The 2025 Research Competition will launch on September 3rd. Please stay tuned for more information. To view funding results from the 2024 Competition, please visit the Funding Announcement page. 

The 2025 Parkinson Canada Research Grant Competition is returning this September! Our Research Program supports promising trainees (including PhD candidates; Postdoctoral Research Fellows and Clinical Fellows) and researchers as they discover new ways to understand and diagnose Parkinson’s disease, new treatments, and ways to improve quality of life for people impacted by Parkinson’s. In last year’s competition we approved over $1.9 M in research grants and awards, our highest funding envelope ever. 

To submit an application, please make an account or log into our Research Application System.

WHAT’S NEW

New to this year’s competition:

  1. Updated Lived Experience Reviewer Scoring: All applications will be reviewed by people affected by Parkinson’s (patients and care partners) to assess the potential impact of the project towards the lives of people affected by Parkinson’s. These reviewers will be assessing two application sections, the Project Impact Statement and the Patient Engagement Statement, and their score will contribute 10% of the overall application score.
  2. Advisory Group Meetings: A new Advisory Group has been established, which is comprised of People affected by Parkinson’s who have worked with us on past competitions as Lived Experience Reviewers. We plan to arrange for 2-3 virtual meetings in October where applicants can consult with Advisory Group members to give feedback on various aspects of their application: i) design of clinical studies to improve the participant experience, ii) choosing study aims that maximize potential impact to the lives of people with Parkinson’s, and iii) encouraging knowledge dissemination activities for the patient community.
  3. Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Justice Self-Identification Questionnaire: Parkinson Canada is committed to advancing the principles of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Justice throughout the organization. We are asking all applicants to complete a self-identification questionnaire, as a first step to better understand the demographics of our applicant pool and of our grant recipients.
  4. Expanded Eligibility for the Clinician Scientist Research Fellowship: To encourage and support clinician scientists from other disciplines to also pursue research related to Parkinson’s Disease, we are expanding the eligibility for this award to clinical trainees in other sub-specialties, including geriatrics and psychiatry.

Travel Award Program 

  • Parkinson Canada is pleased to offer funding for Travel Awards to exceptional trainees to support their participation in research and clinical conferences in Parkinson’s Disease, including presenting their research and furthering their clinical and research training. Travel awards are valued at $1,000 (for travel to conferences with North America) or $1,500 (for travel to conference outside of North America) per award. See below for further information and how to apply. 

Key documents

Funding opportunities

Research Innovation Fund 

Parkinson Canada remains actively engaged in research activities and programs that foster collaboration, strengthen partnerships, and build capacity for quality research in Canada. We recognize that there is a growing need for various flexible funding mechanisms that can be responsive to the rapid pace of Parkinson’s research around the world. This rapid pace presents numerous opportunities for Parkinson Canada to contribute to worldwide advancements and innovative multidisciplinary research models that could have tremendous potential of moving the needle in unmet gaps such as understanding the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s and developing much needed disease-modifying therapies.   

To contribute to interdisciplinary research collaborations, meetings to bring together world leaders in Parkinson’s research and opportunities to support innovative Canadian technologies and discoveries that will address unmet needs in Parkinson’s disease management and treatment, Parkinson Canada has established the Research Innovation Fund (RIF). The goal of the Fund is to enhance and support innovation, collaboration, and transformational change in Parkinson’s research and care that will ultimately improve the lives of people with Parkinson’s.  

Examples of funds available through the RIF: 

Meetings, consortia or strategic partnerships  Average budget: $5,000 – $15,000 
Innovative and/or transformational research studies, clinical trials, multi-site research efforts, new technologies  Average budget: $40,000 – $80,000 

 

Proposals for RIF funding will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and is contingent on the availability of funds.  

To learn more about this funding opportunity please reach out by email (research@parkinson.ca) and refer to the following document: 

Research Innovation Reference Document

Travel Award Program

Parkinson Canada is pleased to provide travel awards to support exceptional trainees to attend globally-recognized conferences related to Parkinson’s Disease, so that they can present their research, further their education and participate in career-building activities. Awards will be valued at $1,000 (conferences within North America, or $1,500 (conferences outside of North America). A maximum of 1 travel award may be granted to members of the same lab or clinic. Awarded Funds are intended to cover costs for conference registration, transportation to the event and accommodation. For more information on the program and award policies click here. 

Eligible Conferences

Conference  Meeting Date  Meeting Location  Deadline to Apply for Award 
MDS-PAS Translational Research Course  March 1-2, 2024  Toronto, Canada  Feb. 1, 2024 
AD/PD  March 5-9, 2024  Lisbon, Portugal  Feb. 29, 2024 
Planning for Prevention of Parkinson’s: A Trial Design Forum May 5-7, 2024  Boston, USA  April 14, 2024 
International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders  Sept. 27-Oct. 1, 2024  Philadelphia, USA  Sept. 14, 2024 
Other Conferences related to PD  Any  Any  Rolling deadline 

Where to Apply

  1. MDS-PAS Translational Research Conference – click here to apply.
  2. Planning for Prevention of Parkinson’s: Attendees have the opportunity to present a poster of their own conference-related research (click here to register for the conference and/or submit an abstract for a poster presentation). Attendees with an accepted poster abstract are eligible for a limited number of travel awards from the conference organizer (to apply use abstract submission portal) or from Parkinson Canada (to apply use SMApply link below). 
  3. All other conferences – Apply on Parkinson Canada’s Research Application Website (SMApply)

Pilot Project Grant (PPG)

  • Up to $75,000 (1-year term)
  • To foster novel, high-potential projects, and ideas with a trajectory for major grants with larger granting institutions

Graduate Student Award (GSA)

  • $20,000 per year (2-year term)
  • Full-time graduate students at the PhD level conducting research relevant to the cure, cause, prevention, improved treatment and/or understanding of Parkinson’s disease or related disorders.

