Within a week of Queen’s University being visited by M.P. Justin Trudeau, political studies professor John McGarry has been honoured as one of four recipients of a Fellowship named for his father, the late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.
Trudeau Fellowships were established by the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and awarded to individuals who achieve high levels of research achievement, creativity and commitment to critical social issues of importance to Canada. The Government of Canada endowed the foundation with a donation of $125 million and the Queen’s professor will receive $225,000.
The Foundation acknowledged Prof. McGarry for his work in conflict resolution and peacekeeping, including his contribution in the critical United Nations-facilitated negotiations taking place in Cyprus.
“It is a tremendous honour to receive this fellowship,” said Dr. McGarry, who was bestowed with the Trudeau Fellowship at a ceremony in Toronto on Oct. 17. “This award help me to pursue my research in conflict resolution and to use this research in the classroom at Queen’s. I’ll also be able to travel to all sorts of places that tourists don’t normally visit.”
 |
| Justin Trudeau, pictured here with Mayor Mark Gerretsen and Kingston & the Islands MP Ted Hsu, visited both Queen’s University and St. Lawrence College in Kingston to speak with students. [CKWS video] |
In addition to his involvement with the peace negotiations in Cyprus, an island he has visited many times over the past three years, Dr. McGarry co-authored a book in 1999 on how to reform Northern Ireland’s police; an important issue in the peace process in that country. A number of his ideas were implemented by the British government, and the subsequent success of police reform in Northern Ireland is now considered as a key example of international best practice.
The Queen’s professor has also advised the United Nations on a number of additional conflicts, including Kenya, Iraq, Western Sahara, the Philippines and Zimbabwe.
His work highlights the importance of promoting peace and democracy in societies that are ethnically, religiously or nationally diverse, many of those he has dealt with having serious and violent divisions.
The Trudeau Foundation describes McGarry as ‘exemplifying’ the Canadian tradition of contributing to peacekeeping.
————————————————————————————-
Photo – Professor John McGarry in front of Nicosia International Airport, located in the no-man’s land buffer zone controlled by the United Nations in Cyprus. Source: Queen’s University News Centre
Photo – Justin Trudeau in Kingston with Mayor Mark Gerretsen and MP Ted Hsu. Source: Mayor Gerretsen’s Facebook page
