The University of Alberta banner is flying at half-mast from March 3–5, 2021 in remembrance of Dr. Jim Beck, Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences and former chair of the departments of Forest Science and Renewable Resources.
Dr. Jim Beck
Dr. James (Jim) Beck was a graduate of Berkeley and one of the first two professors hired to start the forestry program at the U of A in 1971. He was chair of the Department of Forest Science from 1983 to 1989 and then was Chair of the Department of Renewable Resources from 1995 to 2001.
Jim was a self-professed "fibre beast", yet he was the main agent of change in the Forestry program during his 2 long terms as Dept Chair. He made the Forestry program more diverse, more global and more ecological. He also was a strong proponent of the Environmental and Conservation Sciences program.
Jim mentored and taught literal generations of Forestry (and ENCS) students. He was a great (and patient) teacher, a great administrator and strong advocate for things he believed in. His great skill was to see a problem and find a solution. He threw himself into projects... developing his own Timber Supply model, he put together one of the first recordings of Alberta birds. Generations of students have learned bird calls from his recordings. He became a butterfly enthusiast later in life. He and his wife Barb loved the theatre and the symphony, and his support of U of A Bears and Pandas hockey is legendary.
For information about lowering the University of Alberta banner, visit the In Memoriam webpage.