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2026 End Diabetes Awards
The End Diabetes Awards support research towards a vision of a world free of the effects of diabetes.
Objectives
The objective of the End Diabetes Awards are:
- To support researchers in the discovery of biomedical, clinical, health services, and/or population health factors that lead to the onset and progression of all types of diabetes and its complications.
- To develop solutions to improve the quality of life of people living with diabetes.
- To address challenges in diabetes health services, and design and implement solutions that improve healthcare delivery, health policies, and access to care for all communities and populations affected by diabetes.
Learn more about the types of research that Diabetes Canada funds here.
New this year: Early Career Researcher Seed Funding Pool
Through this year’s End Diabetes Awards, Diabetes Canada will award up to four grants designed specifically for early career researchers to help launch their research programs. This seed funding pool is only open to early career researchers (see the definition of an early career researcher here). The Principal Applicant must have never received an End Diabetes Award and not hold a competitive project grant valued at more than $200,000.
Entering this funding pool is optional; early career researchers may apply to be evaluated within this pool or within the general End Diabetes Awards. Applicants who opt-in to this funding pool may request up to $50,000 per year for up to two years ($100,000 total).
Learn more about this funding pool in the 2026 End Diabetes Awards Guide.
Funding
Diabetes Canada, together with its partners, aims to award $5 million through this year’s program.
- Applicants to the general End Diabetes Awards can request up to $150,000 per year for up to three years, for a total of $450,000 per grant.
- Early career researcher applicants who choose to opt-in to the Early Career Researcher Seed Funding Pool may request up to $50,000 per year for up to two years, for a total of $100,000 per grant.
Eligibility
The Nominated Principal Applicant must be an independent researcher. The Nominated Principal Applicant and Co-Applicant(s) must have an academic or research appointment with a Canadian post-secondary, academic, or research institution.
Nominated Principal Applicants are only eligible to hold one End Diabetes Award at any time. If a previous End Diabetes Award will be completed and the work as outlined in the proposal will be fully completed by December 2026, the Nominated Principal Applicant may apply for a 2026 End Diabetes Award. If a previous Award is still underway or will require a no cost extension into 2027, the Nominated Principal Applicant is not eligible to apply for a new award. Partnered grants awarded through another funder are not included in this limit.
Awards Guidelines
Please review the 2026 End Diabetes Awards Guide before applying. This guide includes full details on the award being offered, including eligibility and assessment criteria, the application process, application and award policies, and review process and evaluation.
How to Apply
Application submissions must be made online through ProposalCentral. ProposalCentral is a secure grants management platform for applicants to electronically submit grant applications and obtain funding-related information.
- Visit https://proposalcentral.com/ and select the Applicant or Awardee tab
- Login with an existing account or register for a new account
- Select the Grant Opportunities tab
- Search “Diabetes Canada” in the search bar
- Find the End Diabetes Awards program and select “Apply Now” to begin the application.
Please review Diabetes Canada’s ProposalCentral Application Instructions for full details on the requirements to completing each application section in ProposalCentral.
Note: Diabetes Canada reserves the right to reject incomplete applications without appeal. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure the application is complete prior to submission.
Application Components
Additional information for each application section can be found in the ProposalCentral Application Instructions
- Project title and lay title
- Lay Summary for Public (350 words max.)
- Plain Language Project Summary (500 words max.)
- Roles and responsibilities of Nominated Principal Applicant and Co-Applicant(s) (250 words max. for each role)
- CVs for Nominated Principal Applicant and Co-Applicant(s) (5 pages max. All CVs submitted as part of an End Diabetes Awards application must follow the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) tri-agency CV template. CV submissions that do not follow this template will be declined without review.
- Research proposal (5 pages max.)
- Research proposal appendix - relevant tables, charts, figures, photographs, and accompanying legends (5 pages max.)
- Project references
- Summary of research proposal (1 page max.)
- Summary of Progress (1 page max.)
- Plan for people with diabetes lived experience engagement, and knowledge mobilization (500 words max.)
- Impact for people affected by diabetes (250 words max.)
- Response to Reviewers - for resubmissions only (2 pages max.)
- Budget Justification (2 pages max.)
- Other optional application materials include: Letters of collaboration and support, relevant publications (max. 3), questionnaires and consent forms, etc.
Review Process and Evaluation
Each application goes through a rigorous review process across multiple review committees. A scientific review committee (scientific and clinical experts in diabetes), and a lived experience review committee (people living with diabetes, family, caregivers) will review each application. Funding decisions are made based on the scientific review process, input from the lived experience reviewers, and the expert recommendations of Diabetes Canada’s National Research Council (NRC).
Timelines
- Application submission open on ProposalCentral: May 4, 2026
- Application submission deadline: July 10, 2026, 8:00pm EDT.
- Review period: July–November 2026
- Notification of funding decisions: December 2026
- Funding begins: January 2027
Nominated award opportunities
Each year Diabetes Canada recognizes the outstanding achievements of diabetes researchers through two prestigious nominated awards:
The Lifetime Achievement Award
The Lifetime Achievement Award is bestowed upon a prominent Canadian MD or PhD medical scientist who is recognized and nominated by their peers for longstanding contribution to the Canadian diabetes community and a leader in diabetes research. Details on nomination eligibility can be found here. Nominations for this award can be made completing the online nomination form.
The Early Career Researcher Award
The Early Career Researcher Award was established for the purpose of encouraging, by appropriate recognition, outstanding research conducted in Canada in the field of diabetes. Details on nomination eligibility can be found here. Nominations for this award can be made completing the online nomination form.
Future opportunities
Research Trainee Awards
Diabetes Canada is exploring opportunities to offer trainee funding in the future, as part of our strategy to increase how much research we support while also maximizing progress towards our goal to End Diabetes. This program is early in development, and the stage of trainee and type of support will be shared when the program is closer to launching.
Diabetes Impact Funds
Diabetes Canada intends to offer larger grants focused on priority research topics. This program will support the research strategy by advancing knowledge and solutions that address the issues and challenges identified by the diabetes community. More information will be shared when the program is closer to launching.
Closed
Research Collaboration Support
Researcher Collaboration Grants support researcher-led activities that foster sharing of ideas and development of new knowledge and solutions. These activities could include: meetings, networking events, lecture series, or training sessions.
Objectives
The objective of the Research Collaborations Grants are:
- To support investigator or network-initiated collaboration activities to bring researchers together.
- To support collaboration among researchers, and between researchers and the broader diabetes stakeholder community (e.g., healthcare providers, policy makers, people with lived experience).
- To foster sharing of research ideas and development of new knowledge and solutions.
Funding
Applicants can request between $3,000 and $10,000 per research collaboration activity. Diabetes Canada will award $60,000 through this program in 2026.
Depending on the volume of applications received, the program may be re-opened for a second round of applications in July 2026. It is recommended to apply early where possible as funds will not be held back if strong applications are received at the first deadline.