CAG Award for Geography in the Service of Government or Business

Dr. Terry Prowse

Dr. Prowse easily distinguishes himself as a professional geographer with a long history of achievement in the Federal Public Service. He completed his Bachelor of Environmental Studies in Geography at the University of Waterloo (1976), his MSc in Geography at Trent University (1978) and his PhD in Geography at the University of Canterbury (1981). Since returning to Canada, Dr. Prowse has been employed by Environment Canada (Ottawa, Saskatoon, Victoria) as a government scientist. His main research interest is with the impact of climate change on water resources and freshwater ecosystems, particularly in cold regions.

Dr. Prowse currently holds the position of Senior Research Scientist with the National Hydrology Research Institute, where he acts as Project Chief for the Climate Impacts on Hydrology and Aquatic Ecosystems directorate. Dr. Prowse concurrently holds a professorship and research chair in Climate Impacts on Water Resources in the Department of Geography, University of Victoria. He also holds, or has held, adjunct professorships at the University of Alberta, the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, the University of Saskatchewan, and Trent University.

Dr. Prowse’s research career has seen him make substantive contributions within many cognate areas. These contributions are amply portrayed within his attached curriculum vitae. Notable achievements include benchmark research papers within the scholarly areas of climate impacts on hydrology and aquatic systems, and circumpolar cold regions hydrology.

Dr. Prowse’s career holds many achievements including: Membership on the Scientific Steering Group, World Climate Research Program, Climate and the Cryosphere program; Lead Author, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change  special theme report on Climate and Water; Membership on the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council, of Canada, Northern Grant Selection Committee; Membership on the Senior Scientist Promotion Review Committee for the Scientific Research Group. Environment Canada; Co-lead, Canadian National Assessment of Climate Change-Arctic; Chair, International Working Group for International Arctic Science Committee: International Conference on Arctic Research Planning II; Lead Author, Polar Regions, Working Group II, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 4th Assessment; Member, Canadian Climate Impacts and Adaptation Research Network Water Resources Advisory Committee; Canadian Government Representative to the UNESCO-International Hydrologic Programme; Membership on the Province of British Columbia Climate Action Team and President of the Canadian Geophysical Union.
These activities and others have garnered Dr. Prowse national and international appreciation benchmarked by receipt of a:

• Doctor of Environmental Studies, Honoris Causa, in 2007 from the University of Waterloo. Dr. Prowse was recognized by the University for his Expertise on the impact of climate variability and change on hydrology, water resources and freshwater ecosystems in northern environments.

• Nobel Peace Prize. Dr. Prowse was a 2007 co-award winner, with Al Gore, as a multi-year Lead Author to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

• Craigdarroch Award for Societal Contribution.  Dr. Prowse was recognized by the University of Victoria in 2008 for contributions that highlighted the university as an internationally recognized centre of excellence in climate change research.

As recorded above, Dr. Prowse has a consummate record of service with the Government of Canada as both a practicing physical geographer and accomplished scholar. The well-deserved attention these endeavours bring to the practice and application of physical geography in Canada suffice to identify Dr. Prowse as deserving candidate for the CAG Award for Geography in the Service of Government or Business.

We intend, however, to draw specific attention to a singular initiative that Dr. Prowse spearheaded. In the summer of 2001, Dr. Prowse approached the Department of Geography at the University of Victoria to gauge whether there was interest in developing an academic partnership with the National Water Research Institute. Dr. Prowse’s intention was to establish a Water & Climate Impacts Research Centre (WCIRC) that would foster communication and joint research programs between government and academia. In the fall of 2002, Dr. Prowse and team of scientific staff relocated from Saskatoon to the University of Victoria, where they joined the Department of Geography. 

This pioneering relationship sees Dr. Prowse heading a group of twelve scientific staff who are focused on assessing the effects of climate and related synergistic stressors on the hydrology and ecology of aquatic ecosystems. The mentoring and supervisory opportunities that Dr. Prowse and his WCIRC colleagues have brought to the department have provided for an unprecedented expansion of climate-related research opportunities. Undergraduate and graduate students are now fully engaged in a variety of regional, national and international research programs. University staff and geography faculty members are collaborating with Dr. Prowse in a variety of research programs, most notably within Northern Canada where there was previously only a limited departmental tradition of research. Largely thanks to his personal interest in expanding these relationships, Dr. Prowse has markedly expanded the disciplinary profile of geography within the university and throughout the Province of British Columbia.

Despite his many and varied professional successes, it is telling that Dr. Prowse still proudly describes himself as a geographer. A better and more deserving candidate for the CAG Award for Geography in the Service of Government or Business would be difficult to find.