Dr. Susan Kirkland
We are profoundly saddened by the passing of Dr. Susan Kirkland, a longstanding and deeply respected researcher in the AGE-WELL network and a former member of its Board of Directors.
Dr. Kirkland retired in 2025 as a Professor in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology at Dalhousie University. She was also one of the founding principal investigators of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA).
An epidemiologist by training, Dr. Kirkland had a long and distinguished career leading multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral research in Canada and internationally. Her work focused on chronic disease and aging, with a particular interest in understanding the complex factors that influence healthy aging. She led studies on physical activity and obesity, HIV and aging, frailty, mobility and COVID-19 in older adults, and technologies to support aging in place.
Dr. Kirkland’s involvement with AGE-WELL dated back to its inception in 2015. She co-led the major multi-year research project OA-INVOLVE, which focused on developing best practices for incorporating the experience and insight of older adults in technology and aging research. The project provided AGE-WELL researchers with practical guides to support meaningful engagement.
Dr. Kirkland’s commitment to the inclusion of older adults helped shape AGE-WELL’s approach to co-creation, a hallmark of the network.
She brought heart and soul to research beyond the data. Doing research, she said, is not only about having strong technical skills: “It’s about being able to hear the voices of others. In particular, the voices of the people engaged in the research that I’m doing.”
Subsequent projects, such as Living More with SMART Technology, which she co-led, sought to support technology development that improves the independence, functioning, well-being and quality of life of older adults in continuing care, and to create scalable and sustainable person-centred technology solutions in both long-term care and home-care settings.
Dr. Kirkland at the 2017 launch of AGE-WELL’s national innovation hub, APPTA (Advancing Policies and Priorities in Technology and Aging), in Fredericton, New Brunswick
Dr. Kirkland served as a member of the AGE-WELL Board of Directors from 2015 to 2023, strengthening the network’s governance and bringing invaluable perspectives as a researcher. Driven by her dedication to older adult involvement, she was a staunch and active supporter of AGE-WELL’s Older Adult and Caregiver Advisory Committee, recognizing the vital role the committee plays in the network’s work.
A Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences (CAHS) and a Dalhousie Distinguished Research Professor, Dr. Kirkland received the AGE-WELL Honorary Fellow Award in 2020. The award recognizes members who have made long-term and substantial contributions to research and innovation in the AgeTech sector, as well as a significant contribution to AGE-WELL.
“Susan contributed to AGE-WELL in countless ways, and her influence will continue to inform both our network and the field of technology and aging for years to come,” said Bridgette Murphy, CEO of AGE-WELL. “Her vision, leadership, mentorship, and unwavering commitment to improving the lives of older adults helped shape who we are.
“Susan believed deeply in the power of technology to enhance autonomy, independence and well-being. She championed the meaningful involvement of older adults in research and innovation, while advocating for technologies that are accessible, usable and responsive to the needs of the people they are designed to serve. She will be greatly missed.”
Dr. Kirkland died on June 26 after facing cancer. We join others in mourning her loss, and extend our sympathies to her family, friends, colleagues and students.
A tribute to honour Dr. Kirkland’s legacy is being prepared for the AGE-WELL Annual Conference in Ottawa in November 2026.
An obituary and Tribute Wall can be found here.