Fonds 2001.8 - Geoffrey R. Weller fonds

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Geoffrey R. Weller fonds

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    • Source of title proper: Title based on contents of fonds.

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    2001.8

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    Date(s)

    • 1960-2002 (Creation)
      Creator
      Weller, Geoffrey R.

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    Physical description

    26 m of textual records and other material

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    Name of creator

    (1942-2000)

    Biographical history

    Originally from the U.K., Geoffrey R. Weller was born in 1942. He graduated high school in England in 1960 and then spent an additional year at Ann Arbor High School in Michigan, graduating a second time in 1961. Weller pursued a BSc in Economics at the University of Hull, graduating in 1964, and a master degree in Political Science at McMaster University, completing a thesis titled “Some Contemporary American Views of Democracy and the Third World: A Critical Appraisal” in 1967. He went on to hold teaching positions at Bishop’s University (1965-1971) and Lakehead University (1971-1990). At Lakehead University, Weller also became the Dean of Arts (1984-1985) and Vice-President (Academic) (1985-1990). Over the course of his career, Weller obtained visiting professor positions at: the University of Minnesota, Duluth (1973), the University of Ottawa (1977-1978), and Simon Fraser University (1995) and taught a summer course at Laurentian University (1979). Over his teaching career, Weller taught courses in Canadian politics, public policy, and comparative politics. In 1991, Weller became the founding president of the University of Northern British Columbia and held this position until 1995 when he stepped down and began teaching in the department of International Studies.

    Weller’s early research pertained to Canadian labor relations, working first as a researcher for the Federal Task Force on Labor Relations in 1967 and subsequently pursuing an academic research project titled "Trade Unions and Political Change in the Province of Quebec 1921-1972.” In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Weller’s research turned to health policy in Canada and worldwide. From 1975 to 1980, Weller worked on his doctoral dissertation at McGill University titled “The Development of Health Policy in Ontario.” Though he ultimately never finished this degree, Weller published several papers on similar topics during this time, including: “From ‘Pressure Group Politics’ to ‘Medical Industrial Complex’: The Development of Approaches to the Politics of Health” (1980), “The Determinants of Canadian Health Policy” (1980), “The Conflict of Values and Goals in the Canadian Health Care System” (1978), and "Hygeia Versus Asclepius: Conflict within the Ontario Health Care System" (1979). Other projects on health policy in the 1980s included Weller’s research on the Canada Health Act of 1984 and collaboration with his colleague Pranlal Manga on a project looking at politics and health care in South Africa in 1983. Weller continued to conduct research on health policy into the 1990s.

    Overlapping with his work on health policy, Weller explored politics and development in the Circumpolar North. From the late 1970s to the mid-1980s, he engaged in several projects examining local government in the North and provincial ministries of northern affairs. Specific publications included: "Local Government in the Canadian Provincial North" (1980), "The Evolution of Local Government in Northern Ontario" (1980), "Provincial Ministries of Northern Affairs: A Comparative Analysis" (1982), and “Local Government Development in the Yukon and Northwest Territories” (1983). Later in the 1980s, Weller conducted research on politics in Ontario, publishing a 1988 paper titled “The North in the Ontario Election of 1987.” This interest in government and development in the circumpolar north reemerges in Weller’s work in the 1990s with an emphasis on economic development, seen in the publications “Regional and Economic Development in the Circumpolar North: early 90s to 2000” (2000) and “Economic Development Initiatives in the Circumpolar North: A Comparative Analysis” (1999).

    Weller’s research interests in health policy and northern studies also overlap in many projects. Specifically, from 1983 to 1991, Weller’s research on health policy turned to examine health care in the circumpolar north. During this period, Weller held government appointments and community service positions on the Advisory Committee for the Health Promotion and Prevention Project of the Ontario Council of Health (1983-1984), the study advisory group for the Study on Health and Social Service Professionals in Northern Ontario (1989-1990), and the Thunder Bay District Health Council (1983-1988), on which he was also chairman (1986-1988). Research conducted in these roles dovetailed with academic research projects, including "The Politics of Health in the Circumpolar North” (1987) "The Delivery of Health Care to Underserviced Areas” (1991) and "Health Care Delivery in Northern Hinterlands” (1989). During this period, some of Weller’s research also examined the transfer of health care responsibility to Canada’s northern territories and local government among First Nations groups, specifically in his papers “Self-Government for Canada's Inuit: The Nunavut Proposal” (1988), “Devolution, Regionalism and Division of the Northwest Territories” (1990), "The Devolution of Authority for Health Care Services to the Government of the Northwest Territories” (1989), and “Health Care Devolution to Canada’s Territorial North” (1990).

