Minerals North 2018 Was Hosted by the District of Houston
The District of Houston and the Minerals North Conference Association would like to extend their thanks to the following sponsors.
Bulkley Valley Credit Union, Monster Industries, Seabridge Gold, Finning, Pretivm Resources, Sullivan Motors, Imperial Metals, Centerra Gold, Kitimat Valley Institute, Regional District of Bulkley Nechako, Gold Corp, United Steelworkers, New Gold, Procon, Geoscience BC, Association for Mineral Exploration, Bandstra Transportation, Kal Tire, Dungate Community Forest, Polar Ridge Resources, Silvertip Promotions, Rent A Nerd, Houston Today, Hy Tech, Countrywide Printing and Stationery, Bulkley Valley Machining, DM Industrial Supply, Blastpro Construction, Geotech, Pacific Truck, Northwest Truck Rentals, Central Mountain Air, Smokescreen Graphics, Telkwa Coal, CFNR Radio, SMS Equipment, Citywest, Rugged Edge Holdings, Hamblin Fine Foods, Pharmasave Houston, Tower Communications, Bulkley Valley Brewery, Nisga’a Education and Training
A Speaker Summary is provided along with available presentation copies where available.
Keynote Speaker - Gordon Campbell
Keynote Title:
Today's Canada: Creativity and Collaboration for a Global Leader
In this stirring keynote, Gordon Campbell draws on his vast knowledge of our political and civic landscape to talk on today’s Canada: where we’ve been, where we’re headed, and what we can achieve together. A public servant of the highest order, Campbell spent three terms as the mayor of Vancouver—and three terms as BC’s 34th Premier—transforming the province into one of the most spectacular, and livable, places in the country.
Presenter - Bryan Yu
Growth, Commodities, and Trumpian Uncertainty: What’s next for the economy?
BRYAN YU is Deputy Chief Economist for Central 1 Credit Union, the umbrella organization for the credit union system in B.C. and Ontario. He has more than a decade of experience analyzing and/or forecasting the macro-economy, commodity prices, housing, and regional economic activity. Bryan provides economic analysis and forecast services to support member credit unions and internal business lines and frequently comments on the B.C. and national economies for major media outlets. Prior to Central 1, he was an economist with the B.C. Real Estate Association and Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. He is currently a director for the Canadian Association of Business Economists. Bryan holds degrees in Economics from Simon Fraser University and the University of Manitoba.
Banquet Entertainment - Comedian John Cullen
John Cullen is the rare comedian that you watch and he’s having so much fun on stage that you can’t decide whether he’s having more fun or you are. A charismatic performer and modern-day renaissance man, John brings his vast experiences as a high school teacher, world-ranked curler, drummer, and best friend to the stage in an attempt to make sure that everyone in the audience has the best time. That’s what comedy is about, after all.
If you’re still concerned, know that John has accomplished many things in just 7 years as a stand-up comedian. His album,Most Likely to be a Comedian, went to #1 on iTunes and can be frequently heard on SiriusXM radio. His podcast, Real Good Show, was nominated for a Canadian Comedy Award and has been downloaded over 200,000 times. He’s appeared on television as part of the Just for Laughs and Halifax Comedy Festivals, and is a regular at the Just for Laughs Northwest festival. And his curling team has finished on the podium in BC 4 times.
Program Speakers
Mike Aziz, Goldcorp Inc - Presentation Copy
Mike Aziz is the Manager of Canadian Closed Sites for Goldcorp Inc.
He has been based at the Equity Silver Mine since coming out to Houston for an exploration summer job in 1989.
Mike works with many closed and operating sites across Canada and internationally to help with ARD/ML concerns and has been part of the MEND steering committee for many years.
Tim Bekhuys, New Gold - Presentation Copy
Tim Bekhuys specializes in the environmental and social aspects of mining, including community, environmental and aboriginal affairs for New Gold.
He has over 30 years’ experience working in mining and environmental aspects of large resource development projects.
Tim joined New Gold as Director, Environment & Sustainability and is now the Director of the Blackwater Project, an advanced exploration project located in central BC.
