Dr. Matt Reudink, Associate Professor of Biology, has been awarded the prestigious Northcote and Brink Professorship. The Professorship may be held for up to three years, and is valued at $10,000 annually.
Reudink said he is honoured by the distinction, and by the opportunities it affords his research program, which focuses on understanding the impact of events that occur throughout the year on migratory birds for the purpose of conservation.
“We tend to have a good understanding of the conservation issues that face birds that are breeding in our area, but these birds only spend a small fragment of their lives here. What we try to do is understand how factors that occur throughout the year — including migration and winter — can influence breeding and the status of a population,” he said.
“The Professorship provides me with extra funds so I can support more student research. It allows me to put more graduate and undergraduate researchers in the field, investigating the birds in our local grasslands. It also allows me to push the limits of my research a bit more and try new things that I wouldn’t otherwise be able to do.”
The professorship is funded by the Dr. Tom Northcote and Dr. Bert Brink Endowment, established in 2005, and honours the contributions of Northcote and Brink to ecology in British Columbia. The purpose of the professorship is to expand TRU’s knowledge of the connection between restoration of ecosystems and the social benefits to communities.
