Policy pathway for suicide prevention in bridge design and development - BC-1019

Project type: Innovation
Desired discipline(s): Public administration, Social Sciences & Humanities, Urban studies
Company: Crisis Centre of BC
Project Length: 4 to 6 months
Preferred start date: 09/01/2026
Language requirement: English
Location(s): BC, Canada
No. of positions: 1
Desired education level: Master'sPhDPostdoctoral fellow
Open to applicants registered at an institution outside of Canada: No

About the company: 

The Crisis Centre of BC is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting individuals experiencing crisis and preventing suicide through compassionate, timely, and accessible services. The Centre operates crisis lines, provides suicide prevention training and education, and supports individuals and communities affected by suicide-related distress and loss.
Beyond direct service delivery, the organization is actively engaged in systems-level improvement to address upstream risk factors. A key focus is expanding suicide prevention beyond reactive interventions toward proactive, structural solutions embedded in public systems. This includes advancing research, policy engagement, and infrastructure-related initiatives that reduce access to lethal means and create safer built environments.
The Centre’s work is guided by a commitment to public benefit, evidence-informed practice, and collaboration with researchers, governments, and community partners. In the context of infrastructure, the organization is particularly interested in how planning, design standards, and policy frameworks can incorporate suicide prevention considerations early in project development. By bridging public health and infrastructure systems, the Centre aims to support long-term, scalable approaches that reduce risk, save lives, and promote community well-being

Describe the project.: 

This project explores how suicide prevention can be systematically embedded into the planning, design, and delivery of future publicly accessible bridge infrastructure. Suicide prevention barriers are an evidence-based form of means restriction that can reduce suicide deaths by creating time, distance, and interruption during acute crises. However, these interventions are often considered only after a bridge becomes associated with repeated incidents, leading to costly and reactive retrofits.
The objective of this research is to identify the most effective and durable policy and implementation pathway to ensure that suicide prevention risk assessment, and where appropriate, barrier design, are integrated into new bridge projects from the outset. The project will map the current landscape of policies, standards, codes, regulatory frameworks, and decision-making authorities that govern bridge planning and construction in Canada.
Key research components may include:
• Analysis of governance structures and infrastructure decision-making processes across jurisdictions
• Review of existing engineering standards, transportation policies, and procurement practices
• Identification of gaps where suicide prevention considerations are absent or optional
• Evaluation of potential policy levers, including national standards, provincial regulations, municipal requirements, and funding conditions
• Development of criteria to determine when suicide prevention barriers should be required
• Comparative analysis of relevant practices in other jurisdictions
The project will produce both an academic research output and a practical policy roadmap outlining where and how suicide prevention requirements could be integrated to achieve lasting systems-level impact. The ultimate goal is to shift suicide prevention upstream by embedding it into infrastructure systems, ensuring future bridge design better reflects public safety and public health considerations.

Required expertise/skills: 

• Public policy analysis (federal, provincial, and municipal frameworks)
• Infrastructure governance and regulatory systems
• Transportation and infrastructure planning
• Built environment / urban systems analysis
• Public health research (particularly suicide prevention / means restriction)
• Qualitative research methods (policy review, stakeholder mapping, document analysis)
• Comparative jurisdiction analysis (Canada and international best practices)
• Knowledge translation and policy writing (turning research into actionable recommendations)
• Interdisciplinary research skills (integrating engineering, planning, and health perspectives)
• Critical thinking and systems mapping (identifying leverage points across complex systems)