An anthropologist working with indigenous people in northern Polar Regions and a researcher specializing in tourism management in both the Arctic and Antarctic have been elected to the College of Fellows of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

Media Download: Dr. Jim McDonald.

Long-time University of Northern British Columbia Anthropology Professor Jim McDonald and Pat Maher, an Associate Professor of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism Management, were elected to the College at an event in Ottawa recently, attended by the Governor General of Canada, David Johnston, and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Media Download: Dr. Pat Maher.

“It is a privilege to be elected to the College of Fellows and to be amongst such distinguished Canadians as Robert Bateman and Sheila Watt-Cloutier,” says Dr. McDonald, who is also a founding member of UNBC’s faculty, and Chair of the Council of the University of the Arctic, which the University will host next year.

Drs. McDonald and Maher join UNBC Geography Professor and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair Greg Halseth, who was elected as a Fellow of the Society in 1996.

"Connecting with like-minded academics and explorers is critical to my work as an educator and researcher," says Dr. Maher, who is part of the cross-institution Antarctic University Expedition program and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies (North America) for the University of the Arctic. “Belonging to the College will create personal linkages that support experiential teaching at a regional scale, which in turn connects to the type of expedition programs I collaborate with on research.”

The Royal Canadian Geographical Society is one of Canada’s largest non-profit educational organizations and is dedicated to imparting a broader knowledge and deeper appreciation of Canada, its people, and places.

The Society’s College of Fellows is comprised of individuals who act as the voting body of the Society and are elected at the Annual General Meeting.