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| Canadian Quaternary Association | |
|---|---|
| Name | Canadian Quaternary Association |
| Formation | 1972 |
| Type | Learned society |
| Headquarters | Ottawa, Ontario |
| Region served | Canada |
| Language | English, French |
| Leader title | President |
Canadian Quaternary Association is a national learned society focused on the study of the Quaternary period across Canada, integrating research on glaciation, paleoenvironments, and stratigraphy. It links researchers, students, and agencies involved with Quaternary geology, geomorphology, paleoclimatology, and archaeology, and engages with provincial and federal institutions to promote interdisciplinary work. The Association liaises with provincial geological surveys, university departments, and international bodies to disseminate findings and inform public policy.
Founded in 1972 by a coalition of academics and survey scientists, the Association emerged during a period of expanded Quaternary research that involved figures from University of Toronto, McGill University, University of British Columbia, and the Geological Survey of Canada. Early organizers drew on precedents set by the International Union for Quaternary Research and regional groups such as the British Quaternary Research Association and the European Association of Quaternary Research. During the 1970s and 1980s the Association collaborated with the Royal Society of Canada and contributed to panels with the National Research Council (Canada) and the Canadian Northern Studies Trust, while members published findings relevant to debates involving Louis Agassiz-influenced glacial theory, stratigraphic frameworks developed at Yukon Geological Survey, and paleoenvironmetal reconstructions associated with the Laurentide Ice Sheet.
The Association’s objectives include promoting research in Quaternary science, facilitating knowledge transfer among institutions such as Natural Resources Canada, fostering student training with departments at Queen's University, and advising agencies like the Parks Canada Agency on geoheritage. Activities range from organizing symposia modeled on meetings of the American Geophysical Union and the European Geosciences Union to producing guidelines for fieldwork used by the Ontario Geological Survey and the Saskatchewan Geological Survey. It supports interdisciplinary initiatives that intersect with archaeology projects at Canadian Museum of History and paleoecological studies linked to researchers at the Canadian Museum of Nature.
Membership comprises academics from universities including Dalhousie University and University of Calgary, government scientists from the British Columbia Geological Survey and the Nunavut Department of Environment, postgraduate students, and independent consultants. Governance is by an elected council with officers such as President, Secretary, and Treasurer, following procedural models used by the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists and the Geological Association of Canada. Advisory committees include representatives from the Paleontological Association, the Canadian Archaeological Association, and liaisons to the International Quaternary Association.
Annual meetings rotate among Canadian cities and universities—past hosts have included venues in Ottawa, Halifax, Vancouver, and Edmonton—and often coincide with joint sessions with the Geological Society of America and the American Quaternary Association. The program typically features plenary lectures by scholars associated with University of Alberta and Simon Fraser University, workshops on techniques from labs at McMaster University and University of Waterloo, and field excursions to Quaternary sites such as the Lake Agassiz basin and Cape Cod-type coastal sequences. Special symposia have been co-organized with the Canadian Commission for UNESCO and the International Arctic Science Committee.
The Association disseminates research through newsletters, proceedings of annual meetings, and special volumes aligned with publishers that have previously hosted work from scholars at Cambridge University Press and Elsevier. It maintains a newsletter distributed to members and posts updates on collaborations with the Canadian Geoscience Council and event notices coordinated with the Canadian Federation of Earth Sciences. Members contribute to peer-reviewed journals including Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Quaternary Science Reviews, and regional bulletins produced by provincial surveys.
The Association recognizes outstanding contributions with awards for early-career researchers, lifetime achievement, and best student presentation, mirroring award structures used by the Royal Society of Canada and the Geological Association of Canada. Recipients have included scholars affiliated with McGill University, University of Saskatchewan, and the University of Montreal whose work on deglaciation chronologies and paleoclimate reconstructions has been cited in reports by Environment and Climate Change Canada and panels convened by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Strategic partnerships include collaborations with the Geological Survey of Canada, provincial geological surveys, museums such as the Royal Ontario Museum, and international bodies like the International Union for Quaternary Research and the International Arctic Science Committee. Joint projects have linked with university research centres at University of British Columbia and Laval University and with initiatives supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. The Association also engages with conservation agencies including the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society on geoheritage and outreach.
Category:Scientific organizations based in Canada Category:Geology organizations Category:Quaternary science