Date posted: July 14, 2025
BRIMM and power of interdisciplinary research_success factorsDownload
Vision for BRIMM
BRIMM Founder Dr. Peter Bradshaw has been investing, shaping and supporting mining research at UBC since the late 1980s when he cofounded the very successful Mineral Deposit Research Unit (MDRU) at UBC which is one of the reasons he has been inducted into the Canadian mining Hall of Fame. MDRU is focused on mineral exploration. When Dr. Bradshaw wanted to expand his research scope to encompass all of mineral extraction he founded BRIMM at UBC in 2017. He has built a diverse network, continued to invest in mining innovation and has a strong vision for BRIMM to be a unique model for interdisciplinary academic-industry collaboration.
Dr John Steen became Executive Director of BRIMM in July 2020. Prior to coming to UBC in 2019, he was the Head of the Strategy and Entrepreneurship Department at the University of Queensland Business School in Australia. On arriving at UBC Dr. Steen was appointed Associate Professor and the EY Distinguished Scholar in Global Mining Futures. Dr. Steen has written multiple papers and given numerous lectures internationally on mining economics, collaborative research, innovation in mining and other related topics. He is also a sought-after expert at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation on critical minerals and related topics. Under his leadership, BRIMM’s strategic themes expanded to include the mining microbiome, mine energy systems and decarbonization, water stewardship, and natural capital and biodiversity.
BRIMM promotes research and education for sustainable mineral extraction, collaborating with academia across disciplines and industry partners. BRIMM is built on several strategic characteristics:
- BRIMM does not build its own research team. This allows BRIMM to act as a catalyst bringing the best researchers, industry, and other key players together to cross boundaries as effective multidisciplinary teams to tackle and accelerate solutions to pressing problems.
- BRIMM coordinates industry technical and financial participation through its extensive networks
- BRIMM has an advisory board of senior university faculty (currently the deans of science and applied science) and senior international mining executives.
- BRIMM encourages rapid commercialization and pathways to impact.
- BRIMM offers mining education to international cohorts to expand the mining industry’s human capital. An economic leadership course leading to executive micro certificates and an award-winning course on sustainable mine closure showcasing best practices are in demand.
- BRIMM collaborates nationally and internationally with other universities.
- BRIMM Foundation funds, which provide annual core funding, are managed by the Vancouver Foundation and can be donated to any CRA qualified university or institution worldwide.
- The Executive Director was appointed after an international search and has dedicated his time to building the BRIMM network of industry and academic relationships.
BRIMM has also gained experience in managing complex industrial-academic partnerships, resulting in technology spin-out companies such as the recently launched nPhyla. BRIMM’s unique approach to establishing strong partner relationships has also led to BRIMM-UBC being the only Canadian university involved in the US $150M Rio Tinto Centre for Future Minerals (RTCFM) in 2024. RTCFM is a 10-year global initiative to support cutting-edge collaborative research addressing mining challenges into the future. These case studies are highlighted here.
Success factors in creating a technology venture: nPhyla case study
nPhyla is a new venture focused on developing a genomics intelligence platform for the mining sector, delivering scalable tools for biodiversity monitoring, microbial discovery, and environmental recovery. After five years of development within the Mining Microbiome Analytics Platform (M-MAP) project supported by the Canadian Digital Supercluster program, the company was spun out of UBC in collaboration with industry partners from the M-MAP research consortium. nPhyla is currently raising its first round of financing with an experienced CEO and management team. While nPhyla is on track for successful commercialization, its story also offers a rich case study in managing university spin-out ventures. We describe the timeline and success factors behind the commercial development of nPhyla and insights into establishing international research collaborations.
Phase 1: Ideation for impact
UBC researchers Steven Hallam (Microbiology and Immunology, UBC Faculty of Science), working in microbial ecology, bioinformatics and bioengineering, and Sue Baldwin (Chemical and Biological Engineering, UBC Applied Science), an aexpert in bioprocess engineering and mining bioremediation, had synergistic interests in interdisciplinary research linking genomics and mine waste management. The Hallam Lab provided research and technical expertise integrating robotics, automation, genomics, data management/analysis and artificial intelligence (AI). The Hallam lab released the MetaPathways pipeline for environmental sequence annotation and single‑cell genomic tools in 2017 (Genome BC support). At the same time, Sue Baldwin and Teck Resources were conducting research into selenium water treatment using biological methods (Genome BC support). Hallam and Baldwin’s shared interest in understanding microbial action in the mining environment became the impetus for a mining microbiome research theme. In 2017, Peter Bradshaw, co-founder of the MDRU, contributed $5M to UBC for a new institute that would promote cross-disciplinary research with industry across the full mining lifecycle. This donation led to the creation of the Bradshaw Research Institute for Minerals and Mining (BRIMM).
With growing interest in exploring microbial solutions in mining, BRIMM held scoping workshops in 2019 to articulate the mining microbiome vision, identify research concepts and potential industry partners. These workshops were facilitated by environmental consultants Hemmera and included Genome BC and Mitacs. Ambitious interdisciplinary ideas with the potential to positively impact the mining industry were explored, and the BRIMM Mining Microbiome theme was launched in a 2020 webinar. Teck’s Director of Innovation attended the launch and subsequently approached BRIMM proposing to collaborate on developing the mining microbiome genomics platform through the Digital Supercluster program.
