Created 10 March 2021 14:03

MEDIA RELEASE

CUFA BC Profiles the Recipients of the 2020 Distinguished Academics Awards

For Immediate Release March 10, 2021 – The Confederation of University Faculty Associations of British Columbia (CUFA BC) is pleased to release a videography series profiling the winners of the 2020 Distinguished Academics Awards: Dr. Dara Kelly (SFU), Dr. Bonny Norton (UBC), and Dr. Ken Lertzman (SFU).

The awards recognizes and honours faculty at BC public research universities who have made outstanding contributions to the community beyond the academy through their scholarship and public policy contributions. The awards bring with it the admiration of colleagues from across institutions, disciplines, geographic borders and beyond, and is recognized with a commemorative plaque and cash award.

“At CUFA BC, we believe that the ideas that flow out of our universities are the lifeblood of our citizenry and democratic landscape, our intellectual life, and our economy,” says President Dr. Daniel Laitsch. “The CUFA BC Distinguished Academics Awards celebrate the ideas that contribute to the non-academic community and demonstrate the necessity and vitality of public university-based research and scholarly activity.”

Each year, the Distinguished Academics Award winners hail from different institutions and disciplines, and conduct research in very different domains. However different their work, they are united by their passion for rigorous and meaningful scholarship – and for research that contributes to the public good.

A Business professor who uses Indigenous knowledge to challenge conventional paradigms of business and economic development, a Language and Literacy Education professor whose initiative is bringing literacy to youths across Africa and the rest of the world, and a Resource & Environmental Management professor emeritus who has dedicated his career to research, public engagement, and advocacy on BC’s old-growth forests: these professors are the recipients of the 2020 Distinguished Academics Awards.

CUFA BC has recorded a series of videographies profiling the award winners, which include a brief trailer introducing the recipient, a full-length interview with each recipient, and series of short video clips broken into themed topics.

Learn more about the CUFA BC Distinguished Academics Awards series and find the call for nominations for the 2021 awards: https://cufa.bc.ca/awards

For further information or comment please contact CUFA BC Executive Director Annabree Fairweather at 604-367-5856 or [email protected].

CUFA BC represents over 5,500 faculty members, professional librarians, lecturers, instructors, and other academics at five research-intensive universities in British Columbia, which include University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, University of Victoria, Royal Roads University and University of Northern British Columbia.

CUFA BC has existed for fifty years and works closely with the member Faculty Associations at each institution. Our purposes are to support high-quality post-secondary education and research in British Columbia and to advocate for the interests of our members.

DOWNLOAD PRESS RELEASE – CUFA BC Profiles the Recipients of the 2020 Distinguished Academics Awards