This editor is known for her collection of T-shirts emblazoned with sayings, my favorite being, “I am silently correcting your grammar.” Fitting, amiright? I have another, though, given to me some time ago from a coal company that has their name on the front, and the back reading, “My blood runs black.” I’ve often used that in my personal and…
Read MoreIt’s said that one should look at life through the windshield, not the rearview mirror; the latter is smaller for a reason. It seems apropos to offer that point as we look out over the coming year in mining since it is a new opportunity to work safely and productively as new benchmarks are set for success. In December, a…
Read MoreSupport. A simple concept, but in truth it can be complex. One can support themselves, but it is much easier when there are others around to share support for one another. When that support is for the same main goal…well, that is a win-win. The next time you attend an industry conference, look around. The speaker may be from operations,…
Read MoreThe skills gap has been a long-standing issue in mining. Generational employment has lessened over decades and has left the industry in a competition like never before to gain and retain safe and productive hires. Beyond mining’s front lines, the outlook doesn’t improve. Many industry experts in niche areas – think ventilation, ground control, modeling and planning, processing, and more…
Read MoreTake a poll of this industry and you’ll quickly find out that many of those in it love what they do. And in many cases, a significant portion of that is due to the industry itself and the people they work with. The mining community is a densely intertwined network of highly intelligent, motivated and hard-working individuals, and I’ve long…
Read MoreAs we reach the year’s midway point, it is a good time to check in on the industry’s safety progress so far in 2023. In case you have not been following the statistics, I’m sorry to share the news is not as positive as we’d like to see at any point in the year, much less at the halfway point.…
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Just about every working day, I receive pitches and press releases in my inbox asking North American Mining magazine to cover a clean-tech/green-tech technology. Some are small in scope but hoping to make a big change in the industry, others have the potential to turn this industry on its ear. As I see it, every turn mining can make to…
Read MoreFew major decisions in life are made without research. The future of our world depends on someone, or many someones, to do perform due diligence on an action and following through on hypotheses to determine how to best tackle something. It is no different for mining. Consider this: had it not been for many before us conducting research, today’s mines…
Read MoreI am a staunch advocate for the mining industry, there is no denying that, though I do have a soft spot in my heart for coal. In my nearly two decades covering the varied commodities that make up our mineral circle, several were spent reporting on the ebbs and flows of one of the most misunderstood by the public: coal…
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Most everyone begins a new year with a resolution. Personal resolutions widely differ, but for many, doing something that involves a positive impact on others – the act of “paying it forward” – is an important mission many remember and put to action throughout the year. On a corporate and organizational level, there seems to be a consistent flow of…
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