BoFEP & OTHER AWARDS


BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award
                         
2004 Recipient       
                        
 - 2006 Recipient   
                          - 2009 Recipient
                          - 2011 Recipient
   

BoFEP Student Awards
                          - 2004 Recipients

                          - 2006 Recipients
                          - 2009 Recipients
                          - 2011 Recipients
 
BoFEP Special Recognition Award (2004)
 

Gulf of Maine Council Recognition Awards
                      

NS Department of Environment and Labour Bay of Fundy Awards
                           


BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award

BAY OF FUNDY ECOSYSTEM PARTNERSHIP
"Environmental Stewardship Award"

The Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP) has created an award to recognize the significant efforts of individual citizens toward the environmental stewardship of the Bay of Fundy. The first of these awards was presented in 2004 at the 6th Bay of Fundy Workshop held at the Annapolis Basin Conference Centre, Cornwallis Park, Nova Scotia.

You are invited to submit nominations for this Award
Nominators should complete the nomination form and submit it in confidence
in the year (see workshop page for deadlines) in which a BoFEP Bay of Fundy Science Workshop is being held, to:

BoFEP Award Nominating Committee
BoFEP Secretariat
c/o Acadia Centre for Estuarine Research
23 Westwood Avenue, P.O. Box 115
Acadia University
Wolfville, Nova Scotia, B4P 2R6

Qualifications for the Award
This award will be presented to an individual who has "contributed significantly to the environmental health/sustainability of the Bay of Fundy" — preferably someone best described as an "unsung hero", who has not been in the limelight but has laboured behind the scenes in advancing the Mission and promoting the Principles of BoFEP listed below. The requirements are broad and flexible, but will specifically consider the qualities of dedication and achievement No one will be excluded because of their circumstances, job, position, location or other factor.

BoFEP's Mission

  • Promoting the ecological integrity, vitality, biodiversity and productivity of the Bay of Fundy  ecosystem, in support of the social well-being and economic sustainability of its coastal communities.
  • Facilitating and enhancing  communication and co-operation among all citizens interested in understanding, sustainably using and conserving the resources, habitats and ecological processes of  the Bay of Fundy.

BoFEP's Principles:

  • Conservation, protection and management of the Bay  of  Fundy’s living resources and their habitats should be ecosystem-based and reflect an holistic understanding of ecosystem structure, processes and interactions.
  • Resource development and other coastal zone activities should be based on ecologically sound integrated coastal planning and management.
  • Coastal planning and management should be transparent and open to participation by resource users, coastal communities, industries, scientists, governments, managers and all other individuals and groups with interests in the Bay of Fundy ecosystem.
  • Effective communication and active co-operation among all citizens with an interest in the Bay of Fundy, and linkages with groups and programs that share similar objectives are vital to this enterprise.

Terms of Reference for the BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award
Background:

During the first half dozen years of its existence, BoFEP established itself as a credible and consistent promoter of good environmental stewardship relative to the Bay of Fundy through its commitment to science and community sustainability. At its Steering Committee meetings of January 30, 2004, it approved the creation of an "Environmental Stewardship Award", and these Terms of Reference on April 15, 2004.

Objective:
This award will be presented to an individual that has "contributed significantly to the environmental health/sustainability of the Bay of Fundy", preferably one who might be described as an "unsung hero", who has not been in the limelight as a prominent player, but has worked hard behind the scenes toward the Mission and within the Principles of BoFEP. The requirements should be both broad and flexible, but specifically consider the qualities of dedication and achievement. It should not exclude anyone because of their current circumstances, job, position, location or any other factor.

Nominating Committee:
A three-member Nominating Committee will be appointed by the BoFEP Steering Committee at least three months prior to each Workshop to conduct the selection process. The Chair of BoFEP will also be an ex officio, non-voting member of the Nominating Committee. Nominations will then be requested from all members of BoFEP, although nominees need not be BoFEP members. They are to be submitted to the committee through the BoFEP Secretariat over a two-month timeframe leading up to a Workshop, with a deadline no later than one month prior to the workshop date. Each nomination must include a supporting statement outlining the candidate’s qualifications for the award. The Nominating Committee will then evaluate the submissions and select a winner, and inform the Chair of the outcome. The name of the winner will be held in confidence by the Chair, Nominating Committee (and Secretariat) until the presentation ceremony, unless the Chair decides for cause to do otherwise.

