Dan Culver, M.S.M., North Vancouver, B.C. (Posthumous)
Meritorious Service Medal (civil division)
Mr. Culver is the only Canadian to have reached the summits of both of the world's two highest mountain peaks, Mount Everest and K2. Many people had tried unsuccessfully to climb K2 before 1991. Mr. Culver and his partners were able to ascend in July 1993, unassisted by ropes or oxygen and other artificial aids. Although Mr. Culver fell to his death on the descent, his achievement remains a legacy of his strong desire to draw attention to the need to preserve the global wilderness.