This year the Lord Elgin Hotel in Ottawa was the venue for the 2026 Annual General Meeting of the Fur Institute of Canada (FIC). June 18-19 were reserved for the meeting proper, while preceding days were allocated to three committees: the Canadian Furbearer Management Committee (CFMC), the FIC’s Trap Research & Development Committee (TRDC), and the FIC Communications Committee.
The CFMC consists of government wildlife managers, and focuses on provincial / territorial collaboration among regulators and trapping associations. The TRDC, a committee of the FIC, focuses on the latest developments in humane trapping, and the Communications Committee guides the FIC’s public engagement.
“All these committees play essential roles in guiding the work of the FIC,” said Executive Director Doug Chiasson, “and it was great to have so many representatives here in Ottawa.”
River Cruise
As a social activity, the evening of June 18 was given over to a dinner cruise on the Rideau Canal, an important trade route for fur along the Ottawa River in the 19th century.
With delegates to the FIC’s AGMs coming from across Canada, they rarely get the chance to meet face to face, so such activities are important opportunities to connect outside of the formal meetings on the agenda.
Banquet and Awards
Following the conclusion of the AGM, on the evening of June 19 the FIC hosted a banquet and award ceremony.
The keynote speech was given by Liberal MP for South Surrey-White Rock and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries, Ernie Klassen. Ernie is a newcomer to the world of politics, elected for the first time in 2025, but he’s a fast learner, having attended the FIC’s Fur Day on the Hill earlier this year as well. “I have learned so much about this industry,” he said, “and I take my hat off to all the volunteers and people within this industry who … contribute to the economy of Canada.”
Also there to address the gathering was Billy Denault, MPP for Renfrew-Nippissing-Pembroke, speaking on behalf of Ontario Minister of Natural Resources Mike Harris Jr..
For the presentation of awards, FIC’s First Vice-Chair, Mike O’Brien, assumed the role of master of ceremonies.
First, Mike awarded and accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of his old friend, Paul Tufts, who passed away in August 2025. Paul was an avid trapper, educator, and part-time fox farmer, who worked as a government wildlife biologist from 1967 until his retirement in 1994. He served on the Board of the Trappers Association of Nova Scotia from 1973 to 2008 (including a decade as its president), and also on the Board of the FIC.
Next, Pierre Canac-Marquis, Trap Research and Certification Coordinator for the FIC, presented and received the Neal Jotham Award on behalf of Guy Sauvageau. First given in 2014, the award recognises Neal Jotham’s leadership in the creation of an international standard for humane trapping systems, and his contributions to improved animal welfare.
SEE ALSO: RIP Neal Jotham: A life dedicated to humane trapping. Truth About Fur, February 2023.
A native of Quebec, Guy was responsible in the 1970s for making the world’s first commercial killing trap that could be considered humane by modern standards. With such features as tight-closing jaws and a strong, oversized spring for clamping force, refined versions of the Sauvageau C120 Magnum are still used today for marten, mink, and other furbearers. This was “a major accomplishment,” said Pierre. “We went from the Stone Age to the Modern Age because of this trap.”
Then Trevor Wilkie, of the Trappers Association of Nova Scotia, presented this year’s Lloyd Cook Award. Inaugurated in 1991, this award honours Lloyd Cook’s commitment to excellence in trapping, trapper education and public understanding of wildlife management.
Winner of this year’s award was Mike Boudreau, a wildlife manager with Nova Scotia’s Department of Natural Resources from 1989 until his retirement in 2022. Mike started as an assistant conservation officer, then became a furbearer and upland game specialist, and finally transitioned into a human-wildlife conflict biologist. During all this time, he’s been “a huge supporter” of trappers, said Trevor. “He’s been a tremendous resource for our association, members of the province in general, and still to this day we constantly call him and ask for advice.”
Next, Howard Noseworthy of Fur Harvesters Auction named David Bosma as the recipient of this year’s Jim Bourque Memorial Award, David having passed away in May 2025. The award, presented since 1997, recognises its namesake’s commitment to the sustainable use of wildlife resources, improved animal welfare, the development of Canada’s modern fur trade, the recognition of Indigenous People’s cultures and the stewardship role that trappers play in the conservation and management of Canada’s wildlife.
David joined the fur trade as a teenager with the Hudson’s Bay auction house, before moving on to the Ontario Trappers Association and the Seattle Fur Exchange, and ending his long career at FHA. As FHA’s CEO Mark Downey said in an obituary, “Dave’s true claim to fame as a LIFER in this fur trade was his vast knowledge and versatility in being able to confidently grade any and all species exceptionally well.”
Last but not least, Howard also presented this year’s North American Furbearer Conservation Award, to promote awareness and recognition of individuals and organizations that have made significant efforts for sustainable furbearer management. This year’s winner was Ontario native and former FIC chair, Robin Horwath.
Robin has a long track record of dedication to trapping and furbearer management, but Howard chose to highlight Robin’s constant “search for the truth”. And the memory that “strikes closest to my heart” is the case of the so-called “Algonquin wolf”. Robin “was never willing to accept that a wolf that didn’t at least live on an island, could somehow be completely separated from all the other wolves that surrounded it.” (If you’re unfamiliar with this case, Robin spells it out in the blog post below.)
SEE ALSO: Are researchers just looking for more Algonquin wolves? If so, why? Truth About Fur, October 2021.
Our Sponsors
The FIC would like to thank all the sponsors who were essential in supporting the AGM: our host sponsor, the Government of Ontario; our silver (wolf) sponsor, Sizzle with Decor, and our two award sponsors, Fur Harvesters Auction and the Saskatchewan Trappers Association.