Gord Clarke, Province of British Columbia - Presentation Copy
Gordon Clarke is the Director of the Vancouver based, British Columbia Mineral Development Office. Mr. Clarke holds a B.Sc. in Geology from Acadia University and a M.Sc. in Geology from the University of New Brunswick. Mr. Clarke has over thirty years of experience working in mineral exploration and mining. He was a principal owner of Aurora Geosciences Ltd. before working as senior mine geologist and superintendent of exploration for Diavik Diamond Mines Inc. After leaving Diavik in 2007, he held public company officer positions as President and Vice President Exploration for North Arrow Minerals Inc. and Vice President Exploration for Elgin Mining Inc.
Ellen Clements, New Nadina Explorations - Presentation Copy
Ellen Clements has served as Chief Executive Officer and President of New Nadina Explorations Limited since January 25, 2006. She was raised in a mining family, began her accounting career with CIBC in 1967. After gaining business experience, in 1980 she started private practice including public company office management and exploration expediting. She took positions on the Boards of public companies and has been a director of New Nadina Explorations Limited since March 17, 1992. Since 2006 Ellen has been directly involved and managed exploration programs in the Northwest Territories for diamonds and in Central and Southern BC for silver, gold, copper, lead and zinc. In 2011 Ellen was instrumental in the discovery of the hidden Itsit Copper, Molybdenum, gold Porphyry deposit at the Silver Queen property near Owen Lake where exploration is ongoing.
John DeGrace, Province of BC - Presentation Copy
Since 2017 John DeGrace has been Regional Geologist for North-Central and Northeast BC, with the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. He occupied the same position from 2006 to 2009 and, in the interim, was University Registrar at UNBC for two years and then Senior Project Geologist with Plateau Minerals Corp. in Prince George. He came to British Columbia and UNBC, as University Registrar, in 2002 after a varied career as a geologist with the Geological Survey of Newfoundland and Labrador, a consulting geologist in Newfoundland, a non-partisan researcher with the Research Branch of the Library of Parliament, Director of Energy and Minerals for the Province of Prince Edward Island, and as a University Research Administrator.
Lana Eagle
Lana Eagle is an Indigenous relations strategist and a Social Innovator advising companies on how to better engage and work with Indigenous communities and to find a pathway forward towards a Reconciliation framework. She has her own consultancy. Her background is in banking, economic development, wealth management and mineral exploration.
She is also an avid volunteer. Lana is serving on the Board of AME for a 3-year term, being the first Indigneous woman to serve as a Director in its over 100 year history. She is also the past-Chair of the Aboriginal Relations Committee at AME. Lana is also a Program Advisory Committee Member for Mining and Mineral Exploration at the BC Insititue of Technology, and Chair of the Canadian Institute of Mining Diversity and Inclusion Program Advisory Committee. She is also the VP of Western Canada for CIM serving on it’s Council. As well she has recently accepted the position of Co-chair, together with Dr. John Thompson, for the RGF 2018 global conference in Vancouver. Recently, she has been awarded the prestigious Skookum Jim Award presented at PDAC 2018.Lana is a sought out speaker and lecturer on the topic of “Indigenous Engagement and Reconcilation in Canada”. Lana is a member of the Whitecap Dakota First Nation in Saskatchewan.
Mark Gray, Telkwa Coal - Presentation Copy
Mr. Gray founded Telkwa Coal Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Allegiance) and secured the farm-in rights to the Telkwa metallurgical coal project in September 2014. He is a corporate lawyer with 30 years transactional experience gained as a lawyer with Herbert Smith in London, a partner with Bell Gully in New Zealand and as a director of the investment bank Barclays de Zoette Wedd, also in London. For the last 12 years Mr. Gray has been an advisor to and company executive of mining companies and operations including underground coal in Australia and open pit mining in Africa, as well as exploration and development projects in several minerals including coal.
Gary Herman, Industry Training Authority - Presentation Copy
Gary Herman is Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Industry Training Authority (ITA), responsible for the governance, expansion and improvement of B.C.’s industry training system. After joining the organization as Chief Operating Officer in January 2013, he was appointed interim CEO in August the same year, then permanent CEO in August 2014.
