YellowYellow Quarterly Trailblazer – Kurt Breede

1.  Alessio Scurci (AS): Tell us a bit about yourself and how you ended up working in mine finance. What have been your steps to progress to where you are today?

Kurt Breede (KB): As a student at De La Salle College “Oaklands”, I excelled in mathematics, physics and chemistry. Enrolling in the Geological Engineering program at the University of Toronto (U of T) was a natural next step. It was at U of T that I found a passion for mineral exploration. What helped me to land my first job opportunity were conversations with professors who encouraged me to join industry events hosted by the CIM, TGDG, and MES.  My experiences with these organizations improved my knowledge, broadened my network and bolstered my career. Right after graduation, I was fortunate to land a job as an exploration geologist in Northern Ontario and the Yukon. I conducted geophysics and geological mapping to help identify potential early mineral exploration sites. I have since moved to the other spectrum where I work in and around Mine Finance. I have led over $100+ Billion in mining-related M&A transactions. 

2.   AS: In recent years, there has been an integral push for increased ESG guidelines, standards, and practices. In your view, how have companies and the industry been able to adapt to these changes? What problems do you think they face?

KB: ESG wasn’t a thing when I started my career. Instead, there was CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). It will continue to evolve as we learn more about the downstream impacts and benefits of mining. ESG taken as a whole only provides a framework, specific attention to the individual letters is where the true accountability is. For a mining company to truly adapt ESG, it needs to be in the DNA of the company – to just say you’re mining responsibly isn’t enough, there has to be metrics for accountability.

It’s also the same on the investor side with those investing in and funding “responsible” mining companies. Institutional and retail investors need to do their own due diligence to confirm that the mining companies they’re supporting aren’t greenwashing, pressing, and folding. This starts with more education at all levels of the organization. It’s an ongoing learning process and there is still a long way to go on both sides.

3.   AS: When talking with industry professionals, we find that there is a key idea or project that people find a passion for and ultimately drives them down their career path. Has there been a favourite project you’ve worked on that’s helped guide you?

KB: Looking back, my passion for what I do has constantly changed over time. During my undergrad, it was exploration that I had a passion for. Later on, it was working as a mining consultant and project manager. Now, I’m fortunate to work in a role where I look at projects and work with people from all around the world. This past year alone I’ve travelled from Alaska to Kenya in the span of a few months.

I don’t consider myself a ‘trailblazer’- I’d go so far to say the only time I’ve literally had to blaze a trail was while working as a junior geologist with an axe in hand, blazing trees through the forests of Northern Ontario.

4.   AS: Theoretically speaking, if you had the ability to go back to when you first started in this industry and be able to do something differently, is there anything you would change or learn from?

KB: That is a difficult question to answer because I’d like to think that I have no regrets in life. Anyone working in the mining industry long enough knows there are ups and downs. I was fortunate enough to come out of university with a job around the time of the Bre-X scandal. If I had to do anything over, I would have used my downtime more effectively to hone my skills and reflect on areas I’d like to have built on more. Mining is a great industry to work in as it’s constantly evolving. It’s great to see the industry is more open to adapting more initiatives in ESG and I’m quite eager to see how it will continue to evolve over the coming years.

5.   AS: In your opinion, in the acronym, ESG, which letter do you feel is the most important?

KB: I think each one is important for the success of an operation. I think from a holistic point of view, the social and the environmental aspects have a larger weighting. The social is about creating prosperity in areas where mining hasn’t been introduced or exposure hasn’t been as positive (e.g. small scale mining). This goes hand-in-hand with the environmental aspect with areas that historically haven’t had proper technical work done and hence not been viewed favourably by local stakeholders.

6.   AS: Are there any main takeaways that companies can learn from to adapt with the importance of ESG in mining?

KB: From my own career, CSR and now ESG has played a part in how projects advance. My advice to any company would be that it’s never too early to incorporate ESG into the DNA of the project or company. Take any grassroots exploration company. If they want to succeed, they need to start engaging stakeholders and communities from Day 1. It’s imperative that companies adapt those principles as early as possible.

Companies should evaluate how well they are performing against their peers. It’s a great starting point/litmus test for how well you’re doing in your space. There’s always room for improvement.  We don’t have to reinvent the wheel.  We can learn a lot from other sectors with other resources we can tap into.

Thank you to Kurt for your time and insight!. Our next YellowYellow trailblazer interview will be out next month.  Should your company need help with getting started, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at hello@yellowyellow.ca.