Dalhousie’s ‘Wayne Gretzky of biology’ remembered as ‘most amazing’ human

A man known as the “Wayne Gretzky of biology” has passed away.

Jeffrey Hutchings, an ecologist and professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, N.S., was 63 years old when he died unexpectedly Monday.

The cause of death has not been disclosed.

Hutchings was a world-class scientist, dedicated to finding facts, and, protecting them from political interference.

Friends and colleagues say he was also a remarkable mentor.

“I wouldn’t be where I am now if I wasn’t for Jeff, his guidance and him taking a risk on me,” said David Keith, a scientist with the federal department of Fisheries and Oceans.

As a professor at Dalhousie University, Hutchings was known for educating students about fisheries entirely from his head, with no need for notes or PowerPoint presentations.

As a fisheries scientist, he was legendary for his integrity and his dedication.

“He didn’t want to be popular,” said Keith. “He just wanted the right decision to be made – that was for the best interests of society, for conservation, for sustainability.”

Hutchings’ love of the sea was instilled during visits to Newfoundland and Labrador as a child. It was a Newfoundland-based crisis, the collapse of the Northern cod fishery in the early 1990s, where Hutchings first rose to prominence.

John Reynolds, who succeeded Hutchings as chair of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada, recalls when Hutchings stood up against the Department of Fisheries and Oceans – accusing it of mismanaging the cod fishery.

“Jeff Hutchings went out on a limb, and called them out for it. He wrote a paper, with two more senior colleagues.”

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Protégé Sean Godwin said it was a bold move by Hutchings, who was still a graduate student at the time. “He was honestly just one of the most amazing humans and kind people that I’ve ever met.”

For Godwin, a postdoctoral fellow and conservation scientist, the shock of his mentor dying unexpectedly, at age 63, is still fresh. But Godwin’s spirits are lifted, recalling Hutchings’ character, and how he fought tirelessly to separate science from politics.

In 2012, Hutchings was among the scientists who publicly opposed policies by the Conservative government of Stephen Harper, they felt muzzled them from expressing themselves on issues like climate change and fish conservation.

Godwin says Hutchings also made a difference for consumers, as the independent science advisor for the grocery giant, Loblaw.

“He said that it was one of the most impactful things he ever did, because sometimes, within hours after he made the advice, Loblaw would change its’ seafood lineup, as a result.”

At a time when science is under siege from the misinformed, friends and colleagues say there’s even more reason to commemorate people like Jeffrey Hutchings