| APEGGA Executive Director & Registrar
Neil Windsor, P.Eng., is sharing a prestigious award with
his Idaho counterpart
for his work to improve cross-border mobility. The Pacific
NorthWest Economic Region has presented its Hot Potato Award
to Mr. Windsor and David Curtis, P.E., Executive Director
of the Idaho Board of Professional Engineers and Professional
Land Surveyors.
PNWER presents the award annually to recognize those who
do the most work to avoid potential conflict between the
U.S. and Canada. Last year’s winner was Alberta Agriculture
Minister Shirley McClellan, who won for her handling of the
BSE crisis. Mr. Windsor and Mr. Curtis received the award
in Victoria during the 14th annual PNWER Summit.
PNWER is a public-private partnership made up of the American
states and Canadian provinces of Alaska, Alberta, British
Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Canada’s
Yukon territory. Its mission is to foster sustainable economic
development throughout the region.
Mr. Windsor and Mr. Curtis have both been active in PNWER,
promoting initiatives that improve the cross-border licensure
of engineers. See related story, front page.
The Hot Potato Award commemorates an 1859 crisis in the San
Juan Islands. An American farmer shot a British-owned pig
that had broken out of its pen and eaten one of the farmer’s
potatoes. The islands were claimed by both countries at the
time.
At one point, the U.S. Army and the Royal Navy were at gunpoint.
But cooler heads prevailed and the incident ended peacefully.
“I’m certainly honoured to receive this award,” said
Mr. Windsor. “And the fact that I share it with David
Curtis is a symbol in itself of the kind of progress Canada
and the U.S. are making on mobility and other trade issues – thanks
in no small part to the work of PNWER.”
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