In an earlier blog we explained the win/win scenario for the companies and students that participate in a co-op program. We also announced the new award that will be presented by the City of Ottawa to the Co-op Student of the Year at the 2011 OCRI Awards on April 7th. 

We are very pleased to announce the three finalists for Co-op Student of the Year. This program is a joint initiative between Algonquin College, Carleton University and the University of Ottawa. Each institution carefully considered the profiles and projects of their most enthusiastic and successful students and have chosen their own winners. These top students are the finalists for the inaugural Co-op Student of the Year Award. 

Algonquin College nominates Dagan Shaw. Dagan completed his final co-op placement with B-Con Engineering in the summer of 2010 and graduated with his Bachelor of Applied Technology – photonics. Dagan balanced a full course load with a part-time job but was still able to eagerly apply his classroom skills in a work environment.  Throughout his studies he maintained a stellar GPA and was often caught working with other students after hours. In recognition of his contribution to B-Con’s Exicon Project, Dagan was a winner of the 2010 Polytechnics Conference Showcase. 

Carleton University nominates Anthony (Tony) Hiratsuka who completed his co-op placement with Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Cited for his keen eye for detail which led to cost and time savings in the magnitude of approaching millions of dollars and years of unnecessary work, Tony’s placement with DFAIT was so successful that he was hired for four consecutive work terms. His enthusiasm for the co-op program has inspired other students to participate and encouraged his employer to continue their co-op alliance. 

University of Ottawa nominates Hubert (Haoyang) Duan a student in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics. Hubert has achieved excellence in academics maintaining an amazing cumulative grade point average of 9.9 after 3.5 years. Hubert went well beyond his role of a summer student and became an integral member of the National Population Health Survey team.  Despite the steep learning curve he had to overcome, he was able to excel quickly, contribute to the success of the program, prioritize multiple activities, meet tight deadlines and perform quality control.  Clearly, his future employers will be lucky to have him. 

All three candidates are sure to leverage their unique learning opportunities into a successful and rewarding career. Judging criteria includes: job achievement, contribution to cooperative education, personal experience, contribution to extra-curricular activities at school or the community at large, academic achievement and resume. 

We look forward to the announcement and celebration on April 7th. 

CHEERS!

Lots! according to our co-op students and the companies that hire them.  In a recent study conducted by Ipsos Reid, it was revealed that the majority of Canadians who enrolled in a co-op education program as part of their post-secondary education believed their co-op experience had a significant impact on: their career choice; getting their first job; their workplace integration; and their academic learning.

It also indicated that Ontario is the “hot-bed” of co-op education participation. Here in Ottawa, Carleton University alone had 1, 182 co-op students placed this year.  The number of participating students increases every year. 2010/11 numbers were up 15 per cent!

It’s fairly clear why students take the co-op route. There’s nothing like hands on learning and being taught by the people who truly know what goes on “inside” a genuine business.  Two University of Waterloo researchers who conducted the largest study of co-op students tracked 10,000 students from 2000 to 2006 and verified that after graduation, co-op grads were earning 15 per cent MORE money than their peers and tended to secure more “prestigious” positions. According to the same survey, there appears to be a slight difference between university and college co-op students where the university co-op students tend to be male in science, tech and engineering whereas in college the students tend to be female with interests in fine and applied arts as well as the humanities. With such a diverse and strong educational infrastructure here in the Ottawa region and our highly entrepreneurial business scene of entrepreneurs and knowledge-based sectors we are in an excellent position to provide both co-op students and co-op employers with unique opportunities to grow and contribute to growth.  

Through co-ops students are provided with invaluable experiential learning that will help them be successful upon completing their post-secondary studies.  Companies who choose to employ co-op students are putting themselves in a win/win situation.  They have access to intelligent, keen and motivated individuals who can help them complete specific tasks AND they have an opportunity to help shape the future of a next generation employee.  Essentially, they are grooming Ottawa’s talent pool and play a role in bridging any talent gaps in their specific industry.

In recognition of the excellent work being done by Ottawa’s co-op students and the Ottawa-based companies who provide them with the opportunity to learn, the City of Ottawa has created two special awards which will be presented annually to the Co-op Student of the Year and the Co-op Employer of the Year.  An official from the City will make a presentation to the winners at the OCRI Awards on April 7 at the Hilton Lac-Leamy.

