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  3. Funding Embargoes

Funding Embargoes

Congratulations! It’s natural to want to share news of your funding success right away.

Many sponsors, however, hope to maximize exposure of the funding they’re providing and expect you to adhere to embargoes they’ve set. As a result, you must temporarily keep results confidential, even if funding has been approved and your project has begun.

These requirements differ between sponsors and are typically included in your notice of decision. If you have questions, please reach out to Douglas Keddy, Associate Director, Research Promotion & Profile.

What does this mean for you?

You can:

  • List the award on your CV
  • Inform current and potential partners and collaborators
  • Share the news with family, friends and colleagues
  • Use the Canada Research Chair title professionally

You cannot:

  • Issue media releases, write stories, speak to media or host public announcements about the award
  • Have other individuals or organizations announce the funding publicly

You may be able to:

  • Share the award on social media and websites

Assume an Embargo is in Place Unless Explicitly Stated

As a general rule, you should treat your award as embargoed unless the sponsor has explicitly indicated it may be shared publicly. This may take some time. Embargoes differ in length and are often lifted with little advance notice.

Why Embargoes Matter

Funding success is an important achievement – for you and for Western. We want to celebrate you, too! Embargoes help ensure:

  • Alignment with sponsor timelines and communication strategies
  • Governments are able to demonstrate the value to taxpayers
  • Coordinated announcements that amplify the impact of research across institutions
  • Effective media engagement, awareness of news cycles and accurate reporting
  • Stronger relationships with funding partners
  • Efficient internal planning, allowing Western to prepare communications materials

Embargo Compliance

Breaking embargo is considered a serious breach of sponsor trust and may affect future funding opportunities for individual researchers and the institution. We appreciate your cooperation in honouring all sponsor-defined communications requirements.

Contact Us

For more information on funding embargoes or if you have any questions, contact Douglas Keddy, Associate Director, Research Promotion & Profile.