    Weller’s research in the field of northern studies also combined with research on environmental politics, higher education, and international relations. During 1981-1988, Weller collaborated with Douglas Nord on projects pertaining to environmental issues and politics in the Great Lakes region, including two research reports funded through the state of Minnesota and the Canadian Consulate-General in Minneapolis titled “Transborder Politics and Paradiplomacy: The Ontario- Minnesota Fishing Dispute” (1987) and “Canada and the United States: An Introduction to a Complex Relationship” (1987). Weller also pursued academic research in this area including a project titled “Water Politics and Policy in the Lake Superior Basin” (1988) and another collaboration with Douglas Nord "Environmental Policy and Political Support in Canada and the United States: A Comparative Analysis” (1981).
    Also holding research interests in higher education, from the late 1983 to 1998 Weller explore aspects of circumpolar universities and their effect on the surrounding regions, resulting in publications such as “Universities, Politics and Development: The Case of Northern Ontario” (1988) and “Universities, Politics and Development: Northern Ontario and Northern Sweden” (1985). Weller’s interest in northern studies combined with international studies in research concentrating on foreign policy and security in the north. Publications in this area include “The Circumpolar North and Canadian Foreign Policy” (1989) and “The Arctic as an International Community” (1992). Weller also produced publications in the late 1980s through the 1990s dealing with security and intelligence in Canada and internationally.

    In 1999, Weller was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Lapland based on his work on the circumpolar north encompassing Scandinavian countries and his research collaborations with Scandinavian scholars. Geoffrey Weller passed away in 2000. His legacy includes the establishment of the Lakehead University Centre for Northern Studies, the Northern Ontario Medical Program, and the Association of Circumpolar Universities.

    Scope and content

    The Geoffrey R. Weller fonds primarily comprises material involved in research toward and the publication of Geoffrey Weller’s scholarly works as well as records from Weller’s research for government contracts and community service positions. The fonds also comprises records from Weller’s teaching activities at UNBC and other universities. The records are divided into six series, which primarily reflect Weller’s activities conducting research, presenting and publishing scholarly work, and teaching courses at academic institutions. The series are: Research, Scholarly Works, Instruction, Academic Appointments, Honors and Awards, and Personal Records.

    Series 1: Research contains material gathered and created by Weller in the course of his research for scholarly works, government contracts, and community service positions. These activities often overlap in dates and area of research interest. Weller’s research material is further broken down into 12 subseries by research project or set of interconnected projects from a similar time period: Subseries 1: Canadian Labor Relations, Subseries 2: Health Policy in Canada and Other Countries, Subseries 3: Local and Provincial Government in Northern Canada, Subseries 4: Water Politics and Environmental Issues in the Great Lakes Region, Subseries 5: Health Policy in South Africa, Subseries 6: Health Care in Ontario and the Circumpolar North, Subseries 7: Circumpolar Universities and Development in Circumpolar Regions, Subseries 8: Ontario Politics, Subseries 9: Circumpolar Foreign Policy, Subseries 10: Health Policy, Subseries 11: Government and Economic Development in the Circumpolar North, and Subseries 12: Intelligence.

    Series 2: Scholarly Works provides copies and drafts of works written or coauthored by Weller and related material involved in the work’s publication or presentation at conferences. The series is broken in to seven subseries: Subseries 1: Articles and Chapters, Subseries 2: Conference Papers, Subseries 3: Book Reviews, Subseries 4: Talks and Lectures, Subseries 5: Publications, Subseries 6: Doctoral Dissertation, and Subseries 7: Other Publications. The Publications subseries refers to articles for chapters by Weller in the journal or book in which they were published.

    Series 3: Instruction consists of 15 subseries encompassing lecture notes, syllabi, reading lists, and other material from courses taught by Weller at Bishop’s University, Lakehead University, and UNBC. Courses taught at Bishops University comprise subseries Comparative Politics and History of Political Ideas. Courses taught at Lakehead University comprise subseries Public Administration, Canadian Public Administration, Ontario Politics and Canadian Provincial Politics, Modern Political Theory, Local Government, Canadian Government and Politics, and Politics in the Canadian North. Weller’s UNBC courses comprise subseries Politics in the Canadian North (taught at both Lakehead University and UNBC), The European Union, Social and Health Policy and Administration, Redefining Security, Contemporary Australia and New Zealand, and Canada and the World. The series also includes a Course General subseries, which consists of files containing material from multiple different courses.

    Series 4: Academic Appointments consists of records from Weller’s activities obtaining academic appointments and completing his responsibilities within these appointments, including collaborating with other universities worldwide. The series is broken down into three subseries: Subseries 1: Appointments and Reviews, Subseries 2: Curriculum Vitae, and Subseries 3: International Collaborations.

    Series 5: Awards and Honors consists of plaques Weller was awarded at Lakehead University and records related to the honorary doctorate Weller received from the University of Lapland.

    Series 6: Personal Records, the last series, contains records not involved in Weller’s research or academic positions. These include Weller’s day planners and journals, as well as programs from his memorial service.

    Notes area

    Arrangement

    Weller’s files occasionally evade categorization by activity (i.e. conducting research, publishing articles, instructing courses). In this way, though the bulk of the material in a series was created during a particular activity, items from another area of activity also may be included. For instance, lecture notes from a course taught by Weller may appear in later research for a paper on the same topic.

    Language of material

    • English
    • French
    • Greek
    • Norwegian
    • Russian

    Script of material

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      No restrictions.

      Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

      Personal or academic use of materials is welcomed under the standard fair use and educational use clauses of Canadian Copyright Law. Commercial use is, however, forbidden without the express permission of the copyright holder. For information on obtaining written permission from the copyright holder, please contact the Northern B.C. Archives and Special Collections.

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