Winning Essays

2023 results

The winning essay ‘Voices of Migration: Exploring Agency within Canadian Immigration Policy and Greek Emigration Framework’ was written Alexandros Balasis, a PhD student at York University. Mr. Balasis looks at Greek immigration to Canada during the 1950s and 1960s through immigrants’ voices and is continuing his research interests around migrants’ agency and their diverse experiences.

2023 Jury

The Gunn Prize Selection Committee was composed of: Dr. Laura Madokoro, Carleton University (Non-Voting Selection Committee Chairperson); Dr. Kurt F. Jensen, CIHS; Robert Vineberg, CIHS; Roy Christensen CIHS; and Dr. Jonathon Malek of the University of Manitoba.

2022 results

The winning essay ‘Agency and Resilience: South Asian Migration to Canada, 1900-1967’ was written by Manum Shahid (B.A. History and World Islamic Studies, McGill University,  M.A. Immigration and Settlement Studies, Toronto Metropolitan University). In it, Shahid argues that South Asian migrants’ own actions in the context of immigration policy that led to their success.

2022 Jury

The Gunn Prize Selection Committee was composed of: Dr. Laura Madokoro, Carleton University (Non-Voting Selection Committee Chairperson); Dr. Kurt F. Jensen, CIHS; Robert Vineberg, CIHS; Dr. Robert Shalka, CIHS; and Dr. Kassandra Luciuk, Dalhousie University.

2019 Results

Lianne Robin Koren, a student in the Department of History at McGill University, Montreal, has won the 2019 Gunn Prize for her essay on “Europeanized Moroccans: North African Jewish Immigration to Canada, 1955-1960”. This was one of several entries but was judged the most meritorious for its exploration of this movement of immigrants to Canada.

2019 Jury

The members of the jury were, from the IMRC, Professor Christopher Anderson and Professor Bree Akesson, and from the CIHS, Robert Vineberg (chair), Dr. Kurt F. Jensen and Dr. Robert Shalka, and from Carleton University, Professor Laura Madokoro.

2017 Results

The 2017 winner is Iain Wilson, an Honours BA graduate from Victoria College at the University of Toronto. His essay is entitled ‘Organic Settlement in Pre-19th Century Newfoundland’.

2017 JURY

The jury was composed of, from the CIHS, Doctor Gerard VanKessel, Kurt Jensen and Robert Vineberg while the IMRC was represented by Doctor Chris Anderson and Doctor Bree Akesson.

2016 Results

The 2016 award winner is Kassandra Luciuk, a PhD candidate in History at the University of Toronto and a doctoral fellow at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies. Her Essay is entitled “‘There is only one Ukrainian People’: Ukrainian Canadians, symbols of self, and the negotiation of legitimacy in Cold War Canada.

2016 JURY

A five person jury consisted of CIHS members Dr. Gerry VanKessel, Kurt Jensen and Rob Vineberg, along with Dr. Christopher G. Anderson and Dr. Sandy Irvine both of Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario.

2014 results

The 2014 Gunn Award prize has been awarded to Mr. Geoffrey Cameron, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto. His essay is entitled: “The Political Origins of Refugee Resettlement Policy: Insights from the Policy Process in Canada (1938-1951)”.

2014 Jury

A five person jury consisting of CIHS members Gerry Van Kessel, Kurt Jensen & Rob Vineberg along with Dr. Jenna Hennebry and Dr. Abel Chikanda made the decision.

2013 results

In October 1978, a boat called the Hai Hong with some 2,500 refugees aboard garnered global attention as it sat off the shores of Malaysia. Amongst other consequences, the Hai Hong situation set off the large scale implementation of the brand new Canadian immigration legislation

In this paper, 2013 Gunn Prize winner, Dara Marcus, considers the Canadian response to the Hai Hong situation within the historical framework of the 1976 Immigration Act and related legislation. Beginning with an account of the context in which this event took place, Ms Marcus then reviews Canada’s refugee legislation at that time, and the political, media, and public response to the Hai Hong. Lastly, she examines the event’s effect on Canada’s overall response to the Indochinese refugee issue. Dara Marcus’ winning essay can be read here.

2013 Jury

The 2013 Gunn Prize jury consisted of CIHS members Dr. Gerry Van Kessel, Dr. Kurt Jensen and Rob Vineberg and, representing the IMRC, Drs. Abel Chikanda and Andrew Thompson of the Balsillie School of International Affairs (a joint initiative of Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Waterloo).

2011 results

The winner in 2011 was Alyshea Cummins who holds an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Windsor (2007) and is now enrolled at Wilfrid Laurier University pursuing a Masters degree in Religion and Culture. Her paper is entitled “A Comparison of the Refugee Resettlement of Ugandan Ismaili Muslims and Cambodia Theravada Buddhists in Canada”. In analyzing the Ismail Muslim’s resettlement experiences, she concludes that “Their skill sets and literacy upon leaving their homelands, global connections, the presence of their own respected community leaders in Canada and wider community support here contributed to their more successful integration. As survivors of vast cultural and religious devastations that had damaged the social fabric and eliminated civil and religious leaders, the Cambodians had a much more difficult time rebuilding their community in Canada.” Ms. Cummins’ paper can be found here: Alyshea Cummin Gunn Award Paper.

2010 results

In 2010, the winner was Stephen Fielding, a Ph.D. Student at the University of Victoria. He is the first winner of the annual Gunn Award. The winning essay is entitled “We are Promoting an Up-to-date Image of Italy”: The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Italian Ethnicity in Vancouver, Canada, 1973-1998” and its subject is aptly described in the title. Mr. Fielding’s paper can be found here: Fielding Gunn Award Paper.