The IRMACS Complex Systems Modelling Group (CSMG) models complex systems central to social welfare issues, with particular emphasis on modelling in healthcare and criminology. The group approaches modelling with the guiding principle that a good model is one that is both mathematically sound and applicable to real situations.

The CSMG is unique in the academic diversity of its members and the breadth of its interests. Critical to the group’s success is its partnership with the IRMACS Centre, which hosts and facilitates the CSMG’s research through its state-of-the-art collaborative and computational resources as well as its professional management support team.

The CSMG’s models unite sophisticated mathematical theory with real-world applications. The group’s models have played a role in crafting public policy through its collaborations with British Columbia’s Ministries and other policymakers, including the Ministry of Health Services, the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General, the Ministry of Attorney General and the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS. A current focus of the CSMG is modeling the complex relationships between the police, the Crown Attorney’s office, the court and the corrections systems of British Columbia’s criminal justice system. The CSMG is also currently modelling the expansion of highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART) in combating the HIV epidemic in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. The CSMG’s strength is its ability to join the theoretical with the practical in unique and innovative ways.