NSERC, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, exists to support scientific research and work in Canada. They support students in post-secondary educationn; researchers in the university setting; and try to support Canadian companies investing in research. A government-funded organization, NSERC will have invested $550 million in university-based research and training in all the natural sciences and engineering in Canada by the end of 2001.
NSERC was founded on May 1, 1978 by the Canadian government. Some of the programs that NSERC offers are student scholarships, research grants and funds for equipment in research settings (mostly in universities) and research-technology training for scientists.
http://www.nserc.ca