Michael Ungar

Professor Michael Ungar is the founder and Director of the Resilience Research Centre at Dalhousie University where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Child, Family and Community Resilience. In 2022, Dr. Ungar was ranked the number one Social Work scholar in the world (h-index 77) in recognition of his ground-breaking work as a family therapist and resilience researcher. That work has influenced the way human adaptation in stressful environments and organizational processes are understood and studied globally, with much of Dr. Ungar’s clinical work and scholarship focused on the resilience of marginalized children and families, and adult populations experiencing mental health challenges at home and in the workplace. Among Dr. Ungar’s many research projects is his role as Principal Applicant for the Child and Youth Refugee Research Coalition, a SSHRC Partnership Grant that has brought together over 200 scholars, policy makers and settlement partner organizations who are working to identify the many factors which help refugee children successfully migrate across borders. Dr. Ungar provides regular consultation to international NGOs like the Red Cross and Save the Children, government agencies in more than a dozen low, middle, and high-income countries, and educational institutions at all levels of study. He is the author of over 250 peer reviewed articles and book chapters and 17 books.