The Institute holds regular seminars to which distinguished Canadians are invited to contribute their knowledge on a broad range of Canadian issues. It also hosts a regular exchange of students with the Centre for the Study of Canada at SUNY, Plattsburgh, a faculty exchange with the Canadian Studies program at Duke University, and offers a one year Seagram visiting chair in Canadian Studies. The Institute offers interdisciplinary and experimental courses in Canadian Studies. It welcomes visiting Canadian and international scholars and makes available to them the rich resources in the Montreal region for the study and understanding of Canada. With Penguin, it sponsors a publishing series under the title Understanding Canada .
Annual conferences attract national participation to explore pan-Canadian issues.
The MMPC's research program is centred on the quantitative description and mathematical modelling of complex liquid and solid metal processing operations. The Centre has a particularly strong research program related to the manufacture and processing of steel and aluminum. Strong links and collaboration exist with the Canadian metallurgical industry for process analysis, design and optimization. McGill Polymer is a joint project of the departments of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. A broad range of important aspects of polymers and plastics technology are covered.