INNOVATION March-April 2012

groups in terms of building good relations between them and the mining community.” Stevens says it also is important for all parties in the mining sector to support the growing involvement of Aboriginal people in mine development. While the mineral rights, unless negotiated, remain with the Crown, increasingly there are revenue sharing agreements being forged that see revenues enhance Aboriginal communities and create new opportunities. Aboriginal people remain a ready workforce in these often remote areas, especially now that logging—once a traditional employer—has been reduced. “Today, the mining sector is the largest private sector employer of Aboriginal people in Canada,” he says, adding that there are mutual benefits to both industry, with a stable workforce, and the First Nations commu- nity, as larger mines last for decades, providing long-term employment. Evolving New Program Stevens’ role in growing BCIT’s exploration and mining program, the introduction of

the Aboriginal training programs and his contribution to revamping natural resource programs are all indications of how the institution has evolved to meet BC’s eco- nomic demand. “Rob has not only been a leader, but he has always stayed ahead of the trend,” says Rod Goy, Dean of BCIT’s School of Construction and the Enviroment. “The curriculum and the programs have very much undergone an evolution that that was led by Rob.” Goy credits Stevens for developing the natural resources portfolio which now con- sists of practice areas such as fish and wild- life, environmental engineering, exploration and mining, GIS and geomatics (mapping and surveying), sustainable energy manage- ment, sustainable resource management (formerly forestry) and ecological restora- tion. As the skills required to meet the social demands of a job change, the institution needs to change as well to train individuals with those skills. Goy asserts, “We are really

Scott McAlpine

in the business of solving industry problems with human resource planning and research.” The work with communities, associa- tions and BCIT has been highly rewarding as Stevens has seen many goals achieved. He has especially enjoyed the teaching process: “I have gotten some great feedback on the courses from people who say they entered the BCIT program with a poor work ethic and came out of the program knowing not just how to work, but with motivation.” There is also a satisfaction in knowing that a new generation with that motivation will have jobs over the next decade. “There are some very significant projects that are going to be coming on stream over the coming years,” he says. v Dr Robert Stevens PGeo teaches BCIT students about the geology of mining as well as the entrepreneurial aspects mineral discovery.

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