The start of a new year and a new semester brings with it a new focus on the environment and sustainability at Thompson Rivers University. The arrival of an internationally regarded expert in the field, Dr. Tom Owen, to the new position of Director, Environment and Sustainability at TRU is a giant step forward in one of seven major strategic goals set by the university.
Dr. Owen has over 30 years of environment and sustainability experience as a senior government official in Canada, Europe, Southeast Asia and the Caribbean where his roles included Deputy Minister, Project Director and Project Manager.
During his term as the Deputy Minister for Environment and Workplace Safety and Health for the government of Manitoba he chaired the committee that developed the National Round Table on Environment and Economy, the first national institutional support for sustainable development in Canada. His expertise includes determining environmental policy and practice in air, water and waste, capacity building for environmental program implementation and project management, and communicating the need for change to a wide and varied audience.
A former Harvard University senior environment policy and health advisor to the government of Slovakia, Dr. Owen has lectured at a number of universities in the United States, Canada and Europe including Harvard University, the University of Toronto, Queen’s University, and the University of British Columbia, to name a few.
“I see my role as being one of coordination, and my initial agenda is to get to know people and learn more about the many great ideas and initiatives that are already in place ” said Owen, who officially opens his office for business this week, after relocating from Slovakia, where he has lived for the past fifteen years.
“While I had researched TRU before interviewing for this position, I was genuinely surprised by the many good things I saw when I arrived. What makes TRU different from any other place that I have been is that everyone is involved in this important issue. There is tremendous balance with students, faculty and administration committed to this and working in tandem, and I think this balance is one that any other university would envy.”
He will work closely with the Environmental Advisory Committee and is responsible for developing policy and directives to assist TRU in becoming the University of Choice for Environmental Sustainability.
Contact: Josh Keller, Director Marketing Communications, (p) 250.828.5008, (c) 250.851.6843 or
Dr. Tom Owen, (p) 250-852-7199
