Peter deMarsh Memorial Bursary

The Peter deMarsh Memorial Bursary was established to honour Peter deMarsh's memory and to continue celebrating and defending woodlot owners' multiple contributions to rural development. Peter deMarsh was a champion for forest-dependent communities and woodlot owners who tragically died in 2019 while representing woodlot owners at a United Nations environmental conference. The bursary is offered by Canadian Forest Owners and International Family Forestry Alliance, in collaboration with UPA International Development, and is given annually to support two types of projects. Option 1 provides a $15,000 research bursary awarded annually to a Canadian or international graduate student in the final stage of doctoral or master's-level research at a Canadian university. The research must focus on the role of woodlot owners or woodlot owners' associations in helping to solve social, economic, or environmental problems. This bursary gives students a few extra months to finish writing their thesis or dissertation before returning to the job market. Option 2 provides a travel bursary of up to $3,000 to help representatives of woodlot owners' associations in Canada or abroad participate in international conferences dealing with issues involving forest owners. Peter deMarsh was particularly concerned about woodlot owners' lack of representation at major international conferences due to insufficient financial resources. A limited amount of travel funding is available on an annual basis and applications can be submitted at any time.