SFU expert in community-centred climate innovation, mechatronic systems engineering professor and Canada Research Chair Erik Kjeang leads the Fuel Cell Research Laboratory. The research team is working to develop efficient, affordable and durable fuel cells that will provide reliable and sustainable clean energy options.

Sustainable energy engineering professor Taco Niet is an expert in community-centred climate innovation and studies the nexus—or interactions—between climate, land, energy and water systems (CLEWs) as a whole. His global energy systems models are designed to inform policy and ensure the most beneficial use of finite natural resources.

Throughout 2022, SFU scholars continued to make breakthrough scientific discoveries that are transforming their disciplines, benefitting our communities and broadening our understanding of the planet.

This week we highlight the scholarly works that received the most attention according to Altmetric and the most-cited academic papers—SFU's top 22 publications of 2022.

Starting in January, small amounts of some illegal substances will be decriminalized in British Columbia. SFU Criminology professor Alissa Greer says this is an excellent step forward to reframe drug use as a health issue instead of a criminal issue. As a Michael Smith Health Research B.C. Scholar, Greer will study how the new law is interpreted and used day-to-day by police officers. 

Greer recently published a study, Simple possession as a 'tool': Drug law enforcement practices among police officers in the context of depenalization in British Columbia, Canada. 

Health Sciences Professor Scott Lear studies how the neighbourhoods we live in can affect our health. His recent study finds that more urban greenspace plus higher socioeconomic status is linked to lower risk of diabetes—advice that urban planners can literally take to heart.

The COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, mass migration and other shocks have disrupted organizations across the globe. SFU Beedie School of Business professor June Francis says businesses can improve their resiliency by drawing upon the diverse range of capitals found in the wider community.

Her paper, Resources for business resilience in a COVID-19 world: A community-centric approach, co-authored with Beedie alumnus and IE Business School professor Stephanie Beninger, outlines how businesses can use the novel and actionable integrated capital framework to survive—and to thrive.

School of Interactive Arts and Technology Professor Carman Neustaedter and collaborators Brennan Jones and Anthony Tang used an interdisciplinary approach to create RescueCASTR – new technology that uses wearable cameras to help search and rescue personal communicate in the backcountry. 

Health Sciences Professor Charlotte Waddell and her research team at SFU’s Children's Health Policy Centre found that in many affluent countries—Canada included—less than half of children with mental health disorders receive any services for these conditions. She recommends an urgent call to action to support children’s mental wellbeing.

The study, Prevalence of childhood mental disorders in high-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis to inform policymaking, was published in Evidence-Based Mental Health.

Research from SFU Economics professor Fernando Aragón suggests that policies to foster small-scale agriculture in the Global South may be counterproductive. Facilitating land transactions and eliminating distortionary policies could help farmers thrive.

His article, Are small farms really more productive than large farms? co-authored with Diego Restuccia (University of Toronto) and Juan Pablo Rud (Royal Holloway, University of London) was published in Food Policy.

Anne Salomon is a leading marine ecologist and professor with Simon Fraser University’s School of Resource and Environmental Management. Her research on sea otters points to the value of using traditional Indigenous knowledge to inform how coastal ecosystems are managed today.

Salomon's study, Archaeological and Contemporary Evidence Indicates Low Sea Otter Prevalence on the Pacific Northwest Coast During the Late Holocene, with SFU REM graduate and first author Erin Slade and University of Victoria Professor Iain McKechnie was supported by the Heiltsuk, Wuikinuxv and Tseshaht First Nations, and has been widely reported in the media.