Panel Members

Harry Swain - Chair of the Expert Panel

Harry Swain is a Director of the Canadian Institute for Climate Studies and research associate at the University of Victoria's Centre for Global Studies. An acknowledged expert in public environmental policy, Mr. Swain chaired the research advisory panel of the Walkerton Inquiry, and an expert panel on a water and wastewater strategy for Ontario.

Mr. Swain holds a doctorate in economic geography from the University of Minnesota and an LLD from the University of Victoria. He worked in nine federal departments between 1971 and 1995, eventually rising to the position of Deputy Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Upon leaving government, Mr. Swain became CEO of Hambros Canada and later founded the Toronto office of Sussex Circle, a policy consulting firm.

Mr. Swain has also worked for the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Austria and the province of British Columbia. In addition, he has served as a director of Canadian Bank Note Limited and Canadian Geographic Enterprises, along with several philanthropic organizations.

Grand Chief Stan Louttit - Expert Panel Member

Stan Louttit is Grand Chief of the Mushkegowuk Council. A Cree from the Albany Band, he was raised in Attawapiskat, Ontario and now lives in Moose Factory. Grand Chief Louttit has long been a respected community leader, and is credited with helping to raise public awareness of the water crisis in Kashechewan First Nation.

During the 1980s, Grand Chief Louttit co-ordinated on-reserve programs for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, rising to the position of district manager and earning the department's Outstanding Achievement Award in 1986. In 1988, he received a Governor General's Medal for Bravery for his relief work during the Winisk flood. He was presented with the Emile Nakogee Award for Leadership at the Nishnawbe Aski Nation Keewaywin Conference in 2005.

Grand Chief Louttit served as Chairperson of Mushkegowuk Council from 1992 to 1993, and was later elected Deputy Grand Chief of Nishnawbe Aski Nation. After two terms in office, he served as CEO for Moose Cree First Nation. In 2004, he was elected Grand Chief.

Professor Steve Hrudey - Expert Panel Member

Steve E. Hrudey is a Professor of Environmental Health Sciences and Associate Dean of Canada's first School of Public Health, at the University of Alberta. He is Chair of the Alberta Environmental Appeals Board, a quasi-judicial tribunal appointed by provincial cabinet. He has also served on the Research Advisory Panel to the Walkerton Inquiry, was an architect of the catchment-to-consumer framework of the 2004 Australian Drinking Water Guidelines, and was the founding leader of the Protecting Public Health theme for the Canadian Water Network.

Professor Hrudey was the 2006 Distinguished Speaker for the National Water Research Institute. He is an active researcher who has authored or co-authored many scientific publications relating to environmental risk assessment and management, and drinking water safety and quality. His most recent book, Safe Drinking Water - Lessons from Recent Outbreaks in Affluent Nations, documents more than 70 case studies of waterborne disease outbreaks, including Walkerton and North Battleford. Professor Hrudey holds a PhD in Public Health Engineering and a DSc(Eng) in Environmental Health Sciences and Technology from the University of London.