Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has just appointed Lebanese biochemist Mona Nemer as the country's chief science advisor, a position that has been unoccupied for nearly a decade.
Nemer was previously vice-president of research at the University of Ottowa for more than 10 years.
She is now the country's top scientist, the first woman to hold the position, whose main role is to advise top government officials including Trudeau and Kirsty Duncan, Canada's Science Minister, on scientific matters.
Trudeau said her input will be based on "scientific issues of national importance," according to National Post.
She will also help keep government science accessible and public while ensuring federal scientists are not censored from sharing their research, despite the clashes it may have with the government's policy.
"I’m taking this job to make a difference, and I intend to do so," Nemer said.
She will handle a $2 million budget to fulfill her duties.
Nemer is the "first woman to hold the position"
"It's an honor to have been chosen as Canada's new Chief Science Advisor," she tweeted
About Mona Nemer
Nemer earned her Ph.D. in bio-organic chemistry at McGill University.
Alongside her previous role as vice-president of research at the University of Ottawa, Nemer was also the director of the Molecular Genetics and Cardiac Regeneration Laboratory.
Her scientific research is heavily focused on the genetics of cardiovascular disease and birth defects. However, she has also ventured out into different areas including chemistry, cellular and molecular biology, pathophysiology and clinical studies.
She has published more than 150 articles in various scientific journals and books. Her work has also earned her several national and international awards including the McDonald Scholarship from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and the Léo Pariseau Prize in Biological and Health Sciences from ACFAS, to name a few.