It is a bit embarrassing to toot my own horn in this way, but the Rt Hon David Johnston awarded me a Governor General’s Medallion at the Friends of Canada reception on Oct 26 2013.
October 26, 2013
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Credit: Cpl Mathieu St-Amour, Rideau Hall, OSGG
During the award, the following citation was read by Greg Goldhawk, the terrific Canadian ambassador to Mongolia:
Professor Dierkes is arguably Canada’s pre-eminent Mongolist. Working with his graduate students at UBC’s Institute of Asian Research, he concentrates on Mongolian economic and political issues. He is the co-author of the blog Mongolia Focus, which has a wide following that includes readers from the Mongolian parliament. He served as an observer in the most recent parliamentary and presidential elections, and took part in the World Economic Forum Strategic Dialogue on the Future of Mongolia held this September.
Obviously, I was very pleased and proud. It was especially nice that the citation also mentioned the graduate students with whom I have been collaborating, in some cases for years now, on brining more Mongolia expertise to UBC and offering that expertise to the interested world: NARANZUL B, MENDEE J, BYAMBAJAV D, Brandon Miliate, and most recently, OTGONBAATAR B.
Along with the medallion, I received a very elegant folder that included a letter from the Governor General.
I was also thrilled that the Governor General mentioned that he had been reading this blog in preparation for the trip as he handed me the Medallion.
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