Entomological Society of Canada – Gold Medal

2022 Gold Medal

Donna Giberson

The ESC Gold Medal recognizes outstanding achievement in Canadian entomology. The recipient of the 2022 ESC Gold Medal is Dr Donna Giberson, Professor Emerita at the University of Prince Edward Island.

Dr Giberson spent 25 years as an educator and researcher introducing thousands of students to biodiversity, limnology, and especially entomology at the University of Prince Edward Island. Donna gave generously of her time, not only to her institution through committee membership and academic leadership positions, but also to regional and national scientific societies, including extensive and consistent service to the Entomological Society of Canada and its publications, while serving her province and her country through her scientific advocacy and expertise.

Throughout this, Dr Giberson maintained an NSERC-funded research laboratory with which she explored the nature of Prince Edward Island and supported a continuous stream of undergraduate and MSc students, encouraging them to find and follow their individual biodiversity interests, whether they involved insects or other taxa. Over the course of her career, Dr Giberson won more than $750,000 in research funding as principal or co-principal investigator.

With students and collaborators, she has worked on diverse research questions spanning the biodiversity of the entomofauna of the Maritimes, the biodiversity and ecology of Arctic insects, agricultural entomology on PEI, and the ecology of pitcher plants and their aquatic insect inhabitants. Dr Giberson’s dedication to field observation- and collections-based natural history research, primarily regarding benthic aquatic invertebrates, has provided invaluable contributions to our understanding of Canadian freshwater environments, and has enabled biomonitoring programs to better understand the role of invertebrates in maintaining the health of vital waterways, and how they can serve as indicators of aquatic ecosystem function.

Previous Winners

1962 R.F. Morris
1963 A.W.A. Brown
1964 R. Glen
1965 M.L. Prebble
1966 C.W. Farstad
1967 B.N. Smallman
1968 W.G. Wellington
1969 K.E.F. Watt
1970 C.S. Holling
1971 J.G. Rempel
1972 R.W. Salt
1973 B. Hocking
1974 P.S. Corbet
1975 G.G.E. Scudder
1976 B.P. Beirne
1977 J.A. Downes
1978 R.W. Stark
1979 G.P. Holland
1980 G.E. Ball
1981 D.K. McE. Kevan
1982 E.G. Munroe

1983 F.L. McEwen
1984 K.G. Davey
1985 R.N. Sinha
1986 E.J. Leroux
1987 J.N. McNeil
1988 J.H. Borden
1989 M. Mackauer
1990 S. Tobe
1991 R.G.H. Downer
1992 G.B. Wiggins
1993 (No Award)
1994 T. Royama
1995 R.A. Brust
1996 J. Kukalova-Peck
1997 P. Harris
1998 D.M. Rosenberg
1999 L. Masner
2000 B.J.R. Philogene
2001 J. R. Spence
2002 R.J. Lamb

2003 H. Danks
2004 J. Myers
2005 P. Kevan
2006 R. Ring
2007 C. Gillott
2008 B. Roitberg
2009 N. Holliday
2010 C. Vincent (pdf)
2011 M. Isman
2012 F.A.H. Sperling
2013 S.A. Marshall
2014 David R. Gillespie
2015 Jon Sweeney
2016 Guy Boivin
2017 Gerhard Gries
2018 Jacques Brodeur
2019 Peter G. Mason

2020 Michel Cusson

2021 Gail Anderson

Rules

The Entomological Society of Canada Gold Medal for Outstanding Achievement in Canadian entomology (referred to hereafter as the Gold Medal) shall be awarded annually by the Society, save when the Achievement Awards Committee or the Governing Board deem that no awards should be made.

The recipients shall be judged to have made an outstanding contribution to entomology in Canada on the basis, not only of demonstrated competence, but also of one or more of the following criteria:

Superior research accomplishment, either as a single contribution or as a series of associated endeavours, which may be in either entomology per se or a related field in which the results obtained are of great consequence for entomology in Canada;
Meritorious contribution to entomological scholarship or literature, whether or not this be based upon the recipient’s own original research, and whether or not it be based upon predominantly Canadian material, providing that the contribution be identifiably Canadian in origin;
Dedicated and fruitful service in the field of entomological education in Canada;
Unusually valuable practical application of scientific or technological expertise to the credit of entomology in Canada;
Special contributions in the fields of advisory, extension, industrial, or public relations work in or to the credit of entomology in Canada.
Administrative activities leading to the achievements of others or to general advances in the science or prestige of entomology in Canada;
Long and meritorious service to the Society, or to an Affiliate.

No more than one Gold Medal shall be awarded each year, but, where circumstances warrant, more than one individual may be cited in connection with a single Award.

Recipients of the Awards need not be members of the Society, nor need they be domiciled in Canada, providing that their contribution be judged to have, or to have had, major impact on entomology in Canada.

The Award may be made on more than one occasion to the same individual or group of individuals, but only for distinctly different contributions to entomology in Canada.

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