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Wladimir A. Smirnoff Fellowship (for Quebec university students)

Wladimir A. Smirnoff (1917 - 2000), the scientist

Wladimir A. Smirnoff Fellowship

A native of Russia, Wladimir A. Smirnoff became interested in forest pest control at an early age. After pursuing graduate and doctoral studies in forestry at St. Petersburg State University, he left his country for 10 years of productive research at the Institut national de la recherche agronomique (INRA) in Morocco while completing a doctoral degree in science at the Sorbonne in Paris.

In 1957, he accepted a position as an insect pathology researcher with the Canadian Forest Service - Laurentian Forestry Centre. Over the next 28 years, he made a significant contribution to the development and recognition of insect pathology.

His great contribution to biological forest pest control was made possible by his powers of persuasion in promoting the use of Bacillus thuringiensis, a microbial insecticide, to control spruce budworm, the most destructive insect in the coniferous forests of North America. During his career, Wladimir A. Smirnoff published more than 300 scholarly articles and won many awards, including the prix Léo-Pariseau presented by the Association canadienne-française pour l’avancement des sciences. He was a lifetime member of the Ordre des ingénieurs forestiers du Québec, member emeritus of the Société d’entomologie du Québec and of the Association des biologistes du Québec, researcher emeritus at the Centre de recherche en biologie forestière de l’Université Laval, researcher emeritus at the Canadian Forest Service and named a member of the Order of Canada in 1997.

A prolific researcher, Wladimir A. Smirnoff was above all a nature lover, and was particularly fond of the Laurentian forest. His splendid paintings, infused with delightful flowers, dreams and symbols, reflect this love.

The fellowship that bears his name will be awarded for the pursuit and promotion of research in the fields that captured the interest of this great scientist.