Executive Biographies

73rd President

Trevor Swan, RPF, LLB, has more than 30 years of experience as a lawyer and registered professional forester in the areas of forest policy and legislation, and governance aspects of natural resource regulation, including both the forest and the oil and gas sectors.

He is an experienced executive team member, councillor, and board director, corporate secretary, and a member in good standing as a lawyer, as a registered professional forester, and as a chartered director. Swan is a Senior Advisor, Forest Management Legislation, with the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development.

He is the ABCFP’s 73rd president, served as vice-president in 2019 and served on ABCFP council from 2015 to 2018.

Chief Executive Officer

Christine Gelowitz, RPF, is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Association of BC Forest Professionals (ABCFP), a role she has held since 2016.

With more than 20 year’s leadership experience, Christine is responsible for all operations of the ABCFP. Known for her strategic growth mindset and collaborative nature, Christine takes pride in working with the ABCFP’s council to shape the association’s strategic direction while leading a team of 16 staff to deliver its day-to-day business operations.

As CEO, Christine is also leading the association through a transformative business change that will see the ABCFP now be regulated under BC’s new Professional Governance Act after nearly 75 years of operating under the Foresters Act.  Christine is also proud to be a gender champion on a national steering committee striving to achieve gender equity in Canada’s forest sector.

Christine is passionate about the forest profession she helps lead. Christine earned her designation as a Registered Forest Professional in 2003, and volunteered to serve on the ABCFP council for five years including a term as president in 2013. Christine graduated from the University of Northern British Columbia in Prince George where she majored in forestry and received a degree in Natural Resource Management. Prior to joining the ABCFP, Christine worked in the BC provincial government for nearly 20 years in several natural resource ministries.

Christine is grateful to live, work and play in the traditional territories of the Lkwungen peoples, also known as home to the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations.

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Director of Professional Practice & Forest Stewardship

Mike Larock, RPF
As director of professional practice and forest stewardship, Mike develops and communicates professional standards, provides ABCFP responses on professional practice matters and works toward the association's forest stewardship commitments. Mike has led the ABCFP efforts in advancing professional reliance in the forest resource sector.

Before joining the staff of the ABCFP, Mike served on the ABCFP council as both an elected member and then president in 2001.

Mike has practised professional forestry in coast forest ecosystems as a silvicuturalist. He lives in Coastal Western Hemlock extra dry maritime, where he is a woodlot licensee and private forest landowner. Mike has been a practising forester in BC for over 30 years.

Registrar & Director of Act Compliance

Casey Macaulay, RPF, joined the association in 2011. As the registrar and director of act compliance, he oversees the ABCFP's admissions, accreditation, registration, discipline and enforcement activities. In his previous role at the association, Casey worked on forest stewardship and advocacy issues. Prior to joining the association, Casey worked as a planning forester for 15 years in the Southern Interior. He has a diploma in forest technology from the BC Institute of Technology and a bachelor's degree in forest management from the University of BC.

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Director of Finance & Administration

Nathan Doidge, CPA, CGA. Bio to follow.

Director of Communications

Dean Pelkey joined the association in 2016. His role as director of communications focuses on strategic communications planning, media relations, recruitment and advocacy work. Dean has more than 20 years of experience in corporate communications, focusing on communication project management, media relations, issues management, social media strategy, and writing and editing stemming from a career at crown corporations, publicly-traded companies, non-profits, and newspapers.

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