I was born on the Prairies, grew up on the East Coast, and moved to Toronto in the 1980s after working for MPs in the House of Commons as a parliamentary intern. My career to date has been in government and academia. I got my Ph.D. at U of T (1992).
From 1989 to 2003 I was a Research Officer in the Research & Information Services branch of the Legislative Library in the Ontario Legislature. In this position I prepared research and policy analysis for MPPs, ministers, parliamentary staff and legislative committees.
I was an adjunct professor in the UTM Department of Political Science from 1995–2003, a full-time assistant professor from 2003 to June 2010, and now again an adjunct professor.
I teach on both the St. George and Mississauga campuses. I have taught courses on Canadian politics, Ontario politics, public policy, environmental politics, and research methods. Recently, I have also taught in the University’s School of the Environment on the St. George campus.
I have served part-time on two adjudicative agencies in the City of Toronto. From 1995 to 2001 I was a member of the City’s Housing Standards Appeal Committee. Currently I am a member of the City’s Committee of Adjustment.
I have published articles in Environmental Politics, Canadian Public Policy, Commonwealth and Comparative Politics, Parliamentary Affairs, the Journal of Legislative Studies, and the Canadian Parliamentary Review. In June 2010 the Canadian Study of Parliament Group published my comparative study of the federal Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development and the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario (http://www.studyparliament.ca).