Mineral Exploration

18 W I N T E R 2 0 1 5 A career in British Columbia's mineral explora- tion industry is not for everyone. Most people who have succeeded have done so by being flexible and forward-thinking, and by keeping their survival skills and professional skills up to date. Take, for example, Darcy Baker, president of Vancouver-based Equity Exploration Consultants Ltd. Equity Exploration has managed exploration projects since 1987. "We're a one-stop-shop – a turnkey project-management company," Baker says. The company, which works for both majors and juniors, follows its clients anywhere. "We're exploration generalists," he says. "We've done all the metals at one time or another." Baker says that although the mineral explo- ration industry "is not at its best right now," the company is busy. "We're having a robust 2015," he says. "We have 12 full-time employees and, including part-time contractors, 60 to 70 on the payroll during the exploration season." Baker says lifelong learning is essential in geology. "Because each geological occurrence is unique, you need to keep seeing more and more rocks in order to educate yourself. There are many differences between individual deposits. Each deposit is different, and it's impossible to have seen them all." Trained as a geologist, Baker completed a bachelor of science at Dalhousie University and received his PhD from the University of Newcastle, in Australia. "I have also completed some courses at the Justice Institute [of B.C.], to improve my management skill set," Baker says. "Earlier in my career, all my learning was focused on the techni- cal side of geology." Andy Randell started Vancouver-based geol- ogy consultancy Strata GeoData Services (SGDS) in 2013. SGDS is Randell's solution to the prob- lem of many geology graduates being out of work. "I offer workshops and education outreach for geology, engineering, earth science and environ- mental graduates," Randell says. SGDS Hive, another Randell consultancy, was started in April 2015. "Hive uses graduates to do data work," he says. "I work online with them on projects and act as a mentor to them." Randell also plans to start a non-profit called Below BC, which he expects to launch in early 2016. "Below BC will look at every aspect of geoscience as it affects B.C.," Randell says. "We plan to start in Vancouver, with classroom space where people can come to learn. After that, we are going to reach out to smaller communities in B.C. and engage with the public and schools [about] geology." Randell graduated from Cardiff University in Wales with a degree in environmental geosci- ences and has been in Canada since 2007. "I had been working as a geologist but was laid off by my employer in 2012," he says. "The market for geologists had become unstable and uncertain, so I thought it was safer to start my own business." To find out how to run a small business in Canada, Randell took some courses from Small Business BC and learned graphic design. "I've also learned a lot by mentoring grads," Randell says. "I need to be up to date in order to do that." Jill Tsolinas is executive director of the BC Centre of Training Excellence in Mining (CTEM), a province-wide virtual hub that facilitates collab- orative and innovative training solutions for the mineral industry and communities. "CTEM does this by connecting industry, students, communi- ties and training providers to meet their respec- tive employment needs," Tsolinas says. "We also play a leading role in determining industry skills requirements, facilitating related training and sup- porting industry partners." Founded in 2013, CTEM is hosted by North- west Community College and has offices in Smithers and Vancouver. It is funded by the B.C. government, with additional support from industry Model students

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