The Greatest Show in Earth

It’s almost time for the PDAC (Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada) to consider incorporating the letter “W” into its name to better reflect its WorldWide status.

What started out as a “good old boys” social gathering in Toronto some 78 years ago has now grown into the mining event of the year where more than 22,000 mining people from around the world gathered in Toronto last month to discuss the issues of the day.

In keeping with tradition, attendees mixed business with pleasure but most importantly, they came to learn and reminisce about the good, bad and really bad years of mining.

And there’s no question, the mining industry has experienced them all.

From the good days of the 80s, to the bad of the 90s, to our most recent recession, mining has experienced them all and because of its cyclical nature, will continue to do so for generations to come. But thankfully those words “for generations to come” still hold true today and perhaps even more than ever before as more and more second and third-generations are stepping up to keep the industry alive.

First Nations, too, are taking a deeper interest in mining and as almost every prospector and developer knows, they are good and powerful partners to have when it comes to getting on with business.

Like at almost every PDAC convention, prospectors and developers had a great story to tell as to why their properties hold the most promise and this year was no exception. More than 600 companies occupied every corner of one of PDAC’s two massive halls at the Metro Convention Centre while another 200 vendors took over the remaining exhibit space.

The adjacent photos are just a glimpse of what took place in Toronto this year and PDAC organizers predict next year’s show (March 6-9) will be just as busy. CMJ will be there, will you?