April 15, 2026

Second Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholar Program Cohort Announced

The Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholars Program is made possible through partners including Alberta Neuroscience, the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, The Neuro, and the Ontario Brain Institute, with support from The Hilary & Galen Weston Foundation.

Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholars Program

The Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholars (CNS) Program is proud to announce the selection of its second cohort of scholars, continuing its mission to strengthen Canada’s leadership in advanced data analytics and utilization of open neuroscience datasets.

Launched in 2024, the Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholars Program supports and trains postdoctoral scholars in advanced analytics, providing hands-on experience in cutting-edge computational methods. The program leverages and connects infrastructure, resources, and expertise across leading research and industry partners nationwide. Its goal is to cultivate a world-class talent pool capable of effectively utilizing open neuroscience data and meeting the growing demand for neuroscience research in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

This year, eleven scholars have been selected to join the program. The cohort will work across nine institutions spanning the country, from the East Coast to Alberta, reflecting the program’s national reach and collaborative model.

With scholars embedded within Canada’s leading neuroscience hubs, the program provides early-career postdocs with the unique opportunity to connect and work with research and industry partners across Canada while they gain interdisciplinary technical and translational skills.

The Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholars Program is made possible through the partnership of Alberta Neuroscience, the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, The Neuro (Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital), and the Ontario Brain Institute, with generous support from The Hilary & Galen Weston Foundation.

Together, these partners are advancing a coordinated national training platform that strengthens Canada’s neuroscience ecosystem while accelerating innovation at the intersection of brain science and advanced analytics. By harnessing the power of open neuroscience data, the CNS Program promotes collaboration, transparency, and shared scientific progress across institutions and disciplines. This collective, data-driven approach enhances rigor and reproducibility in research, positioning Canada to lead the broader knowledge and innovation economy shaped by artificial intelligence and machine learning.

For more information about the Canadian Neuroanalytics Scholars Program or press inquiries, please contact:

Rachel Paris, Project Manager, Alberta Neuroscience – rachel.paris@ucalgary.ca

For more information on the CNS Program, please visit the competition webpage.

Cohort 2: Our 2026 CNS Scholars

The CNS Program is pleased to announce the extraordinary Scholars selected for the second cohort:

Sima Abbasi Habashi – University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB)

Project title: Multi-Modal Machine Learning to Uncover Genetic and Immune Pathways Driving White Matter Hyperintensities and Cognitive Decline

Johanna Bayer – McGill University (Montréal, QC)

Project title: Personalized deep longitudinal normative modeling for tracking Parkinson’s disease progression

Tom George – McGill University (Montréal, QC)

Project title: Foundation Models for Neuroscience: from open brain data to neurogenerative disease prediction

Mohsen Hadian – University Health Network (Toronto, ON)

Project title: Prognosticating Alzheimer’s Disease Progression Using Multimodal Biomarkers: An Explainable AI Approach with ADNI

Arman Hassanpour Aslishirjouposht – Western University (London, ON)

Project title: Multimodal Machine Learning for Monitoring and Predicting Speech and Motor Symptoms in Neurodegenerative Diseases using Open Neuroscience Data

Phillip Johnston – The Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto, ON)

Project title: Detecting Invisible Brain Injury from Repeated Head Impacts in Youth with Generative Modelling and Machine Learning

Gourab Kumar Sar – University of Calgary (Calgary, AB)

Project title: Functional Role of Partial Synchronization in Neurological Diseases

Tehereh (Tara) Rashnavadi – University of Calgary (Calgary, AB)

Project title: Causal Network Inference in Drug-Resistant Epilepsy Using Information-Theoretic Granger Causality with Neural Network-Based Feature Learning on Intracranial EEG-fMRI

Emmanuelle Renauld– Université de Sherbrooke (Sherbrooke, QC)

Project title: Efficient classification of chronic back pain via minimal data aggregation from multi-site multi-modality open datasets

Trishna Saha Detroja – Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (Toronto, ON)

Project title: Unraveling the role of sleep-related cortical cell types subpopulations in sleep, dementia-related brain changes, and dementia in aging

Selena Singh – Dalhousie University (Halifax, NS)

Project title: Predicting Treatment Response and Relapse in Major Depression Using EEG Signatures of Neural Attractor States

Generously funded by:

The goal of The Hilary & Galen Weston Foundation is to contribute to charities whose bold ideas shape a better future for everyone. For more information, please visit hgwf.org

This program is made possible through the support of our partners:

Alberta Neuroscience (ABNeuro), established in 2012 with support from the Government of Alberta, is a province-wide neuroscience network connecting the Universities of Alberta, Calgary and Lethbridge to increase the impact of neuroscience and mental health research, education and translation, developing the province as an epicenter for neuroscience excellence. For more information, please visit albertaneuro.ca.

The HBI’s vision is “Healthy brains for better lives”. Their mission is to inspire discovery and apply knowledge towards innovative solutions for neurological and mental health disorders. This mission is guided by six core values: Excellence, collaboration, integrity, impact, creativity, and relevance. For more information, please visit hbi.ucalgary.ca

The Neuro (Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital) is a bilingual academic healthcare institution. We are a McGill research and teaching institute; delivering high-quality patient care, as part of the Neuroscience Mission of the McGill University Health Centre. They  are proud to be a Killam Institution, supported by the Killam Trusts. For more information, please visit mcgill.ca/neuro

The Ontario Brain Institute (OBI)  is a provincially funded, not-for-profit organization that accelerates discovery and innovation, benefiting both patients and the economy. OBI works to establish Ontario as a world leader in brain research, commercialization and care. For more information, please visit braininstitute.ca