Our excellent post-secondary institutions are an asset for businesses in the Annapolis Valley.
There is an immediate opportunity for business development in the Annapolis Valley. We heard about it over and over again at our Sector Table Workshop.
The opportunity is to build stronger links between the business community and the students and researchers in our post-secondary institutions.
Our facilitator at the Sector Table Workshop was Andy Horsnell from Common Good Solutions. In his report on the workshop, Andy identified our post-secondary education sector as a “key asset” for the Annapolis Valley.
He wrote:
“Every sector table recognized the great strengths and opportunities that Acadia and NSCC represent, largely in terms of research capacity, high-quality, sector-specific training, and the proximity of a young, talented labour pool that comes as a result.”
Andy was referring to the five strategic sectors represented at the workshop: agriculture, tourism, information and communications technologies (ICT), manufacturing and sustainable energy.
Based on the strong conviction around the five tables, Andy suggested the business community should engage with Acadia and the NSCC through co-op placements and “real-world research opportunities,” for the mutual benefit of students, graduates and employers.
The Valley REN has heard that message loud and clear and is acting on it now.
We are working with partners in post-secondary education to present an employer engagement opportunity in spring. (We’ll share the details soon.)
We’re also making plans to work with our new “sector tables” – which are each chaired by a member of the Valley REN board of directors – to strengthen connections between businesses and post-secondary institutions.
To learn more about opportunities for business development in the Valley, we invite you to read the summary reports for each of the five sector tables and/or the full report from the Valley REN Sector Table Workshop. You’ll find all six reports on our website.
Follow Opportunities Now! @ValleyREN as we share opportunities for business growth in the Annapolis Valley.
As research analyst for the Valley REN, Rachel Brighton brings 25 years’ experience as a journalist, editor, publisher, manager, consultant and not-for-profit director in Canada and Australia.