In December 2015, a dear colleague and founding UNBC faculty member, Dr. Lito Arocena passed away after a short battle with cancer. In honour of his memory, a UNBC memorial fund was established to support three student awards, which have recently been instituted:

• Dr. Joselito (Lito) Arocena Memorial Scholarship ($1000). Available to a full-time undergraduate student who has completed 90 credit hours and is pursuing a Bachelor of Science honours or majors degree in one of the following: Biology, Environmental Science, Geography, or Natural Resources Management. Criteria: Academic excellence
• Dr. Joselito (Lito) Arocena Memorial Undergraduate Thesis Prize ($250). Awarded for the best thesis presented by undergraduate students completing an undergraduate major or honours degree in one of Biology, Environmental Planning, Environmental Science, Environmental Studies, Geography, Natural Resources Management, or Nature-based Tourism Management.
• Dr. Joselito (Lito) Arocena Memorial Graduate Prize ($250). The Prize will be awarded to the student nominated by the NRES Graduate Program for the UNBC Governor General’s Gold Medal.

Thanks to contributions from donors and UNBC, the fund is currently large enough to endow the $1000 scholarship in perpetuity. However additional contributions are needed to permanently endow the two prizes and to increase the amounts awarded over time.

The Institute invites its members and the wider community to join it in supporting the Dr. Joselito (Lito) Arocena Memorial Fund. Donations are can be made through the UNBC Office of University Advancement. Please visit the UNBC Giving website for more information on how to send in donations. When submitting your donation, please specify that you would like your gift to be contributed to the Dr. Joselito (Lito) Arocena Memorial Fund.