It’s an honour to be asked to address Roundup on its 25th anniversary. Roundup has evolved a lot in those 25 years, from a relatively small conference with 350 attendees to its current status as one of the most important mining exploration conferences in the world, with over 6,000 participants this year.
And the world industry has changed a lot too. In fact, it has changed a lot in just the last 5 years.
It was just five years ago when I was asked to address Roundup on the subject of “Mining In The Next 20 Years”, — an attempt at predicting the future which I had to admit is a mug’s game at the best of times. Even the best professional economists can’t always get it right. They say economists have successfully predicted ten of the last five recessions.
I think we geologists balance them out. As natural optimists, we’ve less successfully predicted ten of the last five recoveries.
In January 2007, Teck Cominco Limited President and CEO Donald R. Lindsay announced a $10 million donation to the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto to create three galleries highlighting minerals and the fascinating history of Canadian mining.
The following speech was given by William Thorsell, Director and CEO of the Royal Ontario Museum updating the audience at the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame induction ceremony and dinner about the organization’s new home.