Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research

CISUR research associate Priya Johal (left) and CISUR director Dr. Tim Naimi (right) are part of the team launching KnowAlcohol.ca, a tool and calculator designed to generate personalized estimates of the potential health risks related to an individual’s alcohol use. Photo credit: UVic Photo Services. — KnowAlcohol helps calculate on cutting back
CISUR researchers launch KnowAlcohol.ca, a tool and calculator designed to generate personalized estimates of the potential health risks related to an individual’s alcohol use—and the benefits of cutting back.
Read more

An infographic of a map of Canada with various scores assigned to provinces and territories — Getting alcohol policy back on track
CISUR's Canadian Alcohol Policy Evaluation (CAPE) project reveals worsening alcohol policy grades across Canada and proposes detailed steps to make them better.
Read more

An image of Marilou Gagnon standing in front of a colourful bookshelf — Gagnon wins 2022 REACH Award
Dr. Marilou Gagnon wins Provost’s Advocacy and Activism Award in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
Read more

A photo of Jaime Arredondo sitting in a a booth supervised consumption site — CISUR welcomes new Canada Research Chair
CISUR scientist and PHSP associate professor Dr. Jaime Arredondo is the new Canada Research Chair in Substance Use and Health Policy Research.
Read more

A close up image of a dried cannabis plant with a blue backgroun — BC legal cannabis market growing briskly
Regulated cannabis market in BC doubled between 2019 and 2020; products getting cheaper and more potent.
Read more

Woman applying warning labels to alcohol containers — New alcohol warning label research published
Real-world CISUR co-led studies show alcohol warning labels reduce sales, change minds.
Read more

Building knowledge for societal change

The Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research (CISUR), formerly CARBC, is a network of individuals and groups dedicated to the study of substance use and addiction in support of community-wide efforts to promote health and reduce harm. Our research is used to inform a broad range of projects, reports, publications and initiatives aimed at providing all people in Canada and beyond with access to happier, healthier lives, whether using substances or not. In 2021, CISUR was named the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Alcohol and Public Health Policy Research. Read more about CISUR.