(OTTAWA, December 16,2010) — Four of Canada’s top social sciences and humanities researchers have been recognized for their achievements through prizes awarded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). The SSHRC Gold Medal for Achievement in Research, the SSHRC Aurora Prize, the SSHRC Postdoctoral Prize, and the SSHRC William E. Taylor Fellowship are among the Canadian research community’s highest honours.
"Our government celebrates the achievements of Canada’s researchers, whose work helps to improve the lives of Canadian families and build economic opportunities for future generations," said the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State (Science and Technology). "As reflected in the Government of Canada’s Science and Technology Strategy, we are committed to developing, attracting and retaining the world’s best researchers here in Canada."
"These prizes acknowledge outstanding researchers and students for their contributions to research, and for building knowledge that is essential to the quality of life for Canadians,” said Chad Gaffield, President of SSHRC. “SSHRC invests in scholarship and the development of talent that is making a difference nationally and internationally. These winners are excellent examples of the impact that research in the social sciences and humanities has on society, and of its importance to Canada’s success."
SSHRC awards these prizes to the researchers in the social sciences and humanities who have significantly advanced understanding in their fields of research, enriched Canadian society, and contributed to the country's cultural and intellectual life.
J.R. (Jim) Miller, historian and Canada Research Chair in Native-Newcomer Relations at the University of Saskatchewan, has won the 2010 SSHRC Gold Medal for Achievement in Research. The $100,000 award is given to an individual whose leadership, dedication and originality of thought have significantly advanced understanding in his or her field of research.
Miller has played an important role in bringing aboriginal issues, such as treaty rights and residential schools, to the attention of the Canadian public, and creating understanding about their historical significance and relevance in present-day Canadian society. He serves on the research advisory committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, which was established by the Government of Canada on June 1, 2008. He has also acted as an advisor to the Office of the Treaty Commissioner in Saskatchewan.
Miller is the author and co-author of nine books and more than 100 articles and book chapters, and has lectured widely across Canada and internationally. His seminal Shingwauk’s Vision: A History of Native Residential Schools was the first history of residential schools in Canada, and has served as a crucial reference for aboriginal leaders, provincial and federal government policy-makers, lawyers involved in resolving abuse claims, and journalists.
Miller’s Skyscrapers Hide the Heavens: A History of Indian-White Relations in Canada and its companion volume Sweet Promises: A Reader on Indian-White Relations in Canada are required reading in history and native studies courses at Canadian universities. Miller’s research is particularly significant for its impact beyond the academic world—such as in Saskatchewan public schools, for which Miller has developed curriculum guides for teaching an understanding of treaties.
Alan Durston, a cultural historian at York University, won the SSHRC Aurora Prize. The prize awards $25,000 to an outstanding new researcher who is building a reputation for new research in the social sciences or humanities. Originally from Chile, he is recognized worldwide as an expert in written Quechua—Peru’s main indigenous language. His current research looks at an almost forgotten period of Quechua literature—1900 to 1975—which was part of an effort to construct a Peruvian national identity and promote a national literature through a bilingualism policy. As part of his Aurora Prize-winning project, Durston will produce a book that will be published in both English and Spanish.
The $10,000 SSHRC Postdoctoral Prize went to philosopher Owen Ware. The prize is awarded to the year’s most outstanding SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship recipient. Ware, currently at the University of Toronto, is examining Immanuel Kant’s theory of moral education to better understand how children gain their sense of morality, and how that process relates to moral change in adults. In short, how do we learn to be “good” as children, and how can we use that same process to change our “bad” behaviour as adults?
Jean-François Bissonnette, a PhD student in geography at the University of Toronto, received the SSHRC William E. Taylor Fellowship, a $5,000 prize given to the student with the year’s most exceptional SSHRC doctoral research proposal. Bissonnette is researching the major socio-economic impacts of the rapid conversion of forests into palm-oil tree plantations in Indonesia. In order to understand the limits and potential of palm-oil production, Bissonnette has analyzed Indonesian government policies and has interviewed more than 50 workers, as well as foremen and recruiters.
All the winners were selected by a rigorous peer-review process, and prize funds will be directed to their research activities.
SSHRC is the federal agency that promotes and supports university-based research and training in the humanities and social sciences. Through its programs and policies, the Council enables the highest levels of research excellence in Canada and facilitates knowledge sharing and collaboration across research disciplines, universities and all sectors of society.
Media Contacts:
Trevor Lynn
Communications Manager
Phone: 613-992-7302
Email: trevor.lynn@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca
