Project 460981

CanFly began more than thirty years ago in 1991, when the relatively small number of laboratories in Canada at the time that used Drosophila as a model system got together at the Kananaskis Field Station in Alberta to exchange ideas and discuss their research. Over the past three decades, the number of labs in Canada that use Drosophila as their primary research focus has grown to more than 80, working on a variety of research areas including developmental biology, cell biology, neurobiology, behaviour, and evolution. Many labs now utilize not just genetics but genomics to address research questions, and many also use Drosophila to model a variety of human genetic diseases. CanFly has a long tradition of bringing together members of many of the Canadian Drosophila community having drawn 80-160 attendees at the past few meetings. It has thus served a very valuable role in permitting the exchange of ideas and fostering collaborations among the groups, which are spread across the country and might otherwise not have much opportunity to interact. The core philosophy of CanFly is to provide a supportive environment focused on promoting trainee science and welcoming new trainees and labs to the Canadian Drosophila community.