Phase 2: Building the M-MAP partnership
The Digital Supercluster program supported consortium-based innovation, encouraging diverse partners to work on ambitious projects related to digital technologies applied to mining. The goal was to accelerate the commercialization and adoption of digital solutions through a consortium model, which required at least one Canadian startup company. Teck and BRIMM-UBC worked together to form an effective consortium for the Digital Supercluster project to develop the Mining Microbiome Analysis Platform, or M-MAP. Koonkie, a genomics startup founded in the Hallam lab, joined the consortium along with the VP Geotechnical Engineering of BGC Engineering, an international geotechnical and engineering consulting firm, who was also on the BRIMM board. BRIMM was already working with Rio Tinto’s Manager of Closure R&D; and Rio Tinto joining the M-MAP consortium added significant international expertise. BRIMM also invited Allonnia, a biotechnology start-up with an innovative process for recovery of nickel, copper, lithium and other critical minerals, and two government partners, the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation (CEMI) and Genome BC, to join the team.
Phase 3: Creating the new venture
The Digital Supercluster application was successful, and the M-MAP project launched in October 2021. The M-MAP consortium began work on Phase 1 under terms outlined in a Master Project Agreement. Phase 2 then focused on use cases for the M-MAP platform and commercialization of the technology. BRIMM-UBC and Teck chaired the steering committee for the M-MAP consortium. The M-MAP project was funded at $14M from all consortium partners, with $4M provided by Digital Supercluster, and $1.2M from BRIMM-UBC (cash and in-kind contributions). Despite several technical and financial challenges, the commercial venture “M-MAP Technologies Inc.” was incorporated in April 2024, with initial seed funds from consortium partners, Rio Tinto and Teck. A new CEO was hired in November 2024, and the company changed its name to nPhyla Technologies Inc. nPhyla has now received investments from the Strategic Innovation Fund (MICA $160K) and from Ignite BC (Innovate BC $300K).
Success factors
Director John Steen’s efforts to bring Rio Tinto participation at a senior level to the MMAP consortium diversified the consortium and brought more use case applications, expertise and resources to the project.
BRIMM provided the resources to support the project during challenging delays. While Digital was reviewing its Phase 2 decision, BRIMM had the unique ability to make significant high-risk investments, at its discretion, trusting that the process would resolve appropriately. BRIMM hired a M-MAP project manager during Phase 2 to manage reporting and coordination requirements, along with the Teck manager. These resources were not easily available from the other consortium partners.
As co-chair of the steering committee, BRIMM was effective in playing the role of deal maker between consortium partners to resolve disputes in the agreement. BRIMM was seen as a trusted partner, and its role in the consortium expanded along with its funding support.
Establishing International Collaborative Research: The Rio Tinto Centre for Future Materials
The strength of the ongoing relationship with Rio Tinto led to BRIMM-UBC being selected as the Canadian partner in the Rio Tinto Centre for Future Materials. Following the completion of the MMAP project, John Steen was contacted by the Rio Tinto Chief Scientist, inviting BRIMM-UBC to join the international research consortium.
Rio Tinto’s news release in July 2023 announced that: “Rio Tinto commits $150M to Centre for Future Materials led by Imperial College London… The ‘Rio Tinto Centre for Future Materials’ will fund research programmes to transform the way vital materials are produced, used and recycled, and make them more environmentally, economically and socially sustainable…. Under the partnership, Rio Tinto and Imperial will together define a set of major global challenges that need to be addressed. These will form the basis of the first research programmes the Centre pursues, in partnership with a selection of international academic institutions… The Centre will be established in the second half of 2023, with the first research programmes funded in 2024. Rio Tinto will contribute $150M over 10 years to fund the Centre.”
Five universities from around the world were invited to be part of the Rio Tinto Centre for Future Materials (RTCFM). These are Imperial College London; the University of California, Berkeley; the Australian National University; the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and BRIMM-University of British Columbia, Vancouver. BRIMM Director John Steen is a member of the RTCFM Technical and Social Committee, while Dr. Walter Merida, UBC Associate Dean of Research, participates on the Steering Committee. BRIMM-UBC researchers have been successful in leading three of the work packages to address the first Grand Challenge of the RTCFM, “Delivering Future Material Systems for Energy Transitions with Integrity: Overcoming the Copper Challenge”, totalling US $2.88M in research funding over 3 years.
Success Factors
BRIMM’s and specifically, John Steen’s collaborative experience with Rio Tinto personnel – dating back to when he was at the University of Queensland Business School – led to Rio Tinto’s participation in the M-MAP project. In managing the M-MAP Supercluster project, BRIMM’s ability to attract partners and key personnel, handle operational problems and provide the leadership and financial resources to resolve issues quickly, were key to its successful completion. We believe this experience developed trust in BRIMM’s approach, and the BRIMM model of collaborative interdisciplinary research and encouraging commercialization of the best ideas has led to BRIMM-UBC being selected as the Canadian university partner for the Rio Tinto Centre for Future Materials.