliant medical data. That’s the challenge Ayushi Sinha, Founder and CEO of Turmerik and a 2025 Fulbright Canada Entrepreneurship Initiative grantee, is tackling head-on.

In 2025, Fulbright Canada continued to advance its mission of fostering cross-border collaboration, mutual understanding, and meaningful exchange across academic, cultural, and community contexts. Through merit-based programs, participants at every stage of their educational journey engaged with new ideas, perspectives, and communities, thereby strengthening the foundations of a more connected, secure, and prosperous world.

In today’s hyper-competitive academic landscape, success is less about chance and more about access to the correct information, expert mentorship, and holistic strategy. For Changxiao Xie, co-founder of Empowerly and a Fulbright Canada Entrepreneurship Initiative grantee, this access should not be a privilege reserved for the few; it should be scalable, strategic, and innovative.

Fulbright Canada kicked off September by bringing together the latest cohort of bright minds, big thinkers, and emerging leaders for Fall Orientation in Ottawa. Over two days, Fulbright grantees and Killam Fellows connected with one another, engaged in thoughtful discussions, and explored the capital’s most iconic sites, setting the tone for the academic year ahead.

After two decades as a global journalist and news anchor, Yusuf Baykal Bozkurt has made an extraordinary pivot from broadcast studios to the bleeding edge of behavioural AI. Now, as a Fulbright Canada Entrepreneurship Initiative grantee, Bozkurt is redefining how people form the most crucial relationships in the startup world: founding teams and investor partnerships.

Fulbright Canada is proud to announce the launch of the 2025-2026 Killam Fellowships Program, an exceptional opportunity for undergraduate students in Canada and the United States to engage in a semester- or year-long exchange and deepen their academic and cultural perspectives across the border.

As automation and AI rapidly transform business operations, Cole Scanlon, a 2024-2025 Fulbright Canada Entrepreneurship Initiative grantee and founder of Banyan Strategy Group, is ensuring that small businesses aren’t left behind in the race to scale.

Fulbright Canada is pleased to announce the opening of applications for the 2025-2026 Mitacs Globalink Research Internship Program. Applications for this distinguished opportunity for U.S. undergraduate students to engage in advanced, faculty-supervised research at universities across Canada will be accepted from August 7 through September 17, 2025.

The most enduring impact is not always loud; it lives in the momentum of a life well-lived, measured by the minds opened, the opportunities extended, and the light passed on to others. The Fulbright Canada – Maria Birks Family Foundation Award in Education embodies this spirit, honouring the transformative power of academic inquiry and global understanding. Created in honour of Maria Birks, a passionate advocate for education, the arts, and community service, the award celebrates her legacy and the lasting value of investing in people.

As a Fulbright Canada Arctic Initiative Scholar, Dr. Wayne Inuglak Clark of the University of Alberta has brought thoughtful leadership and scholarly depth to an area of growing importance: advancing mental health assessment practices that are both clinically effective and culturally meaningful in Inuit communities.

For Hailey Laxer, leadership is not just about ambition—it is about resilience. From an early age, she understood the power of perseverance, navigating the daily challenges of cystic fibrosis (CF) while pursuing her academic and professional aspirations and her drive to make an impact in her community.

On May 15, 2025, Fulbright Canada, in partnership with Alacrity Canada (powered by Startup Science), hosted the 2025 Fulbright Canada Entrepreneurship Summit at the Brookstreet Hotel in Ottawa, bringing together a cross-section of industry leaders, academics, and changemakers for a day of connection and visionary entrepreneurship.

Fulbright Canada is pleased to announce the opening of two signature programs that support academic exchange between Canada and the United States: the 2026–27 Fulbright Canada Student Awards and the Fulbright Canada Scholar Awards for Canadians, including prestigious Research Chair opportunities. Applications for both programs are now open and will be accepted until November 15, 2025.

Fulbright Canada Launches Entrepreneurship Initiative & Announces 2025 Entrepreneurship Summit: Rising Innovators Turn Research into Commercial Reality