Prior to ITA, Gary has served in executive management positions including ThyssenKrupp Fabco, VAE Nortrak and Ebco Industries.
Gary began his career by apprenticing for seven years in three trades and is certified as a Tool & Die Maker and as a Die Sinker (forging). He is also a Certified Manufacturing Engineer and has a Business Administration Diploma and an Executive MBA. In addition, he has completed a Directors Education Program through the Institute of Corporate Directors and received his ICD.D designation.
Cole Jackson, Natural Resources Canada
Cole Jackson is a policy analyst in the Lands and Minerals Sector of Natural Resources Canada. His primary focus is on regional engagement, as well as youth and academic engagement. Prior to NRCan, Cole worked on the policy development towards the most recent Health Accord, while working for the Public Health Agency of Canada.
Cole is an avid football fan and is the offensive line coach of the Cumberland Panthers Bantam Varisty program that plays in the Ontario Premier Football League.
Paul Jago, Centerra Gold - Presentation Copy
Paul Jago is a Senior Geologist and Exploration Manager with Centerra Gold, and is based out of the Mount Milligan mine. In recent years, he was the Regional Geologist for the Northcentral and Northeast regions of BC with the Ministry of Energy & Mines. Paul is a UBC graduate where he was enrolled in the Mineral Deposit Research Unit. Academic pursuits were combined with seasonal work with mineral exploration companies in northcentral BC and followed by several years of near-mine exploration with Freeport-McMoRan in the southwestern U.S. A paper summarizing his Master’s thesis on the Mt. Milligan porphyry copper-gold deposit was published in 2014 by the Society of Economic Geologists. Paul is an active professional member of Engineers & Geoscientists BC and has been with Centerra Gold since mid-2017.
Robert Klinck, Natural Resources Canada
Robert Klinck is a policy analyst in the Lands and Minerals Sector of Natural Resources Canada. He works pimarly as part of the Canadian Minerals and Metals Secratariat where he focuses on communications and policy development. He has previously worked on areas of public policy relating to intergovernmental affairs, Indigenous affairs and natural resource development. Prior to joining NRCan, Robert worked with Naskapi Nation in northern Quebec and as supervisor in the silviculture industry based out of Prince George, B.C.
Robert holds a Master of Arts in Geography from the University of Guelph and a Bacholors in Environmental Studies and Geography from Bishop’s University.
Jay Layman, Seabridge Gold - Presentation Copy
As President and Chief Operating Officer of Seabridge Gold, Mr. Layman is responsible for designing and managing the technical programs required to advance Seabridge`s assets primarily Iskut, KSM and Courageous Lake--towards final feasibility and construction and advising the Board of Directors on the best strategy for unlocking shareholder value in these assets. He is also a Director of Seabridge Gold and a Director of Nautilus Minerals.
Mr. Layman has an unusually broad range of technical expertise which makes him uniquely qualified for his role. Most recently, he was Vice President Solutions and Innovation for Newmont Mining Company where he was responsible for managing Global Technical Services and launching a Global Innovation Department. Functions reporting to him included Mining Engineering, Metallurgy and Process, Geostatistics and Reserves, Economic Geology, Project Engineering, Renewable Energy and Global Exploration Technology and Solutions. During his employment at Newmont, he was responsible for managing numerous Feasibility Studies and his career includes experience in Business Development, Operations, Finance and B2B Supply Chain connectivity.
In his wide-ranging career, Mr. Layman has lived in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Indonesia and Australia and has additional work experience in Russia, Singapore, China and Peru. He has worked in both underground and open pit operations containing gold, copper, silver, lead and zinc metals. His education includes Bachelors Degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Finance from Washington State University and an MBA from Eastern Washington University.
Bruce Madu, Geoscience BC
Bruce Madu is the Vice President, Minerals and Mining, Geoscience BC in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Over the past 30 years he has worked in public service positions throughout the province as a professional geologist and held senior positions in minerals, land and water management.
In his current capacity at Geoscience BC, he leads the generation of earth science information in collaboration with First Nations, the resource sector, universities, governments, and communities. As Geoscience BC is a publically-funded organization, this information is delivered to the public to encourage investment and enable informed land use decisions for the benefit of all British Columbians.
