Dr. Sophie St-Hilaire joins UPEI as the Canada Research Chair in Integrated Health Research for Sustainable Aquaculture.

The Honourable Gary Goodyear, Canada’s Minister of State for Science and Technology, recently announced a new Canada Research Chair at the University of Prince Edward Island’s Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC). Dr. Sophie St-Hilaire joins UPEI as the Canada Research Chair in Integrated Health Research for Sustainable Aquaculture. 

Dr. St-Hilaire moves her research to the AVC from Idaho State University. Her research has taken her across the world, having studied aquaculture in Chile, Europe, and both coasts of North America.

“As an epidemiologist, I work on many different problems,” said Dr. St-Hilaire. “The breadth of my research projects enables me to collaborate with many different types of researchers, from microbiologists to agricultural engineers. The ultimate goal of my research is to improve aquaculture systems and make them more economically and environmentally sustainable.”

“Dr. St-Hilaire’s wealth of international expertise complements AVC’s already world-renowned aquatics program,” said Dr. Don Reynolds, dean of the Atlantic Veterinary College. “She also exemplifies the high quality of education at AVC, having graduated from our doctor of veterinary medicine degree in 1994. It is gratifying to see our graduates returning to AVC to share their knowledge with their colleagues and the researchers of the future.”

“Dr. St-Hilaire builds on an already stellar team of epidemiology researchers at UPEI,” said Dr. Katherine Schultz, UPEI’s vice-president of research. “Her unique expertise examines the short- and long-term costs of an intensive aquaculture system, with a careful eye on environmental sustainability.”

The Canada Research Chair in Integrated Health Research for Sustainable Aquaculture is funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC).

“The Canada Research Chairs Program helps to position Canadian post-secondary institutions as world-class research centres,” said Suzanne Fortier, president of NSERC and a member of the Canada Research Chairs steering committee. “With this funding support, researchers are finding solutions to today’s social, health and economic issues and are training the next generation of innovative scientists and scholars.”

“I’m excited to be back at the Atlantic Veterinary College,” said Dr. St-Hilaire. “This is where I received my DVM. I'm now working on projects alongside professors who were my teachers. That is really gratifying." 

UPEI is home to seven Canada Research Chairs and the prestigious Canada Excellence Research Chair in Aquatic Epidemiology.

Read more about Dr. St. Hilaire.