CIM

Mining Engineering Outstanding Achievement Award

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Mining Engineering Outstanding Achievement Award

For outstanding achievement or contribution in the field of Mining Engineering

Origins & Conditions

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This award was established to recognize outstanding achievement or contribution in the field of Mining Engineering. The Award, once known as the Underground Mining Society Award for Mining Engineering Achievement, now the Mining Engineering Outstanding Achievement Award, is sponsored by the Underground Mining Society.

The Mining Engineering Outstanding Achievement Award criteria and other information:

  1. Eligibility is open to mining engineers either as individuals or in a group, who are actively practicing in the discipline. Mining Engineering is to be broadly interpreted and will include both underground and surface mining environments. The Award will be granted to those engineers who have earned the recognition and respect of their peers for outstanding achievement in this area.
  2. The nominations must be accompanied by a brief statement indicating the reasons for the nomination.
  3. Adjudication of the award shall be made by an Adjudication Committee of six (6) members comprised as follows:

    a. Underground Mining Society (UMS) Chairperson & Vice Chairperson (and/or designates)

    b. Surface Mining Society (SMS) Chairperson & Vice Chairperson (and/or designates)

    c. Maintenance, Engineering & Reliability Society (MERS) Chairperson & Vice Chairperson (and/or designates)

  4. The Adjudication Committee will refer the nominations to CIM Council not later than the last Council meeting held prior to the next Annual General Meeting of the Institute.
  5. No member of the Adjudication Committee shall be a party to the nomination of any candidate.
  6. The Award(s) will be presented at the local Branch level, by a Member of the Underground Mining Society Executive or in their absence, by the local Branch Chairman. In addition, the Award(s) will be verbally recognized by the CIM President at the CIM Awards Gala.

Recipients

There is only one recipient of this award every year. This award is for both individual or team nominations.

Winners

2026

Donna Beneteau

Donna Beneteau is an associate professor in geological engineering at the University of Saskatchewan (USask), where her work focuses on mining engineering education and professional service. She holds a B.A.Sc. in Geological Engineering from the University of Waterloo and an M.Sc. in Mineral Resources Engineering from Laurentian University. 

Her professional experience includes mine backfill research at the Noranda Technology Centre and engineering roles at Holloway Mine and Ionic Engineering. She joined USask in 2012 as a research engineer in rock mechanics and transitioned to a full-time instructional faculty role. 

A long-standing volunteer with CIM at both branch and national levels, Donna Beneteau is deeply committed to preserving Canada’s mining heritage. She currently leads national initiatives to digitize historic CIM Bulletins and continues to contribute to the open-access historical mining map of Canada she developed.

2025

Simon Nickson

Simon Nickson graduated from McGill University in 1983 with a Bachelor of Engineering - Mining and subsequently worked for 7 years in various engineering and operational roles at mines in the Lynn Lake, Manitoba area. He completed a Master of Applied Science - Mining Engineering degree at the University of British Columbia in 1992 with a thesis on Cable Bolt Support Guidelines. Simon joined Noranda Inc. in 1993 and spent 9 years at the Noranda Technology Centre in rock mechanics, mine design and technology roles. In 2002, he moved to Vale’s Ontario Operations in Sudbury and spent 22 years in mines technology, business planning, operations and engineering supervision roles, including 6 years at the frood-stobie complex as engineering supervisor for the sublevel caving areas of the mine. Simon is currently retired from Vale after several years as principal engineer – mining with a corporate mining technology group.