I attended the University of Guelph for the BA and MA degrees and then did further post-graduate work in social research at the University of Toronto and Harvard University.
In the fall of 1997 I joined the DPhil program at the Science and Technology Policy Research Unit (SPRU) at the University of Sussex (Brighton, U.K.). SPRU is an international research center that specialises in studies of the interaction of science, technology, economy and society. My supervisor was Professor Robin Mansell and my work investigates perceptions of the Internet for experienced and intensive users. My work was supported by the European Commission and I defended my doctoral thesis in February of 2001.
From 1976 to 1984 I held academic and research appointments at the University of Toronto, York University, and Queen's University where I helped co-found the research unit 'Studies in Communication and Information Technology' (SCIT).
In 1984, I was appointed senior research analyst to the Department of the Secretary of State (now part of Canadian Heritage). In 1989, I was appointed Director of Social Trends Analysis and in 1992 was made Director of Corporate Research and Analysis.
Prior to joining SPRU I worked on government policy papers concerned with the growth of information technology and on people's participation in the emerging knowledge-based economy. These papers were background documents for the Canadian Government's Information Highway Advisory Council (IHAC) and for the federal government's emerging research program on the Knowledge-based Economy and Society (KBE/S).
In 1986, I entered a three year secondment to facilitate the creation of the National Literacy Secretariat and was appointed Director of Research, Policy and Co-ordination. In 1994, I took up an Interchange Canada Assignment at Wilfrid Laurier University (Waterloo, Ontario) as institutional research and planning consultant to the President. In September 1995 I was invited to a corporate assignment with the Special Survey's Branch of Statistics Canada as Communications Manager for the International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS), an immense seven country comparative study.
I am involved in policy research networks that investigate the skills and values required to access digital information resources. I give seminars and write conference papers on the digital divide and other key policy research topics.
During my career I have published (and supervised) numerous reports and articles, organised press conferences, research conferences, symposia, and retreats, and have often been invited to give talks and presentations at various meetings of national and international bodies in Washington, Paris, London, Hamburg, Vienna and across Canada.
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