We look forward to celebrating the winners with the entire community!

Cities all around the world are becoming more aware of their power as engines of economic growth. Not only are they able to influence the situations in their own municipalities but they can have a major impact on the overall performance and reputation of the surrounding regions and ultimately the entire country.  That’s why the economic development associations of Canada’s 11 largest cities have joined together under the considercanada.com banner. With a cooperative approach to overall economic prosperity, the C-11 cities of  Halifax, Quebec City, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Waterloo, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver are working together to help companies from around the world determine which city (or cities) is the best possible fit for their businesses as they expand their reach into Canadian and North American markets.

This week, members of the C-11 are here in Ottawa, hosted by OCRI, to discuss current issues and opportunities.  It will be interesting to know if the discussions reveal the issues to be more common than unique and that the ideas roll easily when more than one city concentrates on identifying solutions.  This week also serves as the platform from which they will launch the considercanada.ca brand.  This coordinated brand gives the 11 cities a consistent rallying point and a destination on the Web where trade organizations and companies from around the world can seek C-11 information, success stories, and get answers about investment opportunities.

Mike Darch, Executive Director, OCRI Global Marketing, one of the founding members of the C-11 and ConsiderCanada team, has learned from his years of experience promoting Ottawa and Ottawa-based companies around the world that even our largest city centres are viewed as “small” in the big picture.  He knows that Canada’s large cities have much more to gain from banding together than competing against each other for growth opportunities.

There is a lot interest in what is being done to attract investment to Canada.  The task isn’t without its challenges but there is a compelling list of reasons why investing in Canada is a good idea and each of the member cities contributes to this list….

• World’s soundest banking system, according to the World Economic Forum
• Fastest economic growth among G7 countries for 2011, according to the IMF
• The highest proportion of post-secondary graduates in the OECD
• Lowest debt-to-GDP ratio in the G7
• Lowest taxes on new business investment in the G7
• Lowest R&D costs in the G7, with a 12.9% advantage over the U.S.
• High quality of life featuring publicly-funded healthcare
• A commitment to the rule of law and a strong justice system

Visit www.considercanada.com for the bigger picture.

Typically, we wouldn’t post a blog from the marketing department praising one of our own events but we’ve talked about it and we all agree that “Let’s celebrate, Ottawa!” on Friday night was one of a kind and deserves a bit of extra profile.

Throughout the entire year, I’ve been tracking, adding bullets to speeches here and there, filing all kinds of accolades and big wins that have been earned by Ottawa and the many superstar companies in town.  In preparation for the event last Friday night, we decided to create a power point show to highlight some of these successes.  I had to cut off the list at 50. Anything more than that and it would just be too much for anyone to digest.  If you are looking for an Ottawa brag reel – feel free to use this one!

In the Metro Outlook Fall Report issued by the Conference Board of Canada, in bold letters, with a thumbs up, were these words: “Ottawa is poised for its greatest growth in ten years in 2010”.  Seeing this in print validated what we’ve been trying to convey and the event on Friday night was the perfect opportunity to wrap it all up in a bow and parade the many successes in front of an audience that, despite being key players in the city’s current success, had no idea how great a year Ottawa was really experiencing.

From the get go, the event was about the city, the companies, the people so rather than having one person read a speech and talk about stuff, we invited the companies to share a brief snapshot of their biggest success in 2010.  It was fantastic. Every single company, big (RIM) and small (Shopify), startup (YOUiLabs) or MNE (Alcatel-Lucent) was so proud of their people, their company, their community and clearly articulated their commitment to Ottawa.

Did you know NEPTEC has been a prime contractor to NASA since 1995?

Did you know RIM broke ground on a new five-story building in Marianne Wilkinson’s riding which will be home to 1,000 more employees?

Did you know YOUiLabs just returned from a European road show and hopes to announce new clients in emerging markets soon?

Did you know MITEL completed Ottawa’s largest IPO raising US $147.37 million.

Did you know BEST Theratronics is building a clycotron for the Italian National Institute of Nuclear Physics – the first such build EVER in Canada!

