Encyclopedia of the Great Plains

CANADIAN PLAINS RESEARCH CENTER

The Canadian Plains Research Center (CPRC) is the longest serving research institute at the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, with a broad mandate to develop an understanding and appreciation of the Canadian Plains region. The center also cooperates with U.S. scholars on issues relevant to the broader North American Great Plains.

CPRC works to develop a community of students of the region, including staff from Prairie universities, governments, and other institutions and members of an interested public; to provide services to Prairie institutions and researchers; to study and help solve problems of the region, its people, and its resources; and to initiate, undertake, encourage, and support research and scholarly work on all aspects of Prairie life.

The center delivers four specific programs. The Canadian Plains Studies Program is a graduate program that facilitates the interdisciplinary studies of students pursuing their masters and doctorates on topics relevant to the Canadian Plains. More than thirty-five students have been supported through the program. The Research Fellow Program, established in 1983, has provided support to more than forty scholars conducting research relevant to the Canadian Plains. The Publication Division is a university press, established in 1973, that publishes eight to ten scholarly books per year, with a total of more than 130 titles. The press also publishes Prairie Forum, a multidisciplinary journal on topics of relevance to the Canadian Plains region. Finally, the Geographic Information Systems Division is a group of research and technical staff and facilities that support education and research in the spatial distribution of resources, both physical and cultural.

As part of its original and continuing education and community outreach mandate, the cprc also organizes, facilitates, and partners with other organizations in delivering numerous conferences, symposia, workshops, lectures, meetings, and seminars. The cprc also presents the Woodrow Lloyd Occasional Seminar Series, in which leading scholars present topics relevant to the Canadian Plains, and administers a trust fund dedicated to advancing communication and education about conservation issues in Saskatchewan.

Canadian Plains Research Center website.

David A. Gauthier University of Regina