Dr. Caplan is a federal secretary to the New Democratic Party of Canada. He received his Ph.D. in African studies at the University of London in 1967, and his MA in Canadian History. He was a professor of history at the University of Rhodesia, and of Third World Studies, here at the University of Toronto, through the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. His authorship includes numerous books and articles in the fields of Canadian history and third world politics. For two years, Dr. Caplan was director of the CUSO Nigeria Program and returned from Africa to become senior adviser to Mr. Stephen Lewis while Mr. Lewis was leader of the Ontario NDP (Ontario New Democratic Party). Prior to his acceptance of the position of federal secretary, Dr. Caplan was director of the Health Advocacy Unit of the Department of Public Health for the city of Toronto.