Dr. Fenech Named Winner of the 2014 Community Builder Award

The PEI Association of Planners today announced the winner of the second annual Murray Pinchuk Community Builder Award, in conjunction with World Town Planning Day. Dr. Adam Fenech, Associate Professor and Director, Climate Research Lab at the University of Prince Edward Island, has been named the 2014 Community Builder. 

"The Prince Edward Island Association of Planners was very pleased to have received several nominations this year for deserving groups or individuals. The Association has selected Dr. Fenech as the 2014 winner based on his efforts to develop a coastal erosion visualization tool and his work to share ideas on how best to adapt to coastal erosion and sea level rise," said Vahid Ghomashchi, president of the PEI Association of Planners. "This award is a testament to all who seek to make the built and natural environment better for the community as a whole. Dr. Fenech’s work demonstrates the value of sharing information with the public in the interest in generating discussion on solutions for sustainability. The CLIVE tool also reminds us all of the need to be innovative and creative in how we consult with the public we serve.” 

Honourable mentions were also given to the provincial Task Force on Land Use Policy and Robert Hughes, CAO with the Town of Stratford. 

The award was established last year in honour of the late Murray Pinchuk, a member of the Association, friend, and motivator. “Murray was an inspiration to us all with his humble and joyful demeanor,” said the 2013 award winner, Peter Brown. “His twinkle and sarcasm blended made him unpredictable and fun.” 

ABOUT DR. ADAM FENECH: 

Dr. Fenech has worked extensively in the area of climate change since 1988 starting with the IPCC First Assessment Report. He has edited 7 books on climate change, most recently as editor of the international journal on Climate Impacts and Adaptation Science. Dr. Fenech has taught at the University of Toronto since 1998, and lectures regularly at universities across Canada and around the world. Dr. Fenech is presently the director of the Climate Lab at the University of Prince Edward Island. CLIVE, the coastal erosion visualization tool created by UPEI’s Climate Research Lab and the Spatial Interface Lab at Simon Fraser University, has taken first place in the Massachusetts Institute for Technology’s (MIT) Center for Collective Intelligence contest on Communicating Coastal Risk and Resilience. 

ABOUT THE MURRAY PINCHUK COMMUNITY BUILDER AWARD: 

The Murray Pinchuk Community Builder Award is a new award being offered by the PEI Association of Planners to recognize an individual, group, or organization that has, through their outstanding volunteerism or exemplary action, demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to making their Prince Edward Island community a better place today and for the future in a way that touches on either the built or natural environment. 

This may include life-long service, innovative or accessible site design, promoting land use planning in their community, or any other exemplary achievement enhancing the interaction between people and their environment. 

The Pinchuk Community Builder Award recognizes the highest standard of Community building excellence in the public and private realms. 

For additional information, contact Patrick Carroll at pjcarroll@gov.pe.ca.

Download the press release here.