Research Impact Canada is pleased to announce the launch of a new award: The Peter Levesque Award for Knowledge Mobilization Leadership.
This award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to advancing knowledge mobilization (KMb) as a profession, and is named in honor of Peter Levesque, a pioneer in the field. Among many achievements in his career, Peter founded the Institute for Knowledge Mobilization and launched The Canadian Knowledge Mobilization Forum. His work in the field has set the stage for much of the subsequent knowledge mobilization work across Canada.
While there are awards for KMb scholarship and graduate student research, there are no awards recognizing contributions of professional staff to diverse aspects of knowledge mobilization. We’re excited to fill this gap and celebrate those who have dedicated their careers to advancing the field.
Overview of the Award
Deadline: February 25 at 11:59pm Pacific Time
Prize: This is an award of recognition. There is no cash value associated with the award.
Eligibility: Eligibility for this award is limited to staff and faculty at a Research Impact Canada Member Institution. View a list of members here.
How to Apply: To apply, please submit the following through the nomination system.
- A completed nomination form
- A nomination letter (2 pages maximum)
- A CV or Professional Resume (3 pages maximum)
- Traditional CVs, Narrative-Based CVs, and Professional Resumes are welcome
- 2 letters of support (2 pages maximum per letter)
Nominees may submit their application in the official language of their choice – English or French.
Additional Details
The goal of this award is to recognize the achievements of an individual or a team that has helped establish and/or support professional knowledge mobilizers. This award specifically recognizes those whose efforts have built the capacity of others to do knowledge mobilization work, whether through training, mentorship, program development, tool creation, and other methods.
We define ‘professional knowledge mobilizers’ as those who have a job dedicated to one or more aspects of knowledge mobilization, including but not limited to: engaging with interested/affected groups, planning, collaborating, disseminating and/or evaluating knowledge mobilization activities.
We welcome nominations that reflect the diversity of knowledge mobilization and research impact practices among RIC members institutions.
Selection Criteria
Each application will be assessed based on the following criteria.
| Selection Criteria | Description | Weight |
| Relevance, importance, and responsiveness | Indicators include:
– The nominee’s capacity-building initiatives are relevant and important – effectively addressing critical gaps in the knowledge mobilization field.
– The nominee demonstrates a high level of responsiveness to evolving needs and shifting priorities within the knowledge mobilization field, ensuring that initiatives are adaptable and effective.
– The nominee showcases a remarkable degree of innovation in addressing challenges related to capacity building, highlighting creative and effective solutions that push the boundaries of knowledge mobilization practice. | 1/11 |
| Capacity Building | Indicators include:
– The nominee provides relevant evidence of the capacity building initiatives that were considered and implemented throughout the project. These may include development of training programs, mentorship and coaching, creation of tools and resources that enhance capacity, or the growth of knowledge mobilization networks and communities.
– The nominee demonstrates meaningful involvement of knowledge users, relevant parties and/or partners throughout the process. | 3/11 |
| Demonstrated impact and outcomes | Indicators include:
– The nominee demonstrates evidence of strong outcomes and/or potential of long-term impact with the project (I.e., outcomes show realistic potential for KMb activities to facilitate long-term change)
– The nominee showcases evidence of strong outcomes through a documented case study that illustrates how the project has led to changes in policies, practices, or attitudes.
– The nominee demonstrates evidence of evaluation and assessment of the project. A mixture of qualitative and quantitative data is used as evidence of impact.
– The nominee provides testimonials and endorsements that offer specific examples of how the project directly influenced positive outcomes.
Note: we don’t want to be prescriptive about what ‘counts’ as evidence, and we leave it up to the nominees to demonstrate how they have measured or evaluated impact. | 4/11 |
| Relevance of lessons learned | Indicators include:
– The nominee provides a reflection on lessons learned throughout the process and how these lessons have been or can be integrated into ongoing initiatives.
– The nominee reflects on dissemination of best practices in knowledge mobilization. | 2/11 |
| Contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion | Indicators include:
– The nominee thoughtfully reflects upon how their projects might relate or contribute to equity, diversity, and inclusion, including reconciliation and decolonization.
– The nominee reflects on the degree to which they have contributed to fostering an inclusive and equitable knowledge mobilization environment, and specific actions taken to promote inclusivity, such as the development of guidelines or policies. | 1/11 |
For questions or further information, contact Sylvia Urbanik (urbanik@yorku.ca).