2023 Award Recipients
This award was established in 2008 to recognize exceptional students who have a record of academic achievement, demonstrate leadership, and make significant contributions to our community.
Dr. Pamela Farrell
Doctor of Education
Inspired by her doctoral research at UCalgary, Pamela Farrell, EdD, started the GROW Community Food Literacy Centre in Niagara Falls, Ont., which is Canada’s first community food literacy centre. As executive director, she collaborated with all levels of government to raise more than $1 million in funding and donations to turn an abandoned building into a vibrant good-food centre. The centre, which offers a low-cost/subsidized market and food literacy programs, has been accessed more than 20,000 times.
At UCalgary, Farrell continues to co-chair the Nourish to Flourish working group, a role that enhances food security for students. She also held several roles with the Graduate Students’ Association and was elected student representative for the Language and Literacy Specialization Area.
During her studies, Farrell taught two undergraduate courses and was a research assistant in the Werklund School of Education. As a research assistant, she created a series of custom seminars on topics relevant to graduate students. She also presented to community groups on many occasions and was a guest lecturer at UCalgary and the Toronto Metropolitan University. In the past year, she has provided more than 18 food literacy and food security presentations and published two peer-reviewed articles.
Currently, Farrell is a sessional instructor at the Werklund School of Education and is working on an entry for The Elgar Encyclopedia of Food and Society. She has also recently been appointed by Global Affairs Canada as the Swiss Honorary Consul for Alberta where she promotes educational, scientific, social, cultural, and economic trade between Alberta and Switzerland.