ULethbridge chemist to be recognized with natioinal award

Apr 22, 2026 | 2:25 PM

The Chemical Institute of Canada is recognizing a University of Lethbridge chemist.

Dr. Stacey Wetmore is to be presented with the Montreal Medal, an annual award to an individual chemist or chemical engineer for significant leadership and outstanding contributions to their field.

“My first reaction was disbelief,” Wetmore says. “If you look at the list of previous recipients, they have been from big universities or companies. The fact that I could achieve everything here at the University of Lethbridge and have the support to do so, speaks volumes about the university. It was really humbling on one hand and rewarding on the other to know you can have an impact on a field, no matter where you are.”

Wetmore is a computational chemist, using physics, mathematics, and computer programming to study chemical systems.

“We are also interested in how enzymes that repair DNA damage function or misfunction, which is related to human disease,” she says. “Additionally, we are investigating how to design drugs based on nucleic acids, where you introduce modifications. Many people understand mRNA vaccines now, after the pandemic. There are other types of RNA-based drugs, and we’re studying how those work and how to design better therapeutics.”

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Mentorship is an important aspect of Wetmore’s career, and she has been instrumental in establishing a student group to encourage inclusivity in chemistry while bringing in speakers to talk about the challenges they’ve faced.

Wetmore is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair and has served on national and international boards, panels, and committees.

She earned a BSc from Mount Allison, a PhD from Dalhousie, and completed a postdoctoral study at the Australian National University.

Wetmore will be presented the Montreal Medal and give a plenary lecture at the Chemical Institute of Canada’s annual conference in Toronto in May.

by Nathaniel Leigh

ULethbridge chemist to be recognized with natioinal award

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