IVES, John David (Jack)
1931 - 2024
Jack D. Ives
Oct. 15, 1931 – Sept. 15, 2024
With deep sadness, we announce the passing of Jack D. Ives (John David Ives) on September 15, 2024, at the age of 92. Jack was preceded in death by the love of his life, Pauline, in 2022, and leaves behind his four children, Nadine, Tony (Mary Ann), Colin (Rebecca) and Peter (Adele), and five grandchildren, Adrian (Lisa), Galen (Jenna), Angela (Sarah), Nell (Morgan), and Theo.
Jack was born in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England, to Ellen May Ives (née Mackay) and Harry Ives. His beloved younger sister, Jean, died in 1970.
With many fishermen in the family, Jack was drawn to the sea and the lands that lay beyond from an early age. Lessons at Clee Grammar School ignited a passion for geography and exploration. His most influential experience was spending a month at age 15 as a spare hand on a Grimsby fishing trawler traveling far into the Barents Sea beyond the Arctic Circle, with fierce waves and weather, and an even fiercer skipper and crew. Among many storied experiences on that trip, Jack had his first views of the Arctic sea ice, fjords, glaciers, and mountainous landscapes that shaped the path of his life.
Jack left Grimsby for the University of Nottingham, where, in addition to his studies, he organised and led that institution's first undergraduate glaciological research expeditions to Iceland, at Skaftafell and Vatnajökull in 1952, 1953, and 1954. This led to a life-long friendship with Ragnar Stefansson and his family and a deep connection to Skaftafell, especially Kristínartindar, which he loved to climb. In spring 1952, Jack met Pauline A. H. Cordingley while she was planning a separate expedition to Iceland from the University of London, and on September 11, 1954, they were married.
The couple emigrated to Montréal, QC, Canada, where Jack completed his PhD at McGill University in 1956. They began their life in North America with three summers in northern Labrador, where they were dropped by float plane with food, a canoe, and the confidence of explorers. During their final year in Labrador, their first child, Nadine, was born in a snowstorm in a makeshift delivery room in Schefferville, QC.
From 1960 to 1967, Jack served as assistant director and then director of the Geographical Branch of Canada’s Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, in Ottawa, ON, leading seven interdisciplinary research expeditions to Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. During this time, Jack and Pauline expanded their family with the additions of Tony and Colin.
In 1967, the family moved to Boulder, Colorado, where their fourth child, Peter, was born. Jack became Director of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) and professor of geography. His research areas expanded from glacial movement, periglacial landforms and Arctic permafrost to include alpine geography, eventually developing a global focus on mountains and mountain peoples. In 1989, Jack and Pauline moved to the University of California, Davis, and upon retirement in 1997, they returned to Ottawa, which they always considered their home.
Throughout his distinguished career, Jack held significant roles, including senior advisor to the United Nations University and founder of the International Mountain Society. His most notable publications, The Himalayan Dilemma and Mountains of the World: A Global Priority, were co-authored with his dear friend Bruno Messerli. Jack’s contributions to geography and mountain research earned him numerous honours, including the King Albert Mountain Award in 2002, the Royal Geographical Society’s Patron's Medal in 2006, the Knight's Cross of the Order of the Falcon from Iceland in 2007, and the Sir Edmund Hillary Mountain Legacy Medal in 2015. Jack considered his greatest achievement to be advocating for the mountain peoples of the world. He cherished the people he met and traveled with throughout his life and the incredible experiences they shared – his boyhood friends, his colleagues, the generations of students with whom he shared his knowledge and passion, the scientists from around the world working towards common goals, and the mountain people who inspired him. Most important of all was his life partner, Pauline, and his family.
Jack will be dearly missed – his stories will continue to be told for many years to come.
We cannot thank Heather enough for her wonderful care and support for both Pauline and Jack over the past five years. We are grateful for Jack and Pauline's Ottawa health care professionals, and their friends and neighbours, who provided a circle of love and support for many years. We are especially grateful for the kindness of Julie and Randy, Aranka, Mary, and Winkey, Mike and Tara.
