It might be easier to ask Mandel what subjects he hasn’t covered in the course of his career.

Terrified of flying, he went up in an open cockpit bi-plane for a Canadian Geographic story. He patiently endured the rigors of Napa/Sonoma in California to write a feature on winery architecture for enRoute, and circumnavigated Newfoundland in a converted ice breaker for The Ottawa Citizen.

A multiple award-winning reporter, writer and editor for more than 25 years, Mandel spent eight years covering the visual arts for the Edmonton Journal, two years as the Calgary Herald’s chief literary correspondent, and five years as the Canadian correspondent for the web’s leading technology portal, Wired.com.

A former Atlantic correspondent with Canwest News Service, Mandel’s features and articles have appeared in most major Canadian magazines and newspapers, including Canadian Business, Explore, Maclean’s, The Globe and Mail and the National Post.