After 19 years with The Northern Miner and its sibling magazines, this will be my final editorial. I’m leaving for another experience outside of mining in December.
Spending over 20 years with one organisation is uncommon these days, so you may wonder, “What kept me here for so long?”
There have been some benefits, though. One is travel. I have travelled to Canada’s Arctic, to a remote exploration camp in the Argentinean Andes, and to a remote diamond project on Baffin Island, where I had to fly by helicopter over jagged fjords. German investors who loved beer were matched by an enterprise in Asia that gave shots and shots of the Chinese liquor baijiu.
Additionally, I’ve had the chance to interview and meet some of the most enterprising individuals in the corporate world. Risk-takers and problem-solvers who make a difference in one of the most difficult—and vital—businesses in the world.
Interviewing mining tycoon Pierre Lassonde at his home in midtown Toronto was one of the highlights. Like the movies, it included a library/study with multiple levels.
I’ve also loved learning the backstories of new and fascinating discoveries made by bright young geographers like Scott Berdahl, the 2024 YMP Peter Munk Award winner, and Chris Taylor, the TNM 2021 Person of the Year.
More challenging and complex, but nonetheless worthwhile, have been the stories that explored and analysed mining’s shortcomings and most difficult issues, such as tailings reforms, the growing influence of Indigenous communities, and the directing coverage of this year’s heap leach collapse at the Eagle mine in the Yukon.
Continuous change
In the last 19 years, mining has seen significant transformation. Here are a handful of examples:
Observing diversity
Although women still make up only 15% of the mining workforce worldwide, the value of diversity in the industry is now widely acknowledged. Two years ago, Rio Tinto published a report detailing the startling extent of harassment and bullying that mostly targeted women and minorities within the company’s workforce. It released a follow-up report in November. Even though it notes some concerning patterns since its initial report—such as an increase in bullying in reaction to the miner’s “Everyday Respect” campaigns—it also highlights something that would not have occurred two decades ago. Rio’s readiness to make the alarming results public is admirable and a positive step towards resolving the culture problem in mining.
Canada’s diminishing diamond industry
The first thrilling diamond discovery in Lac de Gras in 1991, which resulted in the Ekati mine in the Northwest Territories, was still fresh in my mind when I started working at the Miner. The opening of the Jericho diamond mine in Nunavut, which was the third in Canada at the time, was one of my first site visits in 2006. Two further mines, Victor in Ontario and Snap Lake in the NWT, were being constructed in the same year. Due to a combination of high expenses, a low success rate in discovering new, profitable mines, and competition from lab-grown diamonds, the industry is currently in decline in Canada. Only Ekati and Gahcho Kué will remain open after the Diavik mine closes in 2026.
Migration of retail investors
Retail investors no longer purchase exploration ventures, despite the fact that discount brokerages have made do-it-yourself investing simple and affordable.
Since the launch of Bitcoin in 2009, competition from other speculative assets, including cryptocurrencies, has attracted significant investment. According to Forbes, the worldwide cryptocurrency market is worth US$3.2 trillion. By contrast, S&P estimated that the worldwide mining industry’s market capitalisation was only US$2.2 trillion at the end of 2023.
The growth of critical minerals
The significance of mining to Western economies and national security, as well as the danger posed by China’s control over vital mineral supply chains and knowledge, have finally been recognised by Western governments. Long permitting processes that can sabotage projects and discourage investment have not yet been handled, but there is some optimism that Donald Trump, the incoming president of the United States, could change that with his deregulation campaign.
Before I go, I would want to express my gratitude to Anthony Vaccaro, president of TNM Group, for elevating me in the organisation, and to John Cumming, the former editor-in-chief who hired me and served as an excellent mentor.
Personally, I’m delighted to have contributed to the development of a solid editorial staff at the Miner that has remained together for over two years and generates independent work that benefits both our readers and the industry. With production/copy editor Blair McBride, Western editor Henry Lazenby, and interim editor-in-chief Colin McClelland, I am confident that the publication is in capable hands.
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