Program Description
The John G. Diefenbaker Award is funded by an endowment given to the Canada Council for the Arts by the Government of Canada. The endowment, announced by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney during his visit to Germany in the spring of 1991, honours the memory of former Prime Minister John G. Diefenbaker.
The award is administered by the Canada Council for the Arts, in a shared history of collaboration with the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada, and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany. It is a counterpart to the Konrad Adenauer Award, created by Germany for Canadian scholars in 1988, which is administered by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in co-operation with the Royal Society of Canada and the University of Toronto.
The award is given annually, and it enables a distinguished German scholar to do research in Canada, which may include brief periods in the United States. While research must be the primary activity during the award period, the award recipient will be encouraged to participate in the teaching activities of the host institution and to interact with the research communities in Canada and the United States by visiting other institutions.
The teaching and institutional visiting activities are intended to broaden the impact of the award recipient’s visit, while enriching the visitor’s experience.The spirit of the award is to encourage exchange between scholarly communities in Canada and Germany.
Deadline: November 1, 2015
If this date falls on a weekend or statutory holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. Your completed nomination form and all required support material must be postmarked on or before the deadline date.
Prize amount
The award is for 12 months, although shorter award periods will be considered. The award period should begin on or after August 1, following the selection of the award recipient.
The amount of the award for a full year is CDN$80,000. These funds are to be used by the host institution as a contribution towards the payment of the salary of the visiting scholar.
In addition, a grant of up to CDN$15,000 is provided to cover the cost of travel to the Canadian host institution (including travel of the recipient’s immediate family for award periods longer than three months) and travel to other institutions in Canada and the United States.
The amount of an award for a briefer period will be an appropriate proportion of a full award.
By nomination only.
Candidates may not apply for this award: they must be nominated by a department within a host university or research institute in Canada.
This award is open to German scholars who have demonstrated outstanding ability, especially through a substantial publication record over several years. The award is offered in support of research in any of the disciplines of the social sciences and humanities.
Candidates must be German citizens with a contractual or working relationship with an academic institution in Germany. They must have a sound working knowledge of at least one of Canada’s two official languages. If no appropriate candidate is nominated, the award may be withheld and carried over to the following year.
Additional Information
Website: http://canadacouncil.ca/council/prizes/find-a-prize/prizes/john-g-diefenbaker-award
Please refer to the complete Nomination Guidelines [PDF, 267.3 KB].
Luiza Pereira
Program Officer
Prizes Section
1-800-263-5588 (toll-free) or 613-566-4414, ext. 4086
TTY : 1-866-585-5559
For a complete list of past recipients please visit: Cumulative lists of winners
The Canada Council for the Arts is committed to equity and inclusion, and welcomes applications from diverse Aboriginal, cultural and regional communities, and from people with disabilities.
