Press Releases & News

Leadership Gathering Set for June 26 in Hamilton-Burlington Focus on Regional Collaboration to Drive Global Competitiveness

For Immediate Release | Jun 1, 2018

This marquee leadership event is an initiative of Canada’s Innovation Corridor Business Council, a partnership of leading chambers of commerce and boards of trade located in Southern Ontario. The council represents the collective voice of more than 21,000 businesses, large and small. It is strengthened by a Business Advisory Council of CEOs operating in the corridor.

The corridor — anchored by Toronto, Waterloo Region and Hamilton-Burlington, and enhanced by a diverse mix of complementary communities — generates more than 18% of Canada’s GDP and is second only to Silicon Valley measured by the number of start-ups. It boasts a strong advanced manufacturing base coupled with a world class technology sector and innovation system — an ideal clustering of economic strengths.

The goal is to see Canada’s Innovation Corridor among the world’s top 10 economic regions by 2025.

The purpose of the summit is to drive business development and global competitiveness through enhanced regional connectivity and collaboration. The event will attract more than 350 senior leaders keen to foster deeper and broader cooperation.

Local summit organizers have designed an inclusive experience that promotes collaboration.

“Hamilton and Burlington — pillars of Ontario’s Bay Area — are pleased to be the host community for the inaugural corridor summit,” said Keanin Loomis, President and CEO of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce and a member of Canada’s Innovation Corridor Business Council. “We look forward to welcoming delegates from across the corridor and beyond.”

The event marks a major step forward in the future of the region.

“The Innovation Corridor is Canada’s economic engine, our largest manufacturing and transportation hub, and home to the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, but we risk losing out on our unparalleled advantage without a talent development strategy and initiatives to address congestion delays in goods movement,” said Jan De Silva, President and CEO, Toronto Region Board of Trade and Co-Chair, Canada’s Innovation Corridor Business Council.

“The future regional economy will rely heavily on advanced research, clusters of industrial activity and close cooperation among universities, colleges, companies and governments,” says Kithio Mwanzia, President & CEO of the Guelph Chamber of Commerce. “As such, discussion at the summit will focus on collaborative practices and successful partnerships between business, academia, community and government that will be necessary as we continue to build effective networks, initiatives, infrastructure, talent, global opportunities and design ideas that will lead to more livable communities and resilient regional economy. As our region sees unprecedented growth, such collaborative partnerships will catalyze new economic successes,” concludes Mwanzia.

The summit program aligns with the policy and investment priorities of Canada’s Innovation Corridor Business Council and touches on related issues of importance to regional leaders, including productivity, access to capital and the acceleration of global trade, among others.

The three core summit themes are:

  1. Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster: Working together to strengthen an innovation system to achieve global benchmarks in smart manufacturing enabled by new and emerging technologies. Attendees will learn more about the rollout of a historic $1 billion investment in the future of Canadian manufacturing, including support for companies adopting Industry 4.0 technologies and scaling up to enter global markets. The program will also include a featured presentation highlighting the corridor’s “collective competence” as a centre for advanced manufacturing and news from Next Generation Manufacturing Canada.
  2. Movement of Goods: Adopting comprehensive plans to remove bottlenecks and markedly improve the efficient movement of goods across the corridor and beyond — an essential step in regional connectivity and global competitiveness. The summit will mark the release of a movement of goods report produced by the TorontoRegionBoardofTradethatpresentsthreeboldsolutionstohelptacklecostlyroadcongestionatthe regional and local levels.
  3. Workforce Development: Producing a deep and diversified pool of talent to drive innovation and world class performance in the economy of tomorrow. Attendees will learn about the mission critical talent needs of businesses operating in the corridor and how postsecondary institutions are responding through innovative curricula and delivery models.

A luncheon panel will showcase a group of prominent mayors from across the corridor discussing shared opportunities to advance the region’s overall performance.

Gowling WLG is the presenting sponsor of Canada’s Innovation Corridor Summit. “We are deeply invested in the promise that the corridor holds for Canada’s advanced manufacturing and technology sectors,” said Peter Lukasiewicz, CEO of Gowling WLG Canada. “We are a global law firm with the largest complement of lawyers in the region in offices in Toronto, Hamilton, and Waterloo Region. Every day we work to help unlock the economic power and potential of the corridor.”

Other leading summit sponsors include ArcelorMittal Dofasco, Deloitte, McMaster University, Mohawk College, Ryerson University and Salesforce.

See attachment for program details. Visit corridorsummit.ca to learn more.

For more information, contact Kithio Mwanzia, President & CEO, Guelph Chamber of Commerce.
E: kithio@guelphchamber.com | P: 519-822-8081 | www.guelphchamber.com