Dr. Dara Kelly, Dr. Bonny Norton, and Dr. Ken Lertzman

After the cancellation of the 2020 Distinguished Academics Awards ceremony, we were able to honour the three winners together in person. Join CUFA BC President Daniel Laitsch in conversation with the award winners as they discuss the outstanding scholarship and public policy contributions of the distinguished academics. Academics whose research and scholarly activity have made significant contributions to the non-academic community.

The CUFA BC Distinguished Academics Awards celebrate the ideas that contribute to the non-academic community and demonstrate the necessity and vitality of university-based research and scholarly activity.

Meet the winners of the 2020 Distinguished Academics Awards

2020 Early in Career Award

Dr. Dara Kelly, Simon Fraser University

This award recognizes the contributions to the non-academic community made by faculty members who are at an early point in their careers.

Dr. Dara Kelly receives the Early in Career Award for her work in shedding light on Indigenous economies and their philosophies. Dr. Kelly’s work has helped fill in gaps in the literature on the economic concepts and practices of the Coast Salish and other Indigenous nations. Her efforts to educate the public have placed her in front of government and policymakers, speaking on issues that arise from these minority states. She has presented in numerous conferences and public spaces in an effort to challenge conventional economical practices and inform positive change by drawing on knowledge of Indigenous economics.

Toggle below to see more conversation with Dr. Kelly.

2020 Ehor Boyanowsky Academic of the Year Award

Dr. Bonny Norton, FRSC, University of British Columbia

Named after the president who created the Distinguished Academics Awards during his term, this award recognizes a specific and recent outstanding contribution to the community beyond the academy through research or other scholarly activity by an individual or group at any stage of their career.

Dr. Bonny Norton, FRSC, receives the Ehor Boyanowsky Academic of the Year Award for her Global Storybooks initiative, a project that is spreading literacy across five continents. Dr. Norton is a leading researcher of literacy and multilingualism and a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. The Global Storybooks (https://globalstorybooks.net ) translates open-source stories from African Storybooks into languages spoken in various countries, making them accessible to Canadians and a wider international audience. Global Storybooks has also expanded to include Indigenous Storybooks. The Global Storybooks initiative makes stories available in Indigenous languages, as well as in English, French, Spanish, and the most widely spoken immigrant and refugee languages of Canada. 

Toggle below to see more conversation with Dr. Norton

2020 Paz Buttedahl Career Achievement Award

Dr. Ken Lertzman, Simon Fraser University

Named in memory of Dr. Paz Buttedahl – academic, community builder and faculty association leader – this award is for sustained outstanding contributions to the community beyond the academy through research or other scholarly activities by an individual or a group over the major portion of their career.

Dr. Ken Lertzman receives the Paz Buttedahl Career Achievement Award for his decades-long commitment to BC’s old-growth forests and forest ecosystems. Dr. Lertzman is a leading researcher of forest structure, ecosystems dynamics, and forest disturbance regime. He has facilitated advancement of sustainable forest practices through service on community and government advisory panels and boards throughout his career. A founding co-director of the Hakai Institute for Coastal Peoples, Ecoystems, and Management, Dr. Lertzman has also worked with government organizations, First Nations, ecosystems scientists, and forest professionals in an effort to spread awareness on the effects of climate change.

Toggle below to see more conversation with Dr. Lertzman