“There are so many here in Manitoba and throughout Canada who are richly deserving of the award that I’m privileged to have even been considered,” Pierce said. “The University of Manitoba has provided me with the environment and support I required throughout my career to achieve what I did, and I’m eternally grateful.”

Pierce, a worldwide leader in cardiovascular research, has published more than 250 peer-reviewed research manuscripts and eight textbooks.

His research has shown that dietary flaxseed might be able to regulate high blood pressure to an extent that it would have a significant impact on incidence of heart attacks and stroke. He is further studying flaxseed’s role on blood pressure and its health benefits during recovery from heart attack and on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

“Congratulations to Dr. Pierce for being appointed to the Order of Canada,” said Dr. Jude Uzonna, vice-dean of research for the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, and associate dean of research for the Max Rady College of Medicine. “His dedication to scientific research and his decades-long commitment to better understand heart disease are recognized with this prestigious honour.”

From 2006 to 2020, Pierce was executive director of research for St. Boniface Hospital. He has served as chair of the Executive Review Committee for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, and he held the position of editor-in-chief of the Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology.

He is currently the president of the International Academy of Cardiovascular Sciences.

Pierce received his bachelor of physical and health education from Lakehead University, his master of science from Dalhousie University and his PhD from UM. He completed postdoctoral training at University of California, Los Angeles.

Pierce has been the recipient of many honours, including the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Research Canada Leadership Award. He was also appointed to the Order of Manitoba and elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

The five other UM community members who were recently appointed to the Order of Canada include Dr. Keith Walley, a member of the UM medicine class of 1981.

Dr. Pam Perkins, BA(Hons.)(Utah), MA, PhD(Dalhousie)
Wednesday, October 17, 2018, 3:30 p.m.

An internationally respected leader in her field, Dr. Pamela Perkins is widely recognized for her scholarship on eighteenth-century culture and literary history, including topics such as the Scottish Enlightenment, the history of the novel, women’s writing, literary travel writing, and literary conceptions of the North.

Since joining the University of Manitoba in 1994, she has developed a reputation as a generous and dedicated mentor, not only to her students, but to many of her colleagues as well.

Dr. Perkins has published nine scholarly editions of novels and letters, and most recently, edited selections from the journals of Sir Thomas Cochrane, Governor of Newfoundland from 1825-1834. Her work has been published in leading venues of her field, including national and international presses such as Cambridge, Ashgate, and Palgrave.

Whether editing anthologies or charting genres and trends with her students, she brings to light issues that speak to a broader, cultural current. She has made available texts that can be difficult to access, engaging both academic and non-academic readers. By modelling a deep intellectual curiosity, Dr. Perkins inspires her students to consider the diverse voices that shape past literary cultures and societies, and is admired by colleagues nationally and internationally for her contributions, insight and grace.

Dr. Adele Perry, BA(Simon Fraser), MA, PhD(York)
Wednesday, October 17, 2018, 3:30 p.m.

An esteemed historian and educator, Dr. Adele Perry reaches deep into the past to advance contemporary dialogue on western Canada, Indigenous Peoples, colonialism, and gender.

From 2003-2014, Dr. Perry held the Canada Research Chair in Western Canadian Social History, focusing her work on the history of colonialism in North America and beyond. In her role, she invited visiting speakers to share their knowledge, created opportunities for post-doctoral fellows and hosted workshops for young scholars to discuss their own work.

In 2011, she co-authored the People’s Citizenship Guide, speaking to public programming for newcomers and social justice movements. For this work Dr. Perry earned a University of Manitoba Outreach Award. 

Most recently, she has focused her efforts on educating Manitobans about how the history of water in this province is tied to the history of colonialism. Her book Aqueduct: Colonialism, Resources, and the Histories We Remember, exposed the cultural, social, political and legal mechanisms that enabled the City of Winnipeg to obtain its water supply by dispossessing the Shoal Lake 40 First Nation.

Dr. Perry is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, president of the Canadian Historical Association and vice-president of the International Federation for Research in Women’s History.

Dr. Grant Pierce, OM, B.P.H.E.(Hons.)(Lakehead), M.Sc.(Dalhousie), PhD (Manitoba)
Friday, October 26, 2018, 2:00 p.m.

Dr. Grant Pierce’s transformative research has improved the well-being of people with cardiovascular diseases and diabetes across the globe.

As executive director of research at St. Boniface Hospital, he played a key role in establishing the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences. He also established the Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research in Health and Medicine, a unique collaboration bringing together Manitoba universities, the St. Boniface Hospital and the federal government (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada).

His research on cardiovascular disease with a focus on diabetes, hypertension and heart failure, is internationally renowned. He was among the first to show how diabetes directly affects the heart muscle. Recently, he prompted a breakthrough in the fight against antibiotic-resistant bacteria through the creation of a new platform of antibiotics that demonstrate great potential to avoid multi-drug resistance.

Described as an outstanding mentor, teacher and role model, Dr. Pierce inspires his students to bring ingenuity to their work.

Dr. Pierce is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the 2016 Research Canada Leadership Award. In 2013, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and this year was inducted into the Order of Manitoba.

Distinguished Professors are nominated and honoured annually. Find out more about how to nominate a deserving individual.

The award recognizes “excellence in Canadian Health Advocacy among both individuals and institutions dedicated to advancing health research and health innovation in Canada.”

It was presented to Pierce on November 22, 2016, in Toronto at the Prix Galien and Health Research Foundation Research Awards Gala.

“I congratulate Dr. Pierce on this recognition of his outstanding leadership in the field of cardiovascular research, both in Canada and internationally,” says Dr. Digvir Jayas, vice-president (research and international) and Distinguished Professor at the University of Manitoba. “He is considered one of the top cardiovascular scientists in the world and, as such, a global research leader.”

“St. Boniface Hospital is very proud of Dr. Grant Pierce,” says Dr. Bruce Roe, president and CEO, St. Boniface Hospital. “By awarding him the 2016 Leadership award, Research Canada is recognizing Dr. Grant Pierce’s efforts to advance health research and innovations and his strong commitment to translating the knowledge gained through research into health benefits for the people of our community.”

Pierce just completed a 13 year term as the editor of the Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology. He recently received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for service to Canada and is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the highest distinction for a scientist in Canada.

Research Canada is a multi-stakeholder alliance of private, academic and voluntary sector organizations dedicated to advancing health research and translating research into innovative products and services that deliver social and economic benefits to all Canadians.