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Nunavut Mining Hall of Fame

The Nunavut Mining Awards are the only awards to recognize excellence in the mining and exploration industry in Nunavut. Each year, three awards are considered for review in the categories of corporate, individual and government/organization. The awards are handed out each year at the Nunavut Mining Symposium.

Nominations are sought from, and made by, those in the mining and exploration industry and each nomination is reviewed by the Nunavut Mining Symposium Society Steering Committee.

The Nunavut Mining Hall of Fame web site was launched in 2016 to recognize excellence in the mining and exploration field in Nunavut. The web site grew out of the annual Nunavut Mining Awards that have been presented annually since 2008. The Hall of Fame recognizes not only current contributions to the sector but also the valuable historical contributions made.

If you know of someone deserving of being inducted into the Hall of Fame, please Nominate a Candidate.

Every application is carefully reviewed and assessed on the merit of the contribution made to the industry in Nunavut. If inducted, the legacy of the person or organization’s contribution will be recognized on the Hall of Fame section of the Nunavut Mining Symposium’s web site.

The 2018 recipients included:

  • John Tugak, Individual
  • North Arrow Minerals, Corporate
  • Qikiqtani Inuit Association, Government
  • Stephanie Autut, Trailblazer

For a full list of hall of famers, click here.

The criteria for each award is as follows:

Individual Award (formerly the Mike Hine Award)
•To recognize an individual who has made significant contribution to the mining industry in Nunavut
•To recognize outstanding progress by a Nunavut employee in the mining industry
•To recognize student/school involvement in the mining industry

Corporate Award (formerly the Murray Pyke Award)
•To recognize the contribution on a mining, exploration, or related company to the economic/social development of a community, region or Nunavut in general

Government/Organization Award
•To recognize the contribution of a government department, group, or organization to the advancement of the mining industry in Nunavut
•Can be presented to any level of government – Municipal, Territorial, Federal or Inuit

Award History
Two of the awards were originally named after individuals who were instrumental in the early days of exploration in Nunavut. Murray Pyke was a prominent figure in minerals and petroleum exploration and spent many summers mapping the Canadian Precambrian Shield in northern Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. He was a President of Comaplex Minerals. The award named in his honours recognizes a corporation that makes a significant contribution to advancing the mineral industry in Nunavut. Generally specific projects or large initiatives by businesses are what get recognized by this honour.
Mike Hine was a geologist who worked with several organizations in Nunavut including Qikiqtaaluk Corporation and Aboriginal Affairs & Northern Development and the Chamber of Mines. The award named in his honour recognizes an individual who has made a significant contribution to mining in Nunavut as an employee in the industry or a student or as a service provider employee.