The Canada Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Research Network (CanFASD) is a collaborative, interdisciplinary research network, with collaborators, researchers and partners across the nation. It is Canada’s first comprehensive national Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) research network. It started as an alliance of seven jurisdictions and operated for seven years as the Canada Northwest FASD Research Network.

CanFASD’s unique partnership brings together many scientific viewpoints to address complexities of FASD, with a focus of ensuring that research knowledge is translated to community and policy action. Our mission is to produce and maintain national, collaborative research designed for sharing with all Canadians, leading to prevention strategies and improved support services for people affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.

Working in partnership across the country – CanFASD is collaborating with national entities concerned with FASD, including the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), Health Canada and NeuroDevNet. PHAC is the government of Canada agency responsible for public health in Canada and they fund a number of programs and activity related to FASD. Today, CanFASD researchers are currently taking part in almost all of the FASD research projects across Canada that are supported by PHAC. CanFASD researcher are currently leading 25 major projects related to FASD prevention, intervention and diagnostics. CanFASD connects researchers, graduate students and practitioners from communities and institutions across Canada, and internationally.

CanFASD is not a funding body nor can it provide direct services.

Our Vision

All Canadians are engaged and united with awareness, evidence and knowledge and are effectively addressing the complexities of FASD.

Our Mission

CanFASD supports Canada’s leadership, across all sectors and at all levels, in addressing the extraordinary complexities of FASD.

The Network does this through producing and sustaining national collaborative research, shared with all Canadians, focusing primarily on the critical areas of prevention, intervention and diagnosis.

The work of the Network leads to increasingly effective prevention strategies and practice and improved support for people affected by FASD.

Our Values & Principals

Undertake, coordinate and facilitate research that is meaningful and applicable to families, governments, service providers and stakeholders

CanFASD works collaboratively with partners and stakeholders

To use appropriate language when communicating about FASD, recognizing the sensitivities and complexities of FASD

CanFASD recognizes and values the critical importance that research contributes to informing policy and program development and delivery

Our Goals

  1. To develop and foster relationships, research programs, and initiatives across the spectrum of FASD activity
  2. To facilitate and enhance productive linkages across jurisdictions, communities, and disciplines related to FASD
  3. To answer high priority questions that are meaningful about the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of FASD to disseminate empirically validated knowledge about the prevention, prevalence, surveillance, diagnosis and treatment of FASD
  4. To inform policy, practice and decision making to become a centre of expertise on FASD in Canada
  5. To build a sustainable research network
  6. To build research capacity and knowledge across and within all communities

CanFASD's Commitment to Indigenous Partnership, Reconciliatory Research, and Action

CanFASD staff and researchers come from multidisciplinary backgrounds with expertise in FASD prevention, diagnosis, intervention, justice, and child welfare, each with diverse experience working with Indigenous peoples and in Indigenous communities. The following commitments to partnership, reconciliatory research, and action with Indigenous peoples and in Indigenous communities recognize the diverse positionality of CanFASD staff and researchers.

Engagement du Réseau canadien de recherche sur le TSAF (CanFASD) en matière de partenariat avec les Autochtones, de recherche de réconciliation et d'action

Le Réseau canadien de recherche sur le TSAF (CanFASD) est un réseau de recherche collaboratif et multidisciplinaire qui travaille à résoudre les complexités du trouble du spectre de l'alcoolisation fœtale (TSAF) grâce à la recherche et à l'échange de connaissances. Notre mission est de mener et de nous engager dans des projets de recherches pour éclairer les stratégies de prévention, de diagnostic et d'intervention, l'amélioration du soutien et l'action politique.