5 Things APGO Did This Summer

In no particular order of importance, APGO staff along with many volunteers worked on the following issues this summer:

1.       Updating APGO’s Registration Regulations:  Significant meetings were held with the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines to update Ontario Regulation 59/01 which governs the Registration Process of the APGO.  In large part, this regulation has not been updated since the inception of the APGO in 2000 apart from an amendment made in 2012.  It is apparent that the environment for geoscientists has evolved since this time and the regulations that govern the APGO must remain in step with these changes.

2.       Inter-Provincial Mobility:  An on-going issue and one that is important to many APGO members is inter-provincial mobility for incidental practise.  By this we mean, the ability to move freely between provinces for short-term practise.  This is a complex issue and one that requires the cooperation of other willing provincial geoscience regulators.  APGO members should know that this issue is a top priority for the Association and one that we devote a great deal of time and energy towards accomplishing.  While we do not have a clear outcome to date on this issue, we are advocating strongly towards this important priority.   This summer, the Ontario Securities Commission, BC Securities Commission, PDAC and many of APGO’s member companies have declared their support for inter-provincial, incidental practice for geoscientists in writing.  Many thanks to Bill Pearson for his efforts.  We will keep our members apprised of our efforts in this regard.

3.       New Online Registration Process:  APGO is developing a new online registration process to better register new members.  This has required a great deal of development for our database.  Our outcome is to have a quicker, less complicated process for those who wish to join the APGO and a reduction in the reams of paper that is currently required.

4.       Online Knowledge Requirement Tool Kit:  As has been reported on in other Field Notes, APGO created an online knowledge requirement toolkit to help university students choose the correct courses in order to meet APGO’s knowledge requirements towards their goal of achieving a P.Geo. designation.

5.       Launch of New Field Notes Newsletter:   APGO re-envisioned our newsletter and increased our communication to our membership in this form from six times per year to fifty-two.  While some have suggested that it’s too much information, our recent member survey states strongly that communication from the Association is important to our membership. 

While staff and volunteers worked on many other projects and tasks during the summer, the above seemed significant for their investment of time and effort and their priority according to APGO’s strategic plan.