AWARD INFORMATION
2020 Awards
General Information for CPHI(C):
Who is Eligible? Those working in the field of environmental public health and are a CIPHI regular member. The recipient shall display the highest level of dedication, commitment, inspiration and leadership in the field. To confirm CIPHI membership nominators should go to click on province and regular. The list is updated quarterly.
Restrictions: An individual can only receive any one of the awards once. No current member of the EHFC Board of Trustees is eligible for any of the awards.
How to Apply: Nominations open May 1st each year. To nominate an individual, describe in a letter of no more than 500 words, how your nominee fulfills the award criteria. Complete and submit the nomination form to EHFC@outlook.com and attach the nomination letter. The award will be presented at the National CIPHI Annual Educational Conference or at a mutually agreed event should the candidate not be able to attend the conference.
Canadian Water and Wastewater Association Safe Water Award
This $500 award recognizes outstanding contributions to the promotion of drinking water or wastewater safety in Canada.
This award is sponsored by the CWWA founded in 1986 to address Canadian water and wastewater issues at the national level. The CWWA is a non-profit national body representing the common interests of Canada’s public sector municipal water and wastewater services and their private sector suppliers and partners. CWWA is recognized by the federal government and national bodies as the national voice of this public service sector.
Clifford E. Van Alstyne Award Communication Award
This $1,000 award recognizes the commitment, involvement or innovation in the field of environmental public health, with a focus on communication in all of its forms--within the national environmental public health community.
The Clifford E. Van Alstyne Award is donated by the Van Alstyne family to reflect Cliff's national contribution to public health and his long-standing work to initiate and nationalize the professional journal, the Environmental Health Review. Cliff received his Certificate in Sanitary Inspection (Canada) #804 in 1952 at the age of 25 and became a life-long member of CIPHI. Cliff worked in several rural Manitoba towns and was a member of the Manitoba Branch Executive and held the positions of Councillor, Secretary, and Vice President. Cliff believed that the Institute needed to do a better job of communicating with its members so he promoted a branch newsletter which was supported by the Branch and Cliff became the first Editor of the Manitoba Branch newsletter. In 1967 Cliff moved his family to BC to take a position with the BC Ministry of Health and transferred his CIPHI membership to the BC Branch and was elected as a CIPHI National Executive Councillor in 1968. Cliff then joined the Medical Services Branch of Health Canada and became a strong supporter of Federal EHOs. In 1977, when Len Hiebert retired as the Editor of the CIPHI Environmental Health Review, Cliff became joint editor of the EHR for two years. He then along with two colleagues took on the role of Editors and Publishers of the BC Branch Page from the Winter1979 to the Spring 1982 issues.
Dr. R. Neil Lowry Safe Recreational Water Award
This $2,500 award recognizes outstanding contributions to advance safer and healthier recreational water in Canada in an effort to protect the public’s health in their community.
The Dr. R. Neil Lowry Safe Recreational Water Award is donated by Lowry & Associates. Dr. Lowry founded the Lowry School of Pool & Spa Chemistry in 1980 which has become the most comprehensive chemistry course in the industry. Dr. Lowry was a fierce defender of the integrity of the industry when it came to water treatment and loved to teach water chemistry and proper sanitation to PHIs/EHOs and pool managers.
Hedgerow Software Ltd. Award for Leadership in Environmental Health
This $500 award recognizes a PHI/EHO in any position who has consistently demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities to inspire excellence and professional integrity in the field of Environmental Public Health. who has consistently demonstrated leadership qualities of trust, commitment, and courage. This person also gives freely of themselves to coach, mentor and inspire others. They value, and actively promote, a culture of respect, empathy, openness, and inclusion. They uphold these values for themselves, their colleagues and clients.
We at Hedgerow Software Ltd. believe in the work of Environmental Public Health Professionals. We respect the vital role of each PHI/EHO in keeping our communities healthy and safe. This ongoing commitment is fueled daily by those who inspire and empower each other toward excellence and who demonstrate professional integrity within the field of Environmental Health.
Lilli Ann Zahara Award
This $500 award is presented annually to a recipient who is recognized for displaying the highest level of dedication, commitment, inspiration and leadership in the field of environmental health, particularly with a focus on food safety and/or health education.
