MEDIA RELEASE – OCTOBER 10, 2025 – R0118

Brock University researchers are accelerating their efforts to address pressing social challenges thanks to a federal funding boost.

Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Glaucio Haroldo Silva de Carvalho and Professor of Kinesiology Toby Mündel have received more than $120,000 from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF).

Announced Friday, Oct. 10, the investment by the Government of Canada through CFI supports research infrastructure, such as lab equipment.

“We are very grateful for CFI’s support, which enables Brock researchers to take their work to the next level,” says Vice-President, Research Tim Kenyon. “Dr. de Carvalho and Dr. Mündel’s research addresses critical problems that arise for people and institutions around the world.”

In his Cybersecurity and Critical Intelligent Infrastructure (C²I²) Lab, Silva de Carvalho and his team aim to strengthen the resilience of digital infrastructure across Canada through research and education.

“Through hands-on learning and applied research projects in the C²I² Lab we can increase students’ readiness to meet the growing Canadian and global demand for cybersecurity professionals,” says Carvalho.

With the JELF funding, the team will leverage advanced computing resources to conduct simulations that mimic critical infrastructure environments, such as intelligent transportation systems. They will also develop artificial intelligence models to advance their research.

Carvalho, Associate Professor of Computer Science Robson de Grande and their students have also established industry collaborations to address cybersecurity challenges in critical infrastructure, such as assessing vulnerabilities and detecting attacks. These systems keep sectors such as telecommunications and transportation operating safely and efficiently.

Mündel’s JELF funding will be used to advance his research on the health impacts of extreme temperatures.

The Canada Research Chair in Extreme Human Environments studies how heat affects women’s physiology, examines who might be at greater risk of heat stroke or other vulnerabilities to the heat, and explores technologies, such as wearable sensors, to protect the body against extreme heat.

Central to Mündel’s research is the thermoregulation system, which includes sweat glands, the circulatory system, skin and a gland in the brain called the hypothalamus. He specializes in studying how estrogen and progesterone, the primary ovarian hormones in women of reproductive age, affect responses and adaptation to heat.

Part of his research involves analyzing participants’ blood samples. In some cases, this analysis can happen a year after being collected. The JELF funding will enable Mündel to purchase a microplate washer and reader and an ultra-low temperature freezer to do this work.

Mündel will also acquire a metabolic cart, which is used to measure the levels of carbon dioxide and oxygen in research participants’ breath while under heat stress. This gives a good indication of their metabolism in hot conditions, he says.

“This current infrastructure fund completes my Exercise and Environmental Physiology Laboratory, a vital part of operationalizing my research at Brock,” he says. “My trainees and I can now forge ahead with projects aimed at understanding and protecting an underrepresented group — women — from heat stress.”

Mündel’s and de Carvalho’s research build on key government areas of concern, says Member of Parliament for St. Catharines Chris Bittle.

“The destructive impacts of cyberattacks and climate change continue to be felt in Canada’s communities and around the world,” says Bittle. “Dr. Mündel and Dr. de Carvalho’s research projects are aimed at fostering Canadians’ health, well-being and security in the midst of these challenges.”

For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

*Sarah Ackles, Communications Specialist, Brock University [email protected] or 289-241-5483

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