Presidents Emeriti
Bestowed by the Board of Directors, the honorary title of President Emeritus is given to past CIFAR presidents who exhibit extraordinary leadership.
This lifetime honour grants each of them the privilege of attending all CIFAR research program meetings and receiving research materials.
Alan Bernstein, President and CEO
(2012-2022)
Alan was President & CEO of CIFAR until 2022, and was responsible for developing and leading the institute’s overall strategic direction. He is one of Canada’s leading scientists and was an early champion of women in science and young scientists.
After receiving his PhD from the University of Toronto and following postdoctoral work at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund in London, Dr. Bernstein joined the Ontario Cancer Institute. In 1985, he joined the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, was named its Associate Director in 1988 and served as Director of Research from 1994 to 2000. In 2000, he was asked to become the founding President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Canada’s federal agency for the support of health research. In that capacity, he led the transformation of health research in Canada. In 2010, Bernstein became Executive Director of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise in New York, an international alliance of researchers and funders charged with accelerating the search for an HIV vaccine.
Author of over 225 scientific publications, Alan made landmark contributions to the study of stem cells, blood cell formation (hematopoiesis), and cancer. He chairs or is a member of advisory and review boards in Canada, the U.S., U.K., Italy, and Australia. He serves as co-chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee for Stand Up 2 Cancer Canada, is a member of the Sabin-Aspen Vaccine Science and Policy Group, and the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In May 2020 he was appointed to Canada’s COVID-19 Vaccine Task Force and in February 2021, he was appointed Chair of the Variants of Concern, Scientific Advisory Council.
Alan’s contributions to science and science policy have been recognized with numerous awards and honorary degrees, including Companion of the Order of Canada, Officer of the Order of Canada, the Order of Ontario, the McLaughlin Medal from the Royal Society of Canada, the Award of Excellence from the Genetics Society of Canada, the Gairdner Foundation Wightman Award, induction into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame, and the 2017 Henry Friesen International Prize in Health Research.
Chaviva Hošek, President and CEO
(2001-2012)
A leader in government, academia and business, Dr. Hošek joined CIFAR as President and CEO in 2001. With her immense curiosity and intellect, her passion for making a difference, and her natural warmth, Dr. Hošek significantly expanded and strengthened CIFAR, leading it into several new topics such as quantum information and the role of genetic networks in disease. As CIFAR’s President and CEO, she was the Lawson Foundation Fellow and, as such, provided leadership of CIFAR’s research into early childhood development while mobilizing new knowledge for greater societal impact.
Her career included a post as Director of Policy and Research in the Prime Minister’s Office for Prime Minister Jean Chrétien from 1993-2000. She was Minister of Housing with the Province of Ontario and a Professor of English Literature at the University of Toronto for 13 years. She has also received four honorary degrees and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.
J. Stefan Dupré, President and CEO
(1996-2000)
Stefan Dupré joined CIFAR in 1996, after holding many senior academic positions including Dean of the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Toronto and founding Chairman of the Ontario Council of University Affairs. He became a professor of political science at the University of Toronto in 1963, and later Professor Emeritus. He oversaw the evolution of the Institute’s early work on superconductivity and gravity to focus on the emerging revolutions in these fields.
Prior to his presidency, Dr. Dupré was a member of the National Research Council of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. He was past-president of the Institute of Public Administration of Canada, and received the Institute’s Vanier Medal. He was also appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada.
Fraser Mustard, Founding President
(1982-1996)
Fraser Mustard was the founding President of CIFAR and served for 14 years. His vision was to create a global institute that promoted interdisciplinary, inter-university research and explored the scientific and social challenges important to Canada and the world. Before establishing CIFAR, Dr. Mustard was widely respected for his work in blood and vascular disease and was one of the founding members of McMaster University’s Faculty of Medicine. He is well-known for his leadership of the Early Years Study with the Honorable Margaret Norrie McCain. He made an extraordinary contribution to our understanding of how social and economic gradients affect health, early development and lifetime well-being.
His many honours include Companion of the Order of Canada, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and Laureate of the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame. Before passing away in 2011, he was a member of CIFAR’s Advisory Committee for the Child & Brain Development program.