Founding Members

Michael Salisbury, President and Founding Member

Mike Salisbury is a Landscape Architect and is the principal of Earthartist Landscape Architecture, a design firm that specialises in the planning and design of natural cemeteries.

The 2005 CBC Newsworld documentary, Outside the Box featured Salisbury’s work in their expose on the natural burial movement in Canada.

Mike Salisbury is a founding member and the president of the Natural Burial Co-operative, and is currently a City Councillor in Guelph, Ontario where he lives.

Christopher Roy, Vice-President and Founding Member

Christopher has been managing the strategic planning, design and development of Internet businesses for over ten years. He currently leads THINKHIVE as an independent Management Consultant. His work has included engagements with Communicopia, a leading Canadian Internet services and communications firm for sustainability businesses, as well as for Texas Instruments, a global semiconductor manufacturer.

The former Managing Director of the San Francisco office of Internet services firm OVEN Digital, Christopher has also worked with clients that include Starwood Hotels and Resorts, W Hotels, Tiffany & Company and Western Integrated Networks.

As an active volunteer, Christopher works with Hospice Toronto, an organization which provides end of life care for those with a terminal illness. Christopher is a Dean’s List graduate of Ryerson University and has extensive business experience within Canada, the United States and Asia.

Susan Rawlinson, Secretary and Founding Member

Susan Rawlinson is a senior marketing professional with over 20 years experience in sales, marketing, product development, public relations and corporate communications. Susan has lead strategic planning and implementation of projects that have earned prestigious industry awards for such market leaders as Bell Canada and Yellow Pages.

Susan is a catalyst for ideas and change. Most recently, she worked with Foresters, a financial services organization, on several important initiatives designed to revitalize the organization’s international staff and customer network. She is passionate about “start-up” projects that influence public opinion and generate consumer preference.

Susan is also committed to helping others. She has been an active volunteer for Junior Achievement of Central Ontario, serving in various advisory capacities for over 15 years. She held a Board position with Advertising Standards Canada between1998-2000, then served on the Consumer Response Committee. Currently Susan is Vice President, Board of Trustees, at McLaughlin Art Gallery and also serves Community Living Ontario on their Public Advisory Council.

Michael Driscoll, Treasurer and Founding Member

Mike has been an engineer, business professional and currently a consultant with over 30 years of experience in a wide variety of organizations. He has created companies and organizations in the business and non-profit sectors, writing the business plans, raising capital, and managing operations.

Mike is a founding member of the former SEED Loan Fund, which was one of the largest Community Loan Funds in Canada. As a member of the Board, Mike helped design the Fund and raise the starting capital pool of $375,000. He was then recruited by the Fund to serve as the Lending Coordinator during the startup phase.

Mike is a graduate of Concordia’s Graduate Diploma in Community Economic Development and is also a registered co-operative business developer. Mike is on the roster of the Community Economic Development Technical Assistance Program and is a trained practitioner for The Natural Step’s system conditions for organizational sustainability.

Mike is committed to having a responsible lifestyle, and advocates through involvement with various environmental and social activist groups.