Media

OTTAWA, April 15, 2010  —  Gilles G. Patry, University of Ottawa professor and president emeritus, was today appointed President and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), succeeding Eliot A. Phillipson.

Gilles G. Patry is professor of civil engineering at the University of Ottawa with a joint appointment in the School of Information Technology and Engineering. He was president and vice-chancellor of the University of Ottawa from 2001 to 2008. Not only was he the first locally born and educated president of the University, he was also the first to have extensive private-sector experience. That experience proved significant throughout Prof. Patry’s tenure as uOttawa president.

Prof. Patry holds a BASc and MASc from the University of Ottawa and a PhD from the University of California at Davis in environmental engineering. Prior to joining the University of Ottawa, Gilles Patry was a consultant in water resources and environmental engineering (1971-78), and a professor of civil engineering at the École Polytechnique de Montréal (1978-83) and McMaster University (1983-93).

The CFI is an independent corporation created by the Government of Canada to fund research infrastructure. The CFI’s mandate is to strengthen the capacity of Canadian universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions to carry out world-class research and technology development that benefits Canadians.