Gérard Montpetit is an Ontario native who has lived in La Presentation, Que., in a house that he built, since 1979. After studying at the University of Ottawa, he worked in education. He taught for three years in eastern Ontario and then another three years in Hull, Que., before moving to a school board in St-Hyacinthe, east of Montreal, where he worked for 27 years before retiring in June 2007. Inspired by scientific studies he read in 2010, Gérard has been an active critic of fracking and is a member of the Regroupement Vigilance Hydrocarbures Québec, an anti-fossil fuels group.