Gilles Laverdière holds a B.Sc in geology from Université de Montréal (1978) and a Certificate in Environment from Université du Québec in Abitibi-Témiscamingue (1996). He worked for various mining exploration companies, one of which being Aur Resources inc., until 1984, when he founded his geological consulting business. He then managed numerous exploration and development projects in Abitibi and raised funds for mining companies. From 1991 to 1997, he was part of exploration projects in the Philippines, Nevada (Carlin Trend) and in Brazil. From 1997 to 2006, he worked in China where he started HMZ Metals, a polymetallic producer operating a copper smelter with revenues exceeding $15 millions per year. Since 2006, he is a consulting geologist and he worked on projects in Abitibi, Central America and Africa.