Revisions for 2010

Participation of Humans

1. Ingestion projects are not allowed at the CWSF, unless carried out under professional supervision at a laboratory licensed to carry out such studies. These are projects in which humans are required to consume an item. Some measurements are then made. This complete ban has been instituted because there are rare cases of serious side effects from ingesting substances, including fatal interactions occurring between such items and other medications being taken by the Participant.
2. The Forms have been removed from the Policy Document and placed on the Youth Science Canada web site. Links can be found both on this site, and on the Document Download section of the CWSF registration site.

Use of Animals

1. Cephalopods are now under the same rules as Vertebrates.
2. Reference to the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research (USA) has been added. They have a fine -2 page brochure on the use of animals.
3. The language has been simplified in some sections.
4. The Forms have been removed from the Policy Document and placed on the Youth Science Canada web site. Links can be found both on this site, and on the Document Download section of the CWSF registration site.

Request a Ruling

1. Download this Form.
2. Save it on your computer.
3. Fill it in and save it using the free Acrobat Reader version 8 or 9.
4. Send it attached to an email addressed to ethics@ysf-fsj.ca.

Humans

Science fairs often include excellent projects involving human research participants. These projects are based in the social and behavioral sciences such as psychology, sociology, and education, and in related health sciences such as physiology, kinesiology and nursing.

We need to ensure that participants are safe, that they are treated with respect and dignity, and that the information they provide will be kept confidential. These ethical safeguards are primarily the responsibility of the science fair student researchers and their supervisors. We do want to make sure that projects that involve the participation of humans are mentored, and that all appropriate safety and ethical concerns are addressed.

Animals

There are restrictions on the use of animals in science fairs. Projects involving non-vertebrate animals are allowed. Vertebrate animals can only be used under very restricted conditions.

We do want to make sure that projects involving animals are mentored, and that all appropriate safety and ethical concerns are addressed.

Guidelines

We offer these guidelines to all Science Fair Regions with three goals in mind.

• To present the information that individual participants and Regional Fair Committees need to understand the ethical issues.
• To make it as easy as possible for participants to follow appropriate guidelines for projects that involve ethical issues.
• To define clearly the rules that participants at the Canada Wide Science Fair must follow. We do not want to impose a burdensome set of procedures on participants, their teachers or parents where the project involves an experiment that carries minimal risk.
• Researchers who carry out their project in an institution such as a school or research laboratory, must follow the policies of that institution, which may be more restrictive than those given here.

Youth Science Canada provides a set of guidelines and a procedure for ethical review.

Student researchers and their advisers must read these before starting to design their projects.

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