On Wednesday night (November 9), the Dal-hosted Ocean Tracking Network (OTN) received a prestigious national honour: the Canadian Museum of Nature's Nature Inspiration Award.
OTN directors Sara Iverson (scientific director) and Fred Whoriskey (executive director) were on-hand in Ottawa to receive the award, which recognizes individuals and organizations that, through their work or specific projects, encourage Canadians to take an interest in natural history, create links with nature and contribute to its preservation.
OTN was recognized in the "Not-for-Profit Organization (Large)" category. The other finalists were the Nature Conservancy of Canada and the Vancouver Aquarium's Ocean Wise program.
Nature Inspiration Award video: Ocean Tracking Network:
“We are honored and humbled to have received this award,” says Dr. Whoriskey. “It comes because visionary backing from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada unlocked the potential of Canada’s world class research community and the OTN staff and governance to tackle work that needed to be done in our oceans”
Headquartered at Dalhousie, OTN has been tracking the movements and survival of aquatic animals globally since 2008 and has grown to include a database of more than 140 valued study species in collaboration with over 100 research institutions worldwide. It has become a global leader and important component of the United Nations Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission’s Global Ocean Observing System, fostering excellence, diversity, focus and coherence among the pan-Canadian and international research communities.
OTN research projects focus on areas including: the sustainable expansion of shell fish farms and artisan fisheries; working collaboratively with harvesters, industry and government, to provide information on population structure of staple fisheries; and providing the global infrastructure on which to track the movement and survival of highly migratory species and ecological regulators, like sharks. OTN is also a key part of the Dal-hosted Ocean Frontier Institute, announced in September.
The Award was presented by the Canadian Museum of Nature CEO, Margaret Beckel, and The Globe and Mail editor in chief, David Walmsley. For more on the award, visit the OTN website.
Left-to-right: Margaret Beckel, David Walmsley, Sara Iverson, Fred Whoriskey. (M. Lipman/CMN photo)