Trudeau Foundation Awards $1.1 Million in Fellowship Prizes

$225,000 Awards Recognize Five Canadians Engaged in Reshaping our Society

Montreal, QC, May 6, 2008 — With backgrounds ranging from human rights to the environment, and from Canadian history and biography to Aboriginal residential schools, the Trudeau Foundation has selected five new Fellows who continue to question society's worldviews and teach the importance of responsible and engaged citizenship. The prestigious Trudeau Fellowships are awarded for a three-year period and include an award of $150,000, in addition to a $75,000 travel and research allowance.

The 2008 Trudeau Fellows are:

François Crépeau, University of Montreal: A pioneer in international migration law, he champions foreigners' rights in Canada and abroad, including Palestine and Guantanamo Bay.

Kathleen Mahoney, University of Calgary: A leader in human rights renowned for her work on the historic settlement agreement between the Government of Canada and Aboriginal residential school survivors.

John B. Robinson, University of British Columbia: An expert in climate change mitigation, and highly respected for his capacity to build bridges between academia, industry and NGOs. He authored parts of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports that shared the 2007 Peace Nobel Prize with Al Gore.

Rosemary Sullivan, University of Toronto: An award-winning writer, biographer, journalist, activist, and expert on creative non-fiction and biographical studies.

Guy Vanderhaeghe, University of Saskatchewan: A cornerstone of the Canadian historic novel and a strong advocate for the status of the arts in Canada.

"These Trudeau Fellows have proven that they can imagine and promote new solutions to contemporary issues of importance to all Canadians, relying on the knowledge they draw from the conscientious attention they pay to the needs of our society," announced Foundation President P.G. Forest.