Eric Darwin is the former owner of Cielo Print Inc. He was in the printing business in Ottawa for 21 years. Eric is a Maritimer who, after four years incarceration, graduated from Carleton University with a B.A.Honours Degree. Being a slow learner, it took him another two years before he left school, by which time he accumulated an M.A.as well. This was followed by a brief stint in language school at the Université de Québec á Trois-Rivières where he successfully demonstrated how difficult it is for some people to learn Canada’s other official language.

Undeterred by not having any economics courses beyond Eco 101, the civil service hired him as an economist. He was employed for nearly 10 years at Transport Canada, mostly doing strategic planning and writing policy advice.

He married Frances Dubois, a mathematician, perhaps in compensation for his own innumeracy. In 1986, overcome by entrepreneurial spirit, he opened his own business, a small print and copy shop in Ottawa. Eric’s little centre grew and grew until it had 25 employees. Eric and his family live in downtown Ottawa, where he walks to work (never did get around to ever buying a car) and fills up his time biking (slowly), going for long walks (always in circles, ending up where he started from), renovating and restoring his century home, and gardening.

He has a daughter who just finished her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Toronto and is the Web Administrator for TorontoLife.com; and a son in high school at a local ecole secondaire publique. They all like to travel, and the list of places explored includes South America (Peru, paddling in the Amazon, Mexico); numerous lengthy road & rail trips through Europe; exploring the western half of North America; and ocean kayaking from inn to inn down the south coast of Crete. In 2006, he and his family spent three weeks touring the Normandy battlefields then biked and barged along the Loire River; in 2007 they explored the Pacific Coast highway and Los Angeles.

In between pretending to be retired (Freedom 54) and being stunned by family life, Mr Darwin (who friends and acquaintances are likely to characterize as “dull”) supports Ottawa theatre, baroque music groups, and community planning initiatives. He is so busy he gave up shaving 20 years ago, and sports a gray beard, mercifully cut rather short. He is a member of Capital Crime Writers. His first book – Just Rite for Death – was inspired by Shawinigate and the FDB/Beaudoin scandals. His follow up book – Just Rite for Dreamin – involves a doppelganger for Zac Efron, 1% motorcyclists, and other fine California delicacies. The heroine, Helene, almost gets a love life. Gov. Carmichael continues to speculate in real estate.

Should you wish to contact him, you can email him at EricDarwin1@gmail.com

You can follow his rantings and ravings about community development in his blog www.WestSideAction.blogspot.com