Canadian junior Novagold said on Tuesday that long-tenured director Igor Levental had passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on June 10.

Levental served as an independent director of the company, which is focused on the Donlin gold project in Alaska, since 2010. Over the past 12 years, he shared his knowledge of the mining industry and brought a unique perspective to Novagold’s board of directors.

In a special tribute, Novagold chairperson Thomas Kaplan wrote that Levental’s death was a “crushing blow, not just for his family and friends but a vast array of colleagues within the North American gold mining industry — and indeed the industry itself”.

“His breadth of knowledge and colossal frame of reference, the deep well of respect, affection, and loyalty that he both enjoyed and shared, and an abiding passion for his craft rendered him among the last of a certain breed of mining experts.

“Of course, Igor — or Misha, my own customary term of affection for him — was so much more than that. In a world that often seems plagued by ‘Life diminishers’, Igor was the antidote. In fact, he embodied what the art historian Bernard Berenson would refer to as a ‘life enhancer’. A man of so many parts and all of them charming, Igor was wonderful company, always fun, curious, and vividly appreciating life — his as well as yours.

“His generosity of spirit was legendary, and profound was the contribution he made to our lives. To us all, he was a wise confidant, an energetic leader, a patient mentor, a devoted collaborator, and a teammate of the highest integrity. Igor was a core member of our family. He will be missed as dearly as he was loved and loved us all.

“Every single day, he stood in the front line of our band of brothers and sisters. I invoke the Novagold journey because our collective pride in this story has been so meaningful to me personally, as well as to him, an unsung hero of a project that we so love,” said Kaplan.

The company expressed condolences to Levental’s family, wife Jessica, sons Casey, Misha and his wife Evan, and father Genady Levental.