December 21, 2005 |
BV Research Centre Seeks Nominees for Research Excellence Awards
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dec. 21, 2005
SMITHERS – People who have made outstanding contributions to knowledge about natural resource sustainability now enjoy two new opportunities for high profile recognition, the Bulkley Valley Centre for Natural Resources Research & Management announced today.
“There’s no better way to encourage talent and research excellence than by recognizing it publicly,” said Sybille Haeussler, president of the BV Research Centre. “That’s exactly what we’re setting out to to.” Haeussler was referring to the Centre’s two newly created awards, whose criteria have just been unveiled:
- The Irving Fox Award will recognize any individual or group for an outstanding contribution to ecological, social or economic knowledge of the sustainability of natural resources in northwest B.C. this contribution could be in the form of a specific project, or a lifetime work.
- The Jim Pojar Award will recognize the author(s) of an outstanding publication, published within the previous five years, that improves scientific understanding or public appreciation of the ecological, social or human dimensions of natural resource use and sustainability in northwest B.C.
Haeussler said it’s fitting to honour Irving Fox and Jim Pojar, both founding directors of the BV Research Centre and highly accomplished in their fields, by giving their names to these awards.
“Irving Fox came to this valley in the early 80s, and is always light years ahead of us in the complex business of resolving resource use conflicts,” remembers Haeussler. “For example, the Bulkley Valley Community Resources Board, which was essentially the precursor for land-use planning boards in B.C., was his brainchild. He always emphasized the necessity of high-quality data, and of distinguishing technical information from values.”
“As for Jim Pojar,” continues Haeussler, “he is unsurpassed in B.C. in terms of the impact his publications about B.C.’s plant life and its ecosystems have had — not only among resource professionals and academics, but also with the broader public. His books, such as Ecosystems of British Columbia and Plants of Coastal British Columbia are staples on the bookshelves of every BC forester, biologist and nature-lover.”
The awards evaluation committee will be composed of four people, including two members of the BV Research Centre and one external scientist.
In keeping with the BV Research Centre’s collaborative, interdisciplinary approach to research and its desire to foster research excellence in northwestern B.C., the award criteria will cast a wide net. Although some portion of the nominees’ research, or its application, must have been in northwest B.C., nominees do not have to reside in northwest B.C. or hold memberships in the Centre , in order to be eligible for awards.
Detailed information about eligibility requirements and the evaluation process can be obtained at Awards, by email to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or phone to 250.847.6082. Award winners will be announced at the BV Research Centre’s annual general meeting and social night on Feb. 7.
“We invite people to contact us immediately if they need further information, because the nomination deadline of Jan. 13 is fast approaching,” said Haeussler.
The Bulkley Valley Centre for Natural Resources Research and Management is a registered not-for-profit society based in Smithers. The BV Centre conducts high-quality interdisciplinary research on temperate, montane, and boreal ecosystems, including their human dimensions.
MEDIA CONTACT
Sybille Haeussler, PhD, RPF, President of the Bulkley Valley Centre for Natural Resources Research & Management: 250.847.6082