[Ontario] Northerners fight back [against Queen’s Park] – by Wayne Snider (The Daily Press – May 2, 2011)

Wayne Snider is the city editor for The Daily Press, the city of Timmins newspaper. Contact the writer at news@thedailypress.ca.

With the resources available in Northern Ontario, there is no reason why we shouldn’t thrive socially and economically. Northern leaders need our support if we are no longer to be treated as a colony, whose wealth creation feeds the needs of the south.
(Wayne Snider – May 2, 2011)

Centralization of Northern Ontario to Sudbury and Thunder Bay leaves other communities out in the cold

Tired of largely being ignored and having legislation rammed down their throats without any meaningful consultation, municipal leaders from across Northeastern Ontario are getting ready to fight back.

Members of the Northeastern Ontario Municipal Association (NEOMA) will devote the lion’s share of their next meeting to developing a lobbying and marketing strategy for the North.

Tired of being force fed a steady diet of legislation that negatively impacts their communities — such as the Far North Act, the Northern Ontario Growth Plan and changes to the Endangered Species Act — our leaders realize the time has come to get the message out to not just the government in Queen’s Park, but all Ontarians. With a critical provincial election coming up in the fall, it is now do or die time for the North.

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Unique partnership provides niche mine training in Kirkland Lake – by Adelle Lamour

Established in 1980, Northern Ontario Business  provides Canadians and international investors with relevant, current and insightful editorial content and business news information about Ontario’s vibrant and resource-rich North. This column was published in the April 2011 issue.

Hard Rock Miner Training program helps address shortage of skilled miners.

With a hand from Kirkland Lake Gold Inc., Northern College is helping to address the industry’s shortage of skilled miners with its Underground Hard Rock Miner Common Core training program. Created through a partnership between the school and the mid-tier gold miner, the program has provided an opportunity for those returning to the North in search of permanent full-time employment.

“It is so gratifying to see those who are highly motivated and never had a chance of getting in…this is their big break,” said Rose-Lyne D’Aoust-Messier, training consultant of apprenticeship, workforce development and training at Northern College’s Kirkland Lake campus.

It is one of two institutions in northeastern Ontario that offers this type of training for people not privately employed by a mining company. In mid-February, 12 students graduated from the program, six of which have already been scooped up by Kirkland Lake Gold.

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