In Memory of Ivor Winton

We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of former faculty member Ivor Winton on March 28^th, 2026. He was a true character and beloved by faculty, staff and students alike.

Ivor served as a Lecturer at SFU where he taught human geography with passion and intellectual rigor with a distinctive blend of Scottish wit and warmth. He also served as Undergraduate Chair in Geography for many years, a role he carried out with absolute dedication to students and to the well-being of the department.

Educated in Scotland, Ivor earned his B.A. (Honours, First Class) in Geography from the University of Glasgow in 1970. He later completed an M.A. at the University of British Columbia and a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota. His scholarship focused on biogeography, the history of geographic thought, urban geography and cultural‑historical geography with enduring interests in France, wine and the historical geographies of Europe. The passion for wine was a theme that carried through his entire life.

Before joining SFU, Ivor held teaching positions at the University of British Columbia, the University of Minnesota, the University of Nevada–Reno, and the University of Wisconsin–River Falls. He joined Simon Fraser University in 1989, first as a Limited Term Lecturer, and then from 1995 onward, as a Lecturer, until his retirement in 2019. He left a mark on his colleagues and the department in his 30 years at SFU.

Colleagues remember Ivor as a trusted, generous and entertaining presence in departmental life. Professor Geoff Mann recalls his “purposefully dramatic sighs at just the right moment, which made everyone laugh, usually right when we needed to.” Ivor regularly shared articles from The Economist, left carefully composed emails in inboxes, and gently, but firmly, corrected grammar and punctuation in departmental documents. His emails were outright poetic at times and reflected his unique voice.

Ivor’s teaching was legendary. He was deeply committed to students and to Geography’s traditional values of integration and synthesis. His lectures were often delivered without slides or microphones, using only an overhead projector and a loud voice. His teaching style was sometimes described as having the charismatic presence comparable to a good "talk-show" host. When Professor Lance Lesack once asked Ivor for advice on teaching, Ivor replied characteristically, "You need to learn to RIVET the attention of the students and to keep it! It's not easy!"

Ivor was jovial and kind, a wonderful conversationalist. Colleagues fondly remember there were many early-morning hallway conversations before 8:30am lectures. Many still imagine they can hear Ivor’s booming voice echoing down the corridors. Professor Janet Sturgeon fondly recalls hearing “him calling "Aye, Lassy" down the corridor to alert me to a witty conversation coming my way.”

Ivor was loyal to family, devoted to friends, and deeply committed to the department he served for so many decades. He declined nominations for teaching awards, not out of modesty alone, but because his satisfaction lay in the work itself and in the success of his students. As Professor Roger Hayter notes, “For the Department, Ivor was a trusted, entertaining, and valued colleague whose dedication to teaching was exemplary.”