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Congratulations to Dr. Balakrishnan Prithiviraj, who received the 2012 Faculty of Agriculture Research Excellence Award presented by Dr. Nathan Boyd (Faculty of Agriculture Research Committee). 

Dr. Prithiviraj joined the Faculty of Agriculture in September 2005 as an Industry Research Chair in Plant Stress Physiology, sponsored by the Department of Agriculture and Acadian SeaPlants Limited. Since that time, Dr. Prithiviraj has established an extensive research program in marine bio-products, investigating methods to improve plant health in areas such as salt resistance, anti-infective compounds, and pathogen resistance. Recently, his research group has been studying the health benefits of seaweeds using model organisms.

Together with academic and industry partners, Dr. Prithiviraj has succeeded in obtaining over $2.5 million in research funding from the most prestigious funding agencies, including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canada Foundation for Innovation, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and the Shastri Institute. He also serves as the principal investigator for many industry-led projects with funding from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Atlantic Innovation Fund, and the National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program.