Lil Zahara graduated from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute and received her CPHI(C) in 1967. She started her career in Ontario, but her love for the west brought her back to Alberta in 1970 where she worked for several years as a PHI and then specialized in Health Education. From 1976-1982 Lil held the position of National CIPHI Secretary-Treasurer. After several years as an employee of the Calgary Board of Health, left to begin a career as an Environmental Health Consultant. Lil was appointed to sit as a member of the Calgary Board of Health by the then Mayor of Calgary, Ralph Klein. Lil was also a member of the Canadian Public Health Association, an Honourary Member of the Canadian Restaurant Association, received an award from Academy of Chefs, and in 1977, was awarded the Canadian Silver Jubilee Medal by the Governor General of Canada. Lil died in 2004, after a courageous two-year battle with cancer.
This $1,000 award is presented who has made outstanding contributions primarily in the promotion of food safety in Canada.
The recipient shall display the highest level of dedication, commitment, inspiration and leadership in the field of environmental health, with a focus on food safety.
EHFC Continuing Education Award
Who is Eligible? Those working in the field of public health inspection and are a CIPHI regular member. The applicant can apply for an entire program or an individual course. The applicant must have taken or plan to start the program or take the course during the current year of applying for the award. The recipient can only receive the award once.
How to apply? The applicant should complete and submit the application form and attach a statement on "how further education will benefit you in the field of public health inspection". The statement is to be a maximum of 500 words. The form and application are to be emailed to EHFC@outlook.com. The award recipient will be announced at the National CIPHI Annual Educational Conference and on the EHFC website.
The recipient is required to provide proof of tuition payment within 30 days of the beginning of the semester of the Award. The candidate shall provide proof of successful completion prior to the release of the $500 award money. No member of the EHFC Board of Trustees is eligible for this award. Questions regarding this award can be directed to the Award Committee at EHFC@outlook.com
General Information for Students:
Who is Eligible? Those students enrolled in one of the six CIPHI accrediated academic institutions in the field of environmental public health and are a CIPHI student member.
Restrictions: An individual can only receive any one of the awards once. No current member of the EHFC Board of Trustees is eligible for any of the awards.
How to Apply: The student or team of students must be nominated by a faculty member. Complete and submit the nomination form to EHFC@outlook.com and attach the abstract and the full research paper. The award will be presented at the National CIPHI Annual Educational Conference or at a mutually agreed event should the candidate not be able to attend the conference.
Len Hiebert - Environmental Health Review Award
The Environmental Health Foundation of Canada, Len Hiebert - Environmental Health Review award of $500 is presented to a student or team of students conducting a research project during the academic year in each of the six accredited public health inspection programs in Canada. The award was created to encourage student participation in research leading to publication in the Environmental Health Review.
Len Hiebert, CPHI(C) was born in 1923 in Winkler, Manitoba, raised in Alberta, and moved to Ontario where he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force during WWII. In 1945 Len received his Certificate in Sanitary Inspection (Canada) and started a long and dedicated career in public health, first in Ontario and then in British Columbia. Wherever he was located Len always took an active role in his community. He was a member of the Vancouver Magic Circle, Royal Canadian Legion, Canadian Public Health Association, the B.C. Government Retired Employees Association, and the Canadian Institute of Public Health Inspectors, to name but a few. His key contribution to CIPHI was as the editor of "The Canadian Sanitarian" which he renamed the ”Environmental Health Review”. During his 7 years as editor, he switched to a full sized page, added more photos, more technical articles and a bright professional cover. Len became a one-man army handling the preparation, paste-up, advertising, and mail-out himself. Following his term as editor of the EHR, Len was appointed Editor of the B.C. Branch newsletter, the "B.C. Page" for a further 9 years.
Len Hiebert was well recognized for his contribution to the public health inspection profession and his community:
•1984 awarded the Member of the Year Award by the B.C. Branch, CIPHI
•1988 received the Order of St. John from the Lieutenant Governor of B.C.
•1990 awarded Life Membership in CIPHI for an outstanding lifetime of contribution to public health and CIPHI
• 2001 received a recognition plaque from CIPHI for over 50 years of membership
To view research papers click on the Research Page of this website.
How to apply: complete the nomination form and attach a PDF of the abstract and full research paper to EHFC@outlook.com.
National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health Award
The NCCEH has decided in 2020 to review the Ron de Burger Student award and are planning a new format for launch in 2021. To view research papers, go to www.ncceh.ca/content/ron-de-burger-student-award