On October 1st, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Dr. Mona Nemer’s reappointment as Canada’s Chief Science Advisor. Dr Nemer assumed this role back in 2017 and will continue following her re-appointment “to promote science and its benefits for Canadians, and provide impartial scientific advice to the Prime Minister, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, and Cabinet”. She has also been advising on the latest developments in COVID-19 research.

Dr. Nemer is a distinguished medical researcher in the field of molecular cardiology. Before becoming Chief Science Advisor, she spent more than ten years as the Vice‑President of Research at the University of Ottawa, and was the Director of its Molecular Genetics and Cardiac Regeneration Laboratory. Dr. Nemer is the author of over 200 academic publications, and has served on many national and international scientific advisory committees and boards. She is a Member of the Order of Canada, and a Knight of the Ordre national du Québec.

More about Dr. Nemer:

Dr. Nemer is a leader in the area of molecular cardiology; she has discovered several genes essential for normal heart development and function. Her work has contributed to the development of diagnostic tests for heart failure and the genetics of cardiac birth defects. She has published more than 200 highly cited scientific articles and trained over 100 students from around the world.

Dr. Nemer is a member of the Order of Canada, a fellow of the Academy of Sciences of the Royal Society of Canada, a knight of the Ordre national du Québec and a knight of the French Republic’s Ordre national du Mérite. She is also a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2018, Dr. Nemer was awarded the Arthur Wynne Gold Medal by the Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences.