Yellowknife (July 17/06) -Months after the last federal election, the NWT is still getting used to having a new Member of Parliament.

It's rare, but the question is still sometimes heard - "Dennis who?"

That would be Dennis Bevington, the MP for Western Arctic.

Bevington himself recognizes that not everyone in the Territories knows who he is or what he stands for, especially young people and newcomers to the North.

Dennis Bevington

"I'm a born and raised Northerner," he says. "That's important to a lot of people, and they might not know that."

Bevington was born in Fort Smith and went through the school system there before earning a political science degree at the University of Alberta.

The 53-year-old - a father of two and grandfather of three - has been involved in politics since the 1980s, first as a Fort Smith town councillor and then as mayor from 1988-97.

His perseverance was displayed in his multiple bids for Parliament.

His winning bid for the federal seat was his third crack at it after losing in 2000 and 2004 - the latter being so close some national media outlets projected him the winner of election night.

Bevington attributes his narrow loss in 2004 to the fact he wasn't well known throughout the NWT, since he didn't get to campaign everywhere.

"I missed about 12 or 13 communities," he says.

Over the years, he has also held numerous other high-profile positions - president of the NWT Association of Municipalities, director with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, federal representative on the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board, special advisor on energy to then-premier Stephen Kakfwi, and chairperson of the board of Aurora College. And that's just to name a few.

As a New Democrat MP, Bevington rejects the old definitions of left and right on the political spectrum, explaining the division is now corporations versus people.

"I think the new left is about human rights; it's about the environment; it's about a sense of collectiveness," he says, refusing to put big business first.

"Absolutely people should come first in every way possible," he says.

"Left and right are not lined up perfectly anymore the way they used to be. On the left, you can promote small-scale capitalism more than you probably can on the right now."

Bevington says he has always been a kind of free enterprise New Democrat.

"I believe in small business and I believe individuals have the ability to develop their communities, either through business or through any fashion," he says. "I'm not a fervent socialist in that regard."

Bevington is president of Stand Alone Energy Systems Ltd. in Fort Smith, and he has taken his interest in renewable energy to Ottawa.

Although he notes he hasn't done much in his business in the last six months, he will probably return to it once his political career is over.

His consulting company prepares energy plans and sells products, such as solar/thermal water heaters and small wind turbines.

One of his goals in Parliament, where he is the NDP critic for both energy and Northern development, is to change the way Canadians deal with energy.

"That's a national goal I've had for a long time. I've been working on it already," he says, noting the NDP recently rolled out its green energy climate change reduction plan.

Personally, Bevington describes himself as a balanced individual.

"I've always done very well in both intellectual and physical activities. I like that balance," he explains.

"I think I'm a person that enjoys myself most of the time."

As an example of that enjoyment from work, the MP notes he built a house in Fort Smith for himself and his wife, Joan, and heats it with wood.

As a non-aboriginal, Bevington says, "I speak for all Northerners in support of the Aboriginal Peoples of the North."

The MP says his primary goal is to help provide direction for the rapid development taking place in the NWT.