Shane Jolley was born and raised on the shores of Georgian Bay in Meaford, Ontario. Outside of four years when he lived and worked in Ottawa as the Director of Ottawa Youth Alive, Shane has spent most of his life in the Saugeen region. Shane and his wife Dianne are parents to three beautiful girls, Jessie (13), Cayla (12) and Heather (9). Together, Shane and Dianne own and operate a bicycle store in Owen Sound, called Jolley’s Alternative Wheels.

True to their green spirit, the Jolley’s have incorporated the principles of economic and environmental sustainability into their business operations by insisting that all their products be manufactured under equitable conditions. They have used the business to encourage healthy living in their community by promoting cycling, bike trails, and a bicycle friendly city.

Shane believes strongly in the value of community-based economics and participatory democracy. As a result, he has become the moderator of a Local-Motive Policy Project, an online policy development tool designed to help citizens become more engaged in municipal and regional government.

Formerly the vice-chair of the Owen Sound Downtown Improvement Area (DIA), Shane remains actively involved in several community initiatives, serving as a member of the Owen Sound Economic Development Committee, and as a board member of the Tom Thomson Trail Group, a 45-km trail that extends from Owen Sound to Meaford. He is also the chairperson of Vision for Transportation Alternatives, a group of citizens promoting sustainable transportation in Bruce and Grey counties, and an honorary board member of C.O.N.E. (Coalition on the Niagara Escarpment).

In the 2006 federal election, Shane stormed onto the political scene in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound by garnering an impressive 12.9% of the vote as a candidate for the Green Party of Canada. In his first foray into the political arena, he earned the highest percentage of Green votes in the '06 election. As the candidate for the Green Party of Ontario in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound in 2007, Shane earned 33.1% of the vote, the best Green campaign ever in Canada.

In June, 2008 Shane was elected Male Deputy Leader of the Green Party of Ontario and is currently serving Bruce-Grey citizens as well as all Ontarians in this role.