SFU Professor Habib Chaudhury
SFU March 20, 2025 by Sarah Qiu
We are thrilled to announce that Habib Chaudhury, gerontology professor at Simon Fraser University, has been awarded the prestigious SFU Research Excellence Award.
This recognition celebrates Chaudhury’s outstanding contributions to research in Environmental Gerontology, particularly in the area of environmental design for people living with dementia.
In response to the award, Chaudhury expressed his gratitude and reflected on the importance of collaborative efforts, stating, “I am honoured and delighted to receive an SFU Research Excellence award recognizing our team’s research in environments for people living with dementia. I am grateful for the nomination from the FASS Dean’s office, and a cornerstone element of this recognition is the Dementia-Inclusive Streets and Community Access, Participation and Engagement (DemSCAPE) project’s contribution and impact.”
The DemSCAPE project, a critical initiative funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and the Alzheimer Society of B.C., is central to Chaudhury and his team’s recent community engaged research. It tackles the pressing need for development of dementia-inclusive communities and the role of the neighbourhood built environment. The project’s contribution and impact are a result of interdisciplinary collaboration. Chaudhury’s research team includes collaborators from multiple institutions, such as Drs. Lillian Hung and Alison Phinney (University of British Columbia), Drs. Shannon Freeman and Mark Groulx (University of Northern British Columbia), Cari Randa-Beaulieu, Kishore Seetheraman, Joey Wong, Emma Rossnagel, Lily Ren, Mohammadjavad Nouri, and Myia Wilhelm, and several dedicated research assistants.
Reflecting on the collaborative nature of the DemSCAPE project, Chaudhury emphasized the importance of working together to create lasting change: “The collective work in research, community engagement, knowledge mobilization, and implementation will continue with the goal of developing dementia-inclusive communities in Canada to improve the quality of life of people living with dementia.” He acknowledged the significant contributions and support from the Alzheimer Society of B.C., the City of Burnaby and the City of Richmond, SFU’s Civic Innovation Lab, and Happy Cities in various stages of the project. Most importantly, The DemSCAPE team is deeply grateful to the persons with lived experience of dementia and care partners who participated in this project.
At the heart of Chaudhury’s work is his passion for environmental gerontology, which aims to improve the lives of older adults and people living with dementia through inclusive and supportive environmental design and community-based research. He also noted the strong research program in this area by colleagues in the Department of Gerontology and the Gerontology Research Centre, “the DemSCAPE project represents SFU Gerontology’s robust community-engaged research program in Environmental Gerontology, covering multiple areas, including age-friendly communities, accessible senior housing, aging in the right place, inclusive neighborhoods for older adults and people with disabilities, and supportive physical environments in long-term care homes.” This holistic approach speaks to the far-reaching impact of the research in this area at SFU, which aims to enhance the lives of older adults and those living with dementia in diverse community settings.
This award not only celebrates Chaudhury’s significant contributions to the field, but also highlights the power of interdisciplinary research and engaged community partnerships in fostering meaningful, lasting impact. His research continues to inspire the development of more inclusive, supportive environments that can improve the quality of life for people living with dementia.
Congratulations to Habib Chaudhury on this well-deserved recognition!