After the event, this statement echoed throughout the room … I didn’t know all that was happening in Ottawa…. Let’s not keep our successes a secret anymore – there really is no good reason to by shy about it. You won’t be alone!  Nine companies took to the stage. 50 facts were chosen for the power point show. Over 80 people were in the audience at the Chateau Laurier. Just imagine the number of wins across the city among Ottawa’s 1,852 knowledge-based companies.

We definitely have reason to celebrate Ottawa!

Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to present OCRI’s response to the city’s proposed economic development strategy. The strategy sees Ottawa recognized as a competitive global hub for innovative, knowledge-based talent, businesses and organizations. OCRI is committed to the economic development of the city and overall, we agree with the strategic objectives as outlined in the document and look forward to working with the City to achieve the stated objectives.

OCRI has been supportive of and involved with the economic refresh activity by City staff although not directly involved with the steering committee. The organization fulfills a leading role in economic development for the region including the entrepreneurship centre, global marketing (investment and trade activities in Ottawa and abroad) and regional innovation activities in addition to other OCRI activities for members.

Leading the way for Ottawa, OCRI fully supports the bolstering of key economic development activities in the region. Investment has decreased over the past few years and fallen far behind investment by other cities and regions. More investment will result in a more diversified local economy with strong international success.

Key economic development initiatives include the creation of strong ecosystems in the areas of: international trade and investment, entrepreneurship, and clusters (including cleantech, life sciences, wireless/mobile applications and digital media). (See our KBI white paper response for more detail.)

Talent is a key focus area for Ottawa. While we have high quality, local talent with many students graduating every year from our universities and colleges, we need to increase STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) participation to meet the demands. Strategies must be implemented to attract, engage and retain talent in Ottawa. Leadership and early entrepreneurship education are also key focus areas. (See our Talent white paper response for more detail.)

OCRI is a leader in providing a full range of commercialization and investment resources to companies across knowledge-based industries to accelerate their growth in the global marketplace. This includes support for startup company creation through Entrepreneur’s Edge, Lead-to-Win, Exploriem and other programs. OCRI works to bring capital to the region through investment in high potential emerging technology leaders in Ottawa.

OCRI programs and services touch many business people and youth in our community. Because of the broad range of services, it is difficult to fully understand the value that OCRI brings to the community. OCRI partners with the City of Ottawa to deliver a number of services to the community which I have outlined below. Key OCRI services that support Ottawa’s economic development include:

Entrepreneurship Centre

• Helps entrepreneurs make informed business decisions while starting or growing their businesses (seminars and workshops on management, legal and accounting)
• Youth focus via programs like Ottawa Innovation Challenge, Junior Achievement, Canada Youth Business Foundation, Summer Company and others;
• Operates resource centre at City Hall, kiosks in Orleans, Barrhaven and Kanata.

Entrepreneurship and Innovation

• Delivers Entrepreneur’s Edge series for entrepreneurship training;
• Delivers TalentBridge which engages entrepreneurial engineering students in work terms that develop marketing, sales and business management skills and connects students with supportive mentors from the local knowledge-based sector.

Global Marketing

• Provides assistance for export-oriented businesses seeking to market products and services internationally;
• Provides support for in-bound and out-bound trade missions with emphasis on Asia, Europe, U.S. and Latin America;
• Active founding member of the Ontario Technology Corridor (Ottawa, Toronto, Waterloo, London and Niagara) which was established for joint marketing abroad;
• Supports Ottawa’s established and emerging knowledge-based clusters (Photonics, Wireless, Software, eBusiness, Contact Centres, Life Sciences, Cleantech, Security and Digital Media.)

Investment and Commercialization

• Provides business advisory services, business acceleration, market intelligence and mentoring to build the next wave of knowledge-based companies;
• Hosts the annual Ontario Venture Summit (OVS) to showcase companies to qualified investors;
• Actively supports community-based initiatives including: Lead to Win, Exploriem, TiE, and The Ottawa Network.

Community Leadership

• OCRI hosts and chairs the Innovation Leadership Team;
• OCRI chairs the Ottawa Technology Round Table for industry, academic and research institutions, and federal, provincial and city governments;
• OCRI CEO is a member of the Tourism Leadership Team;
• OCRI contributes to the Digital Strategy Round Tables at Industry Canada.

