Contact Information
h.hall@uwaterloo.ca
EV3 4263
Heather Hall is one of the leading scholars on innovation and economic development in rural and northern regions in Canada. She grew up in Northern Ontario and has a professional and personal interest in researching issues that are important to the North, including: the impacts of new technologies on the future of work in the mining and agricultural sectors; the community impacts of mobile work and large-scale industrial projects; and innovation and economic development policy, planning and practice in rural and northern regions. Her work has informed government policy across Canada and internationally.
Heather is currently leading a project called Remote Controlled, exploring the impacts of new technologies in the mining sector and the future of work and she is a co-lead with the Marine Biomass Innovation Project. Heather is a member and former board member of the Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation (CRRF) and she is the former Chair of the Research Advisory Board and a current member of the Board of Directors for the Northern Policy Institute. She is also the co-author of Planning Canadian Regions, 2nd Edition
Courses taught
- ENBUS 203: Green Entrepreneurship
- ECDEV 601: Economic Development: Theories and Frameworks
- ECDEV 602: Economic Development: Policy and Practice
- ECDEV 604: Management and Policy Tools for Economic Development and Sustainability professionals
- ECDEV 605: Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development
- ECDV 606: Innovation and Economic Development in Cities and Regions
Selected publications
- Crabbe, M., Leader, J., Hall, H. M., & Burdett, M. 2025. Technology adoption in the Canadian mining sector: A systematic scoping review. Resources Policy, 103: 105566.
- Hall, H.M. 2024. Northern Ontario: Shaping Regional Development For the North, By the North. In Vandermale, E., Brouder, P., & Leader, J. State of Rural Canada 2024: Inclusive and Sustainable Futures for Rural and Northern Communities. Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation. Available at: https://sorc.crrf.ca/sorc-2024/
- Walsh, J. and Hall, H.M. 2022. Entrepreneurs as change agents in small communities: A multi-case study analysis in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 46(4): 435-449.
- Carter, K., Hall, H.M. and Greenwood, R. 2022. Missed opportunities and glimmers of hope: An analysis of the forces driving Science, Technology and Innovation policy in Newfoundland and Labrador. In P.W.B Philips and D. Castle, Science, Technology and Innovation Policy in the Canadian Provinces and Territories (pp.115-140). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
- Hall, H.M. and Vinodrai, T. 2021. COVID-19 and Rural Economic Development in Canada: Insights on Impacts, Responses, and Recovery. Submitted to the Special Issue on Rural Canada and COVID-19, Journal of Rural and Community Development. 16(4), 141-158.
- Rich, K., Hall, H.M., and Nelson, G. (Eds.) 2021. State of Rural Canada 2021: Opportunities, Recovery, and Resiliency in Changing Times. Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation (151 pages). Available at: https://sorc.crrf.ca/sorc2021/
- Winsor, B. and Hall, H.M. 2018. Time in the Triple Helix: A Foundation for Innovation. Journal of Management Policy and Practice, 19(2): 152-166.
- Storey, K. and Hall, H.M. 2018. Dependence at a distance: The new single-industry community and the implications for policy. The Canadian Geographer, 62(2): 225-237.
- Hodge, G., Hall, H.M., and Robinson, I.M. 2017. Planning Canadian Regions 2nd Edition. Vancouver: UBC Press.
- Hall, H.M. 2017. Exploring Innovation in Northern Canada with Insights from Greater Sudbury. The Northern Review, 45: 33-56
- Hall, H.M., Vodden, K, and Greenwood, R. 2017. From Dysfunctional to Destitute: The Governance of Regional Economic Development in Newfoundland and Labrador. International Planning Studies, 22(2): 49-67.
Degrees
- Ph.D - Geography, Queen's University
- M.A. - Planning, University of Waterloo
- B.A. - Geography, Laurentian University