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Greg Halseth is an Associate Professor in the Geography Program at the University of Northern British Columbia. His research examines rural and small town community (economic) development and the social geography of community change. Current research interests include household and community strategies for coping with economic change in BC’s resource-based towns, and the historical geography of sawmill towns along the upper Fraser River from Valemount to Prince George. Recently completed projects include studies of Internet use by CED groups in rural BC, resource employee commuting behavior in Mackenzie BC, a community transition survey in Tumbler Ridge BC, and studies of the voluntary sector and community capacity issues for the Canadian Rural Restructuring Foundation. He has recently been appointed as UNBC’s Canada Research Chair in Rural and Small Town Studies, and he serves as a member of the Advisory Committee on Rural Issues for Hon. Andy Mitchell, Secretary of State for Rural Development. Recent books have been published by McGill-Queens University Press, the University of Waterloo Press, and the UNBC Press.

Leslie Lax is a Prince George based consultant focusing on economic development and management issues and has worked extensively throughout northern British Columbia. Previously Executive Director for the Northern Development Commission, Leslie has a wide experience with rural and remote community economic development. He also spent two years as Deputy Director with a rural development NGO affiliated with the University of Natal in South Africa. Other pertinent experience includes almost ten years working for the provincial government, primarily on economic related projects. Leslie has a keen interest in collaborative and participatory development processes. He has an M.A. in economics from the University of Victoria and has authored and co-authored a number of research papers for the provincial government and in private practice. Leslie sometimes teaches in the Economics Department at UNBC and courses include introductory Principles, the Economics of Health Care, and the Economy of Northern British Columbia.

Don Manson is a Research Associate and Part-Time Lecturer in the School of Environmental Planning at the University of Northern British Columbia. Donald received his Masters Degree in Political Science from the University of Northern British Columbia. Areas of interest include: citizen participation, sustainable communities, healthy communities, and the economic history of northern British Columbia. Donald has been a Research Associate on the British Columbia Resource Communities project, Project Manager for the Rural and Remote Health Research Institute at UNBC, Project Manager for the National Rural Health Research Summit held in Prince George in October 2000, and Project Manager for the British Columbia Rural Health Conference held in Prince George in January 2001, co-sponsored by UNBC and the North Central Municipal Association. Donald has just completed a three year term as Policy Advisor to the Ministerial Advisory Council on Rural Health for the Hon. Anne McLellan, federal Minister of Health. Donald has worked as a consultant to various First Nations Tribal Councils dealing specifically with Community Forests.

Sean Markey is the Research Director with the Community Economic Development Centre at Simon Fraser University. Sean received his Ph.D. from the Department of Geography at SFU, concentrating on the dynamics of economic development and restructuring in non-metropolitan British Columbia. Sean's academic and professional work includes promoting community economic development in both rural and urban settings; he has worked with government, non-government organizations, environmental networks, First Nations communities, and municipalities. He is the author and co-author of a number of published articles, reports, and other works.

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