Officer of the Order of Canada

• Awarded on: November 15, 2000
• Invested on: May 31, 2001

During a distinguished career with the Canadian Forest Service that spanned nearly four decades, he was one of the first to study the behaviour and nature of forest fires. He pioneered the development of a system of predicting fire danger by linking weather conditions and forest combustibility. His innovative research laid the foundation for Canada's internationally recognized forest fire danger rating system. A mentor to young scientists, he was also instrumental in the creation of the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry in Nairobi, Kenya.