Canada’s Forest Sector Announces Awards of Excellence Recipients, Celebrating Its Best and Brightest

As National Forest Week is celebrated across the country, Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) is seizing the opportunity to announce the recipients of its annual Awards of Excellence program – which recognizes the outstanding people across Canada who have made exceptional contributions to the forest sector and to forestry communities.

“The FPAC Awards of Excellence program is an opportunity to pay tribute to the remarkable people who help make our sector a world leader in sustainable forest management and who advance the many environmental, social, and economic benefits of Canadian forestry,” said FPAC President and CEO Derek Nighbor. “As we continue our transition to a low-carbon economy, Canada’s forest products sector is proud to honour the dedicated professionals who strengthen the benefits that sustainable forest management, forest products, and family-supporting forestry jobs provide to Canadians from coast-to-coast.”

FPAC’s 2022 Awards of Excellence recipients include:

FPAC Community Champion Award

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• Todd Doherty – MP for Cariboo-Prince George, British Columbia
• Clara Reinhardt – Mayor, Village of Radium Hot Springs, British Columbia
• Dale Bumstead – Mayor, City of Dawson Creek, British Columbia
• Alberta Northwest Species at Risk Committee (NWSAR)

FPAC Partnership Award

• Indigenous Resource Network (IRN), Robert Merasty – Calgary, Alberta
• United Steelworkers (USW), Jeff Bromley – Burnaby, British Columbia

FPAC Member of the Year Award

• Tom Ratz – Resolute Forest Products, Thunder Bay, Ontario

FPAC Lifetime Achievement Award

• Susan Yurkovich – Council of Forest Industries & BC Lumber Trade Council, Vancouver, British Columbia
• Mark Tamas – Tolko Industries, Coldstream, British Columbia
• Joerg Goetsch – Mercer International Inc., Vancouver, British Columbia

FPAC Rising Star Award

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• Christa Campbell – Resolute Forest Products, Thunder Bay, Ontario

FPAC Women in Forestry Award

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• Wendy Crosina – Weyerhaeuser Canadian Timberlands, Edmonton, Alberta

FPAC-Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) Indigenous Business Leadership Award

• Dave Gill – Ntityix Resources LP, West Kelowna, British Columbia

FPAC-Canadian Council of Forest Ministers (CCFM) Skills Awards for Indigenous Youth

• Neepin Cook – Misipawistik Cree Nation (Grand Rapids, Manitoba)
• Sarah Dixon – Esketemc First Nation (Alkali Lake, British Columbia)
• Jordan Germain – Pekuakamiulnuatsh First Nation (Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec)

To learn more about FPAC’s Awards of Excellence recipients, please visit: https://www.fpac.ca/

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Established in 1983, Silvacom™ is a leading natural resource management company providing professional services to private and public sector organizations. We’re passionate about working collaboratively and creatively with our clients and partners to solve complex natural resource management challenges in the most efficient and cost-effective way. We have over 120 staff working in areas of environmental management, forest management, GIS, remote sensing, and geospatial application development. We have been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Small and Medium Employers (SMEs) since 2016 and one of Alberta’s Top Employers since 2017. Learn more at www.silvacom.com.

About MNP

National in scope and local in focus, MNP is one of Canada’s leading professional services firms — proudly serving individuals, businesses, and organizations since 1958. Through the development of strong relationships, we provide client-focused accounting, consulting, tax, and digital services. Our clients benefit from personalized strategies with a local perspective to fuel success at every stage.

About Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC)

FPAC provides a voice for Canada’s wood, pulp, and paper producers nationally and internationally in government, trade, and environmental affairs. As an Industry with annual revenues exceeding $75B, Canada’s forest products sector is one of the country’s largest employers operating in over 600 communities, providing 225,000 direct jobs, and over 600,000 indirect jobs across the country.

Contact:

Kerry Patterson-Baker – Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs – kpatterson-baker@fpac.ca – (613) 563-1441 x 314

Source: Forest Products Association of Canada