Previously he held the position of Director, British Columbia Geological Survey and led the Mineral Development Office in Vancouver. The office is a source of mineral and coal resource information, a leader in the promotion of minerals opportunities domestically and internationally, and follows issues impacting the health of the sector. In the position, trade and investment missions were coordinated in China, Japan, Korea, India, the USA and United Kingdom.
His previous positions held in over twenty years of public service cover a spectrum of geographic locations throughout British Colombia and include geological research, public geoscience, and water and land management.
Cornell McDowell, Aben Resources Ltd. - Presentation Copy
Cornell McDowell is a professional geologist registered in both Alberta and British Columbia and serves as Vice President of Exploration for Aben Resources Ltd. and is the Qualified Person for that Company. He has been self-employed as a geological consultant since graduating with a Bachelor of Science (Specialization in Geology) from the University of Alberta in 2005. He has worked with both privately held and publicly listed mineral exploration corporations in multiple jurisdictions. Most recently with Gold Reach Resources (now Surge Copper) on the Ootsa Project, where in excess of 100,000 meters of drilling has advanced the project from initial stage through resource development to the delivery of a positive PEA. He also serves on the Board of Directors and Audit Committee for Manson Creek Resources Ltd.
Peter Robb - Province of BC - Presentation Copy
Peter Robb joined the Government of British Columbia in 2001, after several years working in the BC Treaty negotiations process as a consultant. He is a graduate of Bishops University (BComm) and the University of Northern British Columbia (BSc in Environmental Planning). He has spent his entire career working the natural resource sector with a focus on engaging and negotiating with First Nations in the forestry, mining and oil and gas sectors.
He has spent 11 years at the Ministry of Energy and Mines, along with a four year hiatus at the Ministry of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation. Before taking his current role, he was the Executive Director of the new Major Mine Permitting Office. He has held numerous positions within government ranging from regional operations, permitting to negotiating major infrastructure projects.
Sharon Singh, Bennett Jones LLP - Presentation Copy
Sharon Singh specializes in providing regulatory, governance, environmental law and Indigenous relations advice to resource, construction and infrastructure development projects.
Before joining Bennett Jones LLP, Sharon was with a leading mining company based in Australia and Canada, working across many fields including commercial, legal, regulatory, government, and community relations. Sharon has a built a reputation for her ability to progress issues through creating trusting relationships between industry groups, associations, governments, Indigenous and local communities, and the not-for-profit sector.
In the community, Sharon is a founding member and the Vice-Chair Policy of the Business Council of British Columbia's Next Leaders Council. She is a member of the Business Council of British Columbia's Aboriginal, Environmental, and Community committees and the Association for Mineral Exploration's Aboriginal Relations, and Land Access and Use committees. She also is a member of the Canadian Bar Association and is on the executive of the Aboriginal Law section of the British Columbia chapter. Sharon also serves on the board of D.A.R.E. BC, a not-for-profit organization that empowers British Columbia children with the critical thinking and life skills necessary to choose a drug-free life.
In March 2016, Sharon was awarded a Wendy McDonald Award, in the category of Women of Promise by the Leadership Circle of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. She was recognized as a leading lawyer in The Legal 500: Canada in the Aboriginal law—next generation lawyers category.
Kevin Torpy, Brucejack Mine - Presentation Copy
Mr. Torpy has over 20 years of experience developing underground mines, primarily in remote northern locations. He was previously Project Mine Engineer with Silver Standard Resources where he managed the mining portion of various studies for projects in Mexico and South America. As Technical Services Superintendent for Coeur d’Alene Mines’ Kensington Project near Juneau, Alaska, Kevin managed the detailed engineering and underground development program during construction of the mine. He also managed both Coeur’s mine development workforce and a mining contractor during construction. As Operations Engineer at Teck’s Pogo Mine in Northern Alaska, he helped to manage the operation of a remote camp and underground development program and work on the feasibility study. He was also Project Engineer for JS Redpath during a shaft excavation project in Wyoming. Kevin holds a B.S. in Mining Engineering from Montana Tech. Kevin and his family reside in Smithers, BC.
Christine Ogryzlo, AMEBC - Presentation Copy
