Today, the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation announced a gift of $3 million from North American energy producer, Ovintiv. The donation will establish the Ovintiv Innovation Fund for Child Health at the Alberta Children’s Hospital.

“Our partnership with the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation is a natural fit. Our strategic investment is part of a larger $10 million community initiative focused on supporting children’s hospitals where we live and work. We seek partners and programs that embody our purpose and are aligned with our values and priorities,” says Brendan McCracken, Ovintiv President and CEO. “As a leading energy producer, we have the privilege of supporting the daily lifesaving work of our local children’s hospitals. We’re proud of the role our energy products play in making modern life possible.”

“We are so grateful to Ovintiv for this incredibly generous gift,” says Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation President and CEO, Saifa Koonar. “The Ovintiv Innovation Fund for Child Health will catalyze further advancements in critical research and care programs that support pediatric brain and mental health. With this investment, Ovintiv is ensuring children and youth in our community and around the world will benefit from innovative treatments and cures developed right here in Calgary.”

The Child and Adolescent Imaging Research (CAIR) initiative at the Alberta Children’s Hospital is just one example of a program that will benefit from this funding. Thanks to community support for its first 3T Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner over a decade ago, the Alberta Children’s Hospital is home to the fastest growing and among the strongest pediatric brain imaging research centres in the country. With developmental, behavioural and emotional challenges now collectively identified as the leading cause of disability affecting our youth, this research is critical in the quest to find answers for children and their families.

Dr. Catherine Lebel, PhD is a founding researcher with CAIR. “With investments like this from Ovintiv, our team can expand to include highly-specialized technical expertise to develop world-first protocols to make MRIs faster and more accurate for even the youngest children,” says Lebel. “For children, whose brains are still developing and forming essential networks that affect physical, cognitive and emotional function, the implications of disease or injury can be life-long. The more quickly they can be diagnosed and treated, the greater the benefit on their long-term quality of life.”

This is the second largest corporate gift in the history of the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation.