Elevated Access | The Inside Story

Chad Hughes hosts Thomas Schaffer, Senior Manager for Transmission Right-of-Way at American Electric Power, on the show to discuss the work AEP is doing and how they engage with customers in meaningful ways. They delve into Thomas’ career history and what the future has in store for the industry.   Thomas came into acquisition through working a summer job at the courthouse in Columbus, Ohio. He st...

Chad Hughes welcomes Richard McNally of O R Colan to the podcast to discuss his career in the right of way space. They discuss human resourcing complexities and resource scarcity in the industry, drawing on Richard’s extensive experiences and insight. Richard is Vice President of ORC’s Utility Division which he says gives him the opportunity to use his history as a go-getter and to trust and deleg...

Chad Hughes invites Nikki Sitch, Manager of Land and Community Inclusion at Kiwetinohk Energy Corp, to the show to talk about her career journey and the insights she has on attributes that lead to success. As Nikki talks, it becomes clear that she lives what she believes in regards to creating your own future. Nikki claims she got into land “by fluke” as she moved from receptionist at AltaGas to b...

Chad Hughes invites Kala Belding, Technology Strategy Manager of Wireless Real Estate for Telus, to the show to share her insights on the key attributes that lead to success in real estate management or access roles. Kala’s career journey has given her clear sight into what skills and attributes of her own aid in her current role.  Kala describes how each of her previous career roles equipped her...

Chad Hughes welcomes Mike Anderson, Manager of Surface Land at Tamarack Acquisition Corp, to the show. Chad centers this episode around Indigenous participation in the industry. Mike is able to shed a lot of light on what Tamarack has been doing in their approach to building relationships and creating opportunities for Indigenous communities through their projects. Mike has been a surface land age...

Chad Hughes welcomes Brent Leftwich, President of Leftwich Management Inc., to the show. They discuss Brent’s 32+ years experience leading Contract Land Staff (CLS), which he transformed into one of North America’s largest independent right of way and land management companies. Brent shares how he grew the business, introduced key technological advancements, and his insights into the right of way...

Chad Hughes welcomes Paul Scannell, Manager of Real Estate and Title for Geenex Solar LLC, to the show to talk about title in relation to access. Paul has the better part of 15 years of experience in the sector and sheds light on the intricacies of title, including how minerals for subsurface can affect surface rights. Paul Scannell started in oil and gas research after college before meeting some...

Chad Hughes meets with Jon Yoachim, innovator and Founder of Part & Parcel, to discuss Jon’s background in land access and dive into the details of Part & Parcel. As a matchmaking marketplace that connects access professionals with companies that are hiring, Part & Parcel is set to be a fascinating new resource for the industry. Jon Yoachim has a Bachelor of Science in Real Estate and Land Use Eco...

Chad Hughes welcomes Glenn Miller, Land Negotiator and Energy Professional, to the show to discuss his 25+ year career. Together, they dig deep into Glenn’s learning experience with an offshore gas exploration project off the East coast of Cape Breton Island. Glenn Miller grew up on a mixed grain farm North East of Calgary which instilled in him a strong work ethic and respect for the land. In the...

Dayna Morgan, COO at BRITT RADIUS, discusses how the land access industry is changing. She shares how stepping into leadership alongside two other strong women has propelled personal and professional evolution that serves employees and clients alike. Dayna started work at BRITT RADIUS when she was still in university; she enjoyed the work and found a strong mentor in founder Ray Ramsay who invited...

Nicola Millions-Hollamby is an Instructor and Coordinator in the Olds College land access training program. Nicola sheds light on the qualities that make students successful, the relevance and transferable content contained in the course material, and how the industry has contributed to the program’s success. Nicola had, in the past, pursued land agent studies at Olds College which led to her care...

David Gould has over 32 years of experience as a mediator, working to help others resolve conflict. David and Chad Hughes explore the nature of conflict, breaking down how our stories are told, and David shares advice on how he deals with and de-escalates conflict ahead of time. While David Gould started his career as a lawyer, a litigator, he engaged in mediation training in 1988 and, in his word...

Travis Warren has extensive experience securing access for renewable energy development across the United States. He discusses with Chad Hughes some of the key differences between access needs for renewable energy projects versus access required for pipeline projects. Travis began his career in land access in 2006 in the renewable sector. He trained on the job with a company in Texas and learned b...

Dan Tocher, Vice President Stakeholder Relations for Greengate Power, has worked on some of the largest renewable energy projects in Canada. He walks Chad Hughes through his career and the skills that have assisted him in becoming a leader in his field, and how he deployed these skills in acquiring the access required for the Travers Solar Project. Dan Tocher grew up in Guelph, Ontario and it wasn...

Chris Lupaschuk started in land acquisition in 2005 while attending Olds College. In 2017 his career journey led him to a copper mining project in the Republic of Serbia where he developed the first successful land acquisition and resettlement program in the country.  Moving from Canada to Serbia was a giant leap for Chris Lupaschuk and his family but in examining the opportunity he realized that...

Chris Bakker has over 20 years of access experience in the oil and gas and mining sectors. In today’s episode, he breaks down lessons he’s learned and experiences he’s had that have shaped how he approaches business with his company Avanti Energy. In 2002/2003 Chris worked in Eastern Europe, specifically in Romania, where he says things worked in a manner that was 180 degrees different from how th...

Jason Gouw has 25+ years of experience managing land acquisition and engagement programs and has seen substantial changes in the industry with how stakeholders and Indigenous communities participate. He believes collaborative relationships and transparent engagement are the keys to the progressive future of land access. Having grown up on an irrigation farm, one with cows, Jason was no stranger to...

Sandy Grigg has 45 years of public sector real estate and consultancy experience. He’s gained much insight through every facet of his career, but one of his most valued takeaways is that collaboration and person to person relationships define success. From relatively humble beginnings as a clerk with Ontario Hydro, Sandy has worked through every aspect of real estate from property acquisition to a...

Andrew Hamilton’s 20+ year career in the energy sector has taught him many lessons, but none greater than the careful skills and transparency necessary in dealing with stakeholders. And he says “The easiest way to be consistent is to be honest.” Andrew Hamilton counts his career path as an “accidental journey”. Out of high school he studied forestry in university which he decided wasn’t for him, b...

Mike McPhie holds a philosophy of taking time for conversation and sincerity; he finds this serves him well in his work navigating the natural resources sector. With over two decades of experience, Mike shares what he’s learned from success and failure in his career. Having earned a Bachelor of Science in physical geography from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, BC, then a Master of Science in e...

Coming Soon: Elevated Access, a podcast about the access required for energy and infrastructure developments across North America. Join me, Chad Hughes, as we meet with those at the top of their field whose experiences have helped shape the energy and infrastructure landscape – leaders who get access. Whether you’re a business leader, project developer, or professional who has been part of the acc...