OCRI is a diverse and dynamic organization that aims to be responsive to the needs of our local business community. If you are interested in learning more about OCRI and the many ways that our programs, services and individuals contribute to the economic well being of the city visit our website www.ocri.ca, stop by the Entrepreneurship Centre at Ottawa City Hall or get in touch with one of our program managers.

by Mike Darch, April 16, 2010

I recall the comment by Mark Twain, “Reports of my death are greatly exaggerated”. This phrase definitely applies to Hong Kong. When Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997, many, including me, thought that the glory days of Hong Kong were over. Its importance as a global business centre would slowly fade. Hong Kong’s manufacturing base has certainly moved to China, but it has been replaced by an even stronger service sector. It serves as not only as a market in itself, but as an entry point to China and to all of Asia.

We are given talks by both Christopher Jackson of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and John Zimmerman of the Canadian Consulate in Hong Kong. Both present a barrage of statistics that clearly demonstrate that the Hong Kong economy continues to grow. But the previous day, we had seen the real proof that Hong Kong is alive and well.

Exhibit at Cyberport

Exhibit at Cyberport

Ottawa has a burgeoning digital media sector with enormous potential. Our telecommunications heritage, our near 50 year history in animation and the growing number of gaming companies put Ottawa in an excellent position in the new multi-platform world. We have learned from our photonics experience, a common infrastructure platform like the Canadian Photonics Fabrication Centre can provide an enormous competitive advantage to our SME’s. We visit Cyberport in Hong Kong, an investment by the Hong Kong government to encourage the growth of digital media in the region. The facilities and capabilities are impressive. The digital backbone, the studios, the 3D capability all allow the companies to concentrate on the market and their development of intellectual property rather than struggling to afford capability. We are developing a concept for similar infrastructure and this visit gives us plenty of ideas. But we also learn about the continuing Hong Kong reality. Cyberport is both a business and residential development, and located on waterfront. From one of the studio areas, we can look out onto the residential development. We naively ask what the three storey townhouses cost, thinking maybe close to a million dollars, given that it is Hong Kong. Our hosts calmly tell us, try 20 times that! One single family unit is under negotiation for around 35 million U.S. dollars. Hong Kong is alive and well.

We have seen success in mainland China by our experienced companies in both ICT and cleantech. But these are the exceptions not the rule in Ottawa. It has been evident that the Chinese are looking for total solutions. Unfortunately, the success of our SME’s in the U.S. market has been by supplying innovative technology at lower levels in the supply chain. Hong Kong is building a solid reputation in China as a solution provider, putting together the technology from around the world that meets the Chinese need.

Hong Kong has a definite role to play in our China strategy. The reports of Hong Kong’s death are exaggerated. We have come looking to find paths to success in China for our growing cleantech sector. We have left Hong Kong and China with confirmation that this is a market that cannot be ignored and with a better knowledge of the tools that will bring us success.

by Mike Darch, Shenzhen – April 13 and 14, 2010

Ottawa has experienced a series of economic tremors since the mid 90’s. The reduction of our government employment during the years that created a zero deficit for Canada, the technology downturn of this century that permanently altered the global supply chains and the recent global financial crisis that was made worse in our region by the bankruptcy of our major technology anchor, Nortel.

One lesson that is repeatedly taught over time, I guess not enough study history, is that you survive change by embracing it. Fighting a new global economic order will only mean, that when you finally adjust, the transition is more painful. For Ottawa, the swing to low cost production in the technology sector resulted in record job losses for our region. 

On this trip, we visited two companies, Breconridge and Huawei. Breconridge is Ottawa-based and our largest advanced manufacturing company. It has its headquarters in Ottawa, but here in Shenzhen it employs over 500 people in its Chinese operation. In Ottawa, the company does its engineering, new product manufacturing development and its high value manufacturing. In Shenzhen, it does its high volume manufacturing. It remains competitive by moving its manufacturing asset to the most cost efficient global location.

Huawei is Shenzhen-based, with 50,000 employees in the region and 95,000 worldwide. It has 17 R&D facilities around the world, and yet in September of 2008, it began building a R&D capability in the Ottawa area. The official opening of its facility is next week. So why open a facility in Ottawa when you already have 95,000