Note: The Graduate Student Award for the Master’s level is not available.  

GSA Partnership Awards

  • Parkinson Canada/Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS) Partnership Award.
    • For candidates submitting applications to the Parkinson Canada/FRQS Partnership Program, funding amounts are $27,500/year for years 1 & 2. Additionally, candidates are eligible for funding for years 3 & 4 at the FRQS base award value ($25,000/year) as per regular FRQS competitions. Candidates for the Parkinson Canada/FRQS funding opportunity must submit applications to both FRQS and to Parkinson Canada and must indicate that this has been done. Research supported under this Program must be carried out at a University or affiliated institution (including hospitals and research institutes) within the province of Quebec.

Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (PRF)

  • $45,000 per year (2-year term)
  • Candidates must hold a doctoral degree (PhD or MD) obtained in the last 5 years and are exclusively conducting research relevant to the cure, cause, prevention, improved treatment and/or understanding of Parkinson’s disease or related disorders.

PRF Partnership Awards

  • Parkinson Canada/Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS) Partnership Award.
    • Candidates must submit applications to both Parkinson Canada and FRQS and indicate on their application that they wish to be considered for this partnership award. The program offers up to two years of joint support with the possibility of renewal for a third year from FRQS. Stipends in this program for fellowship candidates are the same as that which is offered for the Postdoctoral Research Fellowship. The amount of funding available for the third year is based on eligibility for funding renewal in their third year as per regular FRQS competitions and is restricted to FRQS regular funding amounts. Please see FRQS funding guidelines for 2024-2026 amounts.
  • Parkinson Canada/Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF) Partnership Program
    • Candidates must submit applications to Parkinson Canada only and indicate on their application that they wish to be considered for this partnership award. Research supported under this Program must be carried out at a University or affiliated institution (including hospitals and research institutes), within the Province of Saskatchewan. For more information please visit the SHRF website (SHRF). Funding is available for 1 awardee in this program for fellowship candidates are the same as that which is offered for the Postdoctoral Research Fellowships plus a $10,000/year research supplement.

Clinician Scientist Research Fellowship (CSRF)

  • $50,000 per year or $75,000 per year (2-year term)
  • For applicants who are actively pursuing a research project related to Parkinson’s Disease while concurrently undergoing clinical training.
    • $50,000 per year for Residents in Neurology/Neurosurgery
    • $75,000 per year for Clinical Fellows

CSRF Partnership Awards

  • Parkinson Canada/Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF) Partnership Program
  • Candidates must submit applications to Parkinson Canada only and indicate on their application that they wish to be considered for this partnership award. Research supported under this Program must be carried out at a University or affiliated institution (including hospitals and research institutes), within the Province of Saskatchewan. For more information please visit the SHRF website (SHRF). Funding is available for 1 awardee in this program for fellowship candidates are the same as that which is offered for the Postdoctoral Research Fellowships plus a $10,000/year research supplement.

Clinical Movement Disorder Fellowship (CMDF)

  • $75,000 per year (1-year term)
  • A training award for applicants who are enrolled in a clinical fellowship for movement disorders.

New Investigator Award

  • $45,000 per year (3-year term)
  • A project grant to encourage and support early career researchers in the field of Parkinson’s Disease who were appointed to their first faculty appointment within the last 5 years. 

 

EQUITY, DIVERSITY, INCLUSION AND JUSTICE (EDIJ) 

Parkinson Canada is committed to advancing the principles of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Justice throughout the organization. In the 2025 Research Competition, we are asking all applicants to complete a self-identification questionnaire, as a first step to better understand the demographics of our applicant pool and of our grant recipients.  

We are complying with the highest standards of privacy and security to ensure that this deeply personal information is collected and stored in a secure manner. Our self-identification questionnaire closely mirrors the form used by federal funding agencies (E.g. CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC), and covers the same demographic dimensions. We are asking that all applicants to our research competition complete the questionnaire, but an applicant can choose the option “I prefer not to answer” for any question where they don’t feel comfortable sharing information.    

The information from these self-identification questionnaires will only be accessed and reviewed after all applications have been fully reviewed and funding recommendations are completed, to ensure that this information will not be used to make any funding decisions. This personal information will only be reviewed by 1-2 staff members who have been trained in EDIJ principles.  

All collected answers will be transferred into a de-identified aggregated format for internal review of our grant programs and to identify any major gaps where we are not reaching or attracting research applicants from historically underrepresented groups. We also promise that any data that we share with the public or key stakeholders from these findings will be in this de-identified aggregated format to protect the identity of individuals who have shared their personal information with us.   

Important Dates

  • 2025 Competition Launch: September 3, 2024  
  • Application Deadline: November 1, 2024 (5:00 PM EST)
  • Anticipated Notification of Awards: March-April 2025  
  • Funding Start Date for Clinical Research Fellowships & Clinical Movement Disorder Fellowships: July 2025 
  • Funding Start Date for Remaining Awards: August 2025  
  • The updated Request for Applications will be uploaded shortly

Further details about each award are included in the Request for Applications and Terms & Conditions documents at the top of the page. For questions about our Research Competition, please see our FAQ page. For questions related to using the Research Application System, please see the Survey Monkey Apply Support Page. 

Inquiries

Email: research@parkinson.ca 
Phone: 1-800-565-3000