ASTech Awards 2022
The Faculty of Science celebrates award recipient Dr. Casey Hubert and award finalists Dr. Peter Facchini and Dr. Guenther Ruhe.
Dr. Casey Hubert, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences and Campus Alberta Innovation Program Chair in Geomicrobiology
2022 ASTech Award Winner: Outstanding Achievement in Health: Research
Sector: Alberta’s Wastewater COVID-19 Monitoring
Team Submission: Pan-Alberta Team Monitoring COVID-19 in Wastewater – including Dr. Casey Hubert (University of Calgary) and Dr. Xiao-Li (Lilly) Pang (University of Alberta)
Dr. Hubert is part of the team identifying and tracking what can be found in our wastewater and sharing this critical information with the public. Using an efficient and economically effective method, the team uses molecular tracking technology to measure, in real time, the levels of COVID-19 in communities. This technology produces evidence-based data and can be used to measure other infections such as the flu, and is shared publicly to inform officials and citizens alike to make decisions about the health of their communities. The Pan-Alberta COVID-19 wastewater monitoring program builds on several successful COVID-19 wastewater projects that have been led by researcher teams from the University of Alberta and UCalgary respectively, in partnership with Alberta Health Services, The City of Calgary, and EPCOR.
Dr. Peter Facchini, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences and Chief Innovation Officer, Enveric Biosciences
2022 ASTech Awards Finalist
Initiative: Medical/Healthcare/Pharmaceuticals
Dr. Facchini is a professor of plant biochemistry in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Calgary, past Canada Research Chair in Plant Metabolic Processes Biotechnology, and is currently a Parex Resources Innovation Fellow in the Faculty of Science. Dr. Facchini co-founded and was Chief Scientific Officer of Willow Biosciences Inc. and Epimeron Inc. He is currently part of the management team of Enveric Biosciences Inc, which is dedicated to the development of novel small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of anxiety, depression and addiction disorders. Dr. Facchini has published over 160 scientific papers and co-invented over 30 patents.
Dr. Guenther Ruhe, Professor, Department of Computer Science and Industrial Research Chair Software Engineering, University of Calgary
2022 ASTech Awards Finalist
Initiative: Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Machine Learning (ML)
Dr. Ruhe holds an Industrial Research Chair in Software Engineering – a joint position between the Department of Computer Science and Department of Electrical and Software Engineering. He leads a research team in the area of Software Engineering Decision Support (SEDS), which collaborates with industry. Dr. Ruhe's research in Hybrid Intelligence for Semi-Structured Problem Solving has been applied in a variety of domains: Digital Product Innovation, Waste and Recycling Service Optimization, Digital Health Care, Emergency Management, Energy Systems, and Finance.