Sodexo Funds Research for University of Ottawa’s LIFE Research Institute

Founded in 2009, the Sodexo Institute for Quality of Life is an in-house ‘think-tank’ inspired by Sodexo’s conviction that improving quality of life leads to the progress of individuals and contributes to the performance of organisations.  

To help improve the quality of life for people in Canada and beyond, we believe that increased collaboration between companies and universities - particularly in the area of research - is necessary.  

This is why Sodexo has developed a partnership with the University of Ottawa's LIFE Research Institute. As part of this partnership, Sodexo contributes financially to "investigator-generated research," in which the researchers themselves have full decision-making power to determine the themes that will advance knowledge across the country.    

In 2020, three research themes were identified and selected by researchers and the University of Ottawa's LIFE Research Institute on the basis of the impacts their results could have on quality of life and contribute to future health and well-being.

 

The Three Research Projects

 

Technological advances for the elderly

Advances in technologies designed to help older people is something we have all been witnessing over the years. Using innovative research methods, researchers will study how technology would affect older people’s experiences and their ability to age at home – a subject that remains vastly understudied.

 

Nutrition of pregnant women in a context of socio-economic vulnerability

With the collaboration of an interdisciplinary partnership, this research project will study a novel social nutrition approach to decrease maternal and infant health inequalities. It will focus on identifying psychosocial, economic and institutional determinants of the peri-maternal nutritional status of vulnerable pregnant women.

 

Health care trends for First Nations people with disabilities  

Aiming to better understand health and well-being from an indigenous disability perspective, an interdisciplinary team of First Nations leaders and researchers specialized in disability practices will study the perspectives of First Nations people living with a handicap to have access to better health care. The study will also evaluate First Nations understandings and perspectives on disability. Learn more.