Igniting Discovery Grants

WE-SPARK Igniting Discovery Grants provide seed funding for early-stage, novel, and innovative health research and education projects in Windsor-Essex. These projects may explore emerging health topics, address gaps, generate new ideas, share knowledge, and spark collaborations. All applications undergo a thorough external peer review process.

Questions about the grants program can be sent to wesparkgrants@uwindsor.ca.

Guidelines and Forms:

2026 Guidelines - Background, funds available, requirements, eligibility, conditions, and contact information

Letter of Intent Form - Deadline Friday, April 3rd, 2026 by 5:00PM (Submitted online through AirTable)

• LOI competitiveness is based only on eligibility and primary affiliation requirements. Scientific merit is assessed at the full application stage. All applicants will be notified of their LOI outcome by April 10, 2026.

Application Form - Deadline Friday, May 8th, 2026, by 5:00PM (Submitted online through AirTable)

Note: If you've submitted, or been a co-applicant, on an LOI or Application for any previous grant year, an applicant profile has already been created for you. For first time applicants, please create a New Applicants Profile before moving on to the LOI submission. Applicant profiles are required for all applicants and co-applicants.

If you are considering a National or International health funding competition, please consider the WE-SPARK Incentive Grant Program, designed to support future external funding success.

If you are a new or early-career researcher, or are planning a low-cost, small-scale project, pilot study, preliminary investigation, or quality improvement initiative, please consider the WE-SPARK Idea Grants Program, designed to help researchers kick-start ideas, gather initial data, and test hypotheses.

To view our previously funded WE-SPARK grants, visit our project page, where you can filter by various parameters.