Presentation:
The Chair of BoFEP will present the award approximately every second year in conjunction with each BoFEP Workshop. It is intended that the presentation be a notable and publicized event, and associated with a social function rather than the formal workshop ceremonies. If required, reasonable travel expenses of the winning candidate to attend this ceremony will by covered by BoFEP.

Format:
The award will consist of a framed, matted document with the BoFEP logo, noting the winners name, the date, purpose of the award and a synopsis of his/her qualifications that supported their selection by the Nominating Committee. This award may be accompanied by some other suitable gift.


Recipient of 2004 BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award

Patricia Rae Hinch
Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Labour

Pat Hinch was recognized for her steadfast vision, energy and dedication toward a healthy Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine during recent times when provincial coastal policies and commitments have been in a period of uncertainty and change. She exemplifies an individual who cares about our coasts, coastal communities and marine resources, and one who translates such concern into action, making significant contributions to sustainability of the ecosystem. BoFEP was proud to honour Pat with its first Environmental Stewardship Award as a fitting tribute to her achievements over many years on behalf of the Bay of Fundy.

 


Recipient of 2004 BoFEP Special Recognition Award

Graham Daborn
 
Acadia Centre for Estuarine Research, Acadia University

 

This special award recognizes Graham's long-standing leadership of the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership, both as a founding member and its first Chair, a position he has served in with distinction, dedication and ability during much of the first decade of BoFEP's existence.
 

 

 

 

 

 


Recipient of 2006 BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award

Peter G. Wells
Environment Canada (retired)

At the workshop Banquet, Dr. Peter Wells, recently retired from Environment Canada in Dartmouth, NS, was presented with the BoFEP "Environmental Stewardship Award" for 2006. Peter has been a driving force behind many of BoFEP's science-oriented activities, particularly the biennial workshops, technical reports and the activities of several of the working groups. He has been untiring as an editor of, and contributor to, all of the Workshop Proceedings. Congratulations Peter on this well-deserved award and thanks for all the energy, enthusiasm and support you have given to BoFEP ever since its inception.

 


Recipient of 2009 BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award

Moira Brown
New England Aquarium & Canadian Whale Institute

One of North America’s leading specialists on North Atlantic Right Whales, Dr. Moira Brown, was honoured at the 8th Bay of Fundy Science Workshop held from May 26-28th at Acadia University. Dr. Brown, currently a senior right whale scientist with the New England Aquarium and the Canadian Whale Institute, has dedicated her career to saving the North Atlantic Right whale in Canadian waters. The biennial Bay of Fundy Stewardship Award is presented by the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP) to an individual who has “contributed significantly to the environmental health/sustainability of the Bay of Fundy”. At Right, Peter Wells, the Chair of BoFEP, presents the award to Moira Brown.

 

Dr. Brown has not only increased our knowledge of Right Whale biology and ecology through her innovative and wide-ranging research, but has also played a major role in the development of the federal government’s Right Whale Recovery Plan (2000) and the more recent Recovery Strategy for the North Atlantic Right Whale (Eubalaena glacialis) in Atlantic Canadian Waters. Her research and informed counsel led to the moving of the shipping lanes in the Bay of Fundy in 2003, thereby reducing the potential for a ship striking a right whale by 90 %. Her efforts also contributed to the designation in 2008 of a seasonal and voluntary “Area to be Avoided” on Roseway Basin on the Scotian Shelf (another critical Right Whale habitat). The latter ruling affects all vessels of 300 gross tonnage and upwards, with the exception of fishing vessels. Dr. Brown and Dalhousie researchers Angelia Vanderlaan and Chris Taggart used decades of Right Whale sighting data, coupled with vessel transit data, to provide the information that enabled Transport Canada to convince the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to adopt significant conservation measures to reduce the risk of vessel strikes for Right Whales in Atlantic Canadian waters.

 

Dr. Brown’s conservation efforts and research have also recognized the need to understand and appreciate the effects that her research, and the decisions based on it, has on all stakeholders involved around the Bay. As a result, she has developed a unique relationship with the marine communities (fishing, shipping and whale watching) that share the waters of Atlantic Canada with these threatened whales. By working closely with, and making her research available to, these communities Dr. Brown has directly and indirectly promoted the ecological integrity, vitality, biodiversity and productivity of the Bay which has led to enhancing communication and cooperation throughout communities in the Bay.


Recipient of 2011 BoFEP Environmental Stewardship Award

 

Stephen Hawbold
Former Executive Director of Clean Annapolis River Project (Retired)

 

The 2011 Award was presented to Stephen in recognition of his vision, energy and dedication toward healthy watersheds and wetlands around the Bay of Fundy. For the past two decades, as Executive Director of the Clean Annapolis River Project, he has been the pre-eminent voice for environmental conservation and stewardship throughout the Annapolis Valley and adjacent areas of the Bay of Fundy. His inspiring leadership, formidable networking and management skills, and his infectious enthusiasm have sparked a host of environmental success stories throughout the region. He has always been adept at bringing the right partners to the table and encouraging them to work together to develop win-win solutions. He has long been, and continues in retirement to be, a forceful voice for environmental reason and responsibility in the Fundy region.

 

 

 


 

BoFEP Student Awards
BoFEP encourages and recognizes exceptional achievements by University students in research pertaining to the Bay of Fundy by awarding prizes for the best student papers and posters presented at its Bay of Fundy Science Workshops. First and second place awards are presented in each category. Panels of judges carefully review all eligible oral paper presentations and poster displays before rendering their decisions. The prizes consist of a modest cash award, a suitable book, a certificate and a letter of commendation for the students portfolio.


Recipients of 2004 Student Presentation Awards

First Place Student Paper
Ashley Sprague
 University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB
"F actors Affecting Movement of Semipalmated Sandpipers ( Calidris pusilla)
Migrating Through the Upper Bay of Fundy"

First Place Student Poster
Vanessa Paesani
 Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB
"Intraspecific Genetic Variation in the Centric Diatom
Thalassiosira nordenskioeldii Cleve"

Second Place Student Paper
Sam Ng' gang' a
 
University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB
"The Proposed Musquash MPA:
A Case Study on Boundary Delimitation Concepts"

Second Place Student Poster
Nancy Chiasson
Saint Mary's University, Halifax, NS
"Controls on the Distribution of Vegetation Characteristics
in a Tidally Restricted Macrotidal Salt Marsh"


Recipients of 2006 Student Presentation awards

First Place Student Paper
Alexander Bond
 University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB
 "Patterns of Mercury Burden in the Seabirds of  Machias Seal Island, New Brunswick"


First Place Student Poster
Korreen Millard

 Acadia University, Wolfville, NS
 "
High-resolution LIDAR elevation data of inter-tidal areas:
A potential tool for examining salt marsh vegetation communities"

Second Place Student Paper
David Drolet
 
University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB
"
Effect of density of the gastropod Ilyanassa obsoleta on distribution
and movement of the amphipod
Corophium volutator."

Second Place Student Poster
Shannon O'Connor
Acadia University, Wolfville, NS
"
The Atlantic Coastal Zone: all the little fishes"


Recipients of 2009 Student Presentation Awards

Paper Undergraduate

First - Miriam Coulthard (Mount Allison)
The Effect of Ilyanassa obsoleta on the Vertical Distribution of Corophium volutator in
Mudflat Ecosystems of the Bay of Fundy
 

Second - Beth MacDonald (Mount Allison)
Nocturnal Habits of Semipalmated Sandpipers (Calidris pusilla) and
Corophium volutator on Bay of Fundy mudflats.

 

Paper Graduate

First - Elizabeth Wallace (Acadia/Mount Allison)
Effects of Foraging Semipalmated Sandpipers on the
Vertical Distribution of Corophium volutator.
 

Second - Aaron Frenette (UNB, Fredericton)
Contemporary diagnosis of an intracellular parasite of cod: Application for
investigating the life history of Loma morhua.

 

Poster Undergraduate

First - Amanda Savoie (UNB Fredericton)
Effects of Density of the Amphipod Corophium volutator on Sediment Properties.
 

Second - Laura Bursey (UNB, Fredericton)
Abundance of Ribbed Mussels (Geukensia demissa) in Salt Marshes Located in
Contrasting Tidal Regimes: Northumberland Strait vs Upper Bay of Fundy.

 

Poster Graduate

First - David Drolet (UNB, Fredericton)
Diel and Semi-lunar Cycles in the Swimming Activity of the Amphipod
Corophium volutator in the Upper Bay of Fundy.
 

Second - Kyle Smith (Dalhousie University)
The Characterization and Tracking of Sediment-Laden Ice in Minas Basin, Nova Scotia.

 


 

Recipients of 2011 Student Presentation Awards (Photo)

Best Undergraduate Oral Presentation
Melissa Hebert
of Mount Allison University for:
Diurnal and Nocturnal Foraging Behaviours of Staging Semipalmated Sandpipers in the Upper Bay of Fundy.

Best Graduate Oral Presentation
 Andrew Taylor
of Mount Allison University for:
Movement Patterns and Habitat use of Atlantic Sturgeon, Acipenser oxyrinchus,
from the Saint John River, New Brunswick, Canada.

Best Undergraduate Poster
Alison Bijman
of Saint Mary’s University for:
The Influence of Tidal Creek Networks on Wetland Vegetation Colonization in a Macro-tidal System.

Best Graduate Poster
Betsy Barber
of UNB, Saint John for:
Predation Effects on Juvenile Invertebrates in Two Rocky Subtidal Communities

 


GOMCME Recognition Awards
 

The Gulf of Maine Visionary Awards
Visionary Awards are presented to individuals or organizations within each of the five
jurisdictions bordering the Gulf of Maine - Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. Two award recipients are selected from each jurisdiction. "Visionaries" are recognized for innovation, creativity, and commitment to environmental protection in the Gulf of Maine or the Gulf of Maine watershed. Businesses, NGOs, and individuals are eligible for nomination. Activities nominated may be of a scientific, educational, conservationist, or policy nature. The activity might be a public awareness effort, a specific grassroots action, a manufacturing change that benefits the marine environment, or simply a change in business practices to address environmental concerns.

The Longard Volunteer Award
The Longard Volunteer Award is made in memory of Art Longard, a long-time employee of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries who committed countless volunteer hours to the conservation of marine life in the Gulf of Maine. Art was one of seven people who conceived of and ardently supported the international Gulf of Maine program, and the Council is proud of his accomplishments. The Longard Volunteer Award is presented to an individual in recognition of volunteer efforts toward environmental protection and sustainability of natural resources within the marine, near shore, or watershed environment of the Gulf of Maine. Nominees for this award must be involved in volunteer community-based or cross-jurisdictional initiatives, which may include:

i stewardship/research programs designed to rehabilitate, enhance, or preserve the environmental quality of the Gulf;
i educational programs to improve public understanding and appreciation of the historic, cultural, biological, and economic value of the Gulf ecosystem, or to exchange information on specific Gulf issues;
i volunteer monitoring programs designed to collect, synthesize and deliver scientifically credible information to decision makers and managers of environmental protection and restoration programs throughout the Gulf;
i scientific research programs to investigate issues of concern within the Gulf.

Deadline for 2006 GOMCME Awards: December 4, 2006

Nomination forms and additional information [PDF format]


NS Department of Environment and Labour Bay of Fundy Awards

These awards were initially introduced by NSDEL in 1998 to show its support for public involvement in environmental management, stewardship, and education initiatives. They recognize outstanding contributions made by the public and private sector for:

i environmental stewardship, conservation, development and support of environmental management programs;
i promotion of public awareness of the Bay of Fundy ecosystem; and
i dedicated service to the Gulf of Maine Council program.

The Business Partnership Award
The Business Partnership Award recognizes a contribution made under partnership to address issues related to environmental stewardship and sustainable management of Nova Scotia's Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy environment. Nominees for this award may as a participant or leader be involved in a collaborative program involving community organizations, government or the private sector, to address issues of responsible and sustainable use of the natural environment of the Bay of Fundy.

Environmental Awareness Award
The
Environmental Awareness Award recognizes dedicated effort to increase public knowledge and understanding of environmental issues concerning the Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy ecosystem. Activities nominated for this award may be a public awareness initiative, of a scientific, educational, or policy nature, that benefits the marine/watershed environment or results in a positive change in practice/behaviors to address an environmental concern.

Deadline for 2006 NSDEL Awards: December 4, 2006

Nomination forms and additional information [PDF format]