Captain (Ret’d) Josh Bowen
Hurricanes, floods, snowstorms and wildfires—Mother Nature has devastated many Canadian communities without warning. When disaster strikes, Josh Bowen is the person for the job.
Domestic Operations
Born in Ottawa, Ontario, Josh Bowen joined the Primary Reserves in 2004. His first job in the military was to serve in the Governor General’s Foot Guard at Rideau Hall. Little did he know, this path would lead him to become an expert in domestic disaster response.
Loving his experience, Bowen carried on serving in the reserves while completing his studies, first in Ottawa then in Toronto. He got his first taste of domestic operations in 2008, when an unexpected snowstorm hit the area where he was taking part in a training exercise. “There was downed powerlines, there was downed trees everywhere. People were stuck in their house, there was no power and so we ended up actually going from this fictional scenario based training exercise to actually going and supporting the provincial police.”
Noticing his aptitude for emergency preparedness, his commanding officer registered him in the Disaster and Emergency Management Master’s degree at York University. “I got a message saying congratulations, you’ve been accepted to the post grad on scholarship program, which I hadn’t applied to, but somebody had applied on my behalf. … And I kind of said ‘sure’ and went along with it. Got into the program and that’s how I ended up in Disaster and Emergency Management.”
“Being able to go and serve Canadians at home in their time of need is a true privilege and an honour.”
Bowen went on assist in some of the most high-profile natural disasters in recent Canadian history. He worked on the frontlines and in emergency command centres during the 2011 Manitoba floods and the 2013 flood that devastated the town of High River in Alberta. In May 2016, when the CAF was called on to help with the wildfires in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Bowen faced his biggest challenge yet: help coordinating the evacuation of approximately 80,000 people.
“When dealing with disaster, there’s always something more you could do, something you’re not sure of,” he explains. In his experience, the biggest challenge during a crisis isn’t putting the sandbags in place or getting boots on the ground—it’s staying positive and working well as a team.
His grace under pressure and loyalty to his team made him a strong leader in emergency settings – and his efforts helped many Canadians. “Being able to go and serve Canadians at home in their time of need is a true privilege and an honour” he says.
“I found that a lot of the skills, training and knowledge that came from military service really supported moving everything forward.”
Josh Bowen teaching in the emergency simulation lab at NAIT.
But after 13 years in increasingly senior roles, Bowen was ready for a new challenge. He left the military in 2017, taking his leadership skills to the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT).
As the Director and instructor in the Centre for Applied Disaster and Emergency Management at NAIT, he’s able to share his knowledge and provide hands-on training in an emergency simulation lab to help students address disaster scenarios.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he found himself drawing on his military experience to handle an entirely new kind of emergency. “I found that a lot of the skills, training and knowledge that came from military service really supported moving everything forward,” he says.
As Director of the institution’s Relaunch Coordination Team, he led a team of 25 people—all working remotely—and successfully implemented a rigorous safety protocol allowing students back on campus to safely continue their hands-on education in person at the polytechnic.
With experience responding to floods, fires and a global pandemic under his belt, Bowen is widely recognized as an expert in emergency management. Yet he attributes much of his success to his colleagues and peers in the Canadian Armed Forces. “I was really lucky to have mentors and guides who were both senior and junior to me to shape who I am and how I lead after I left the military.”
With courage, integrity and loyalty, Josh Bowen has left his mark. He is one of our Canadian Veterans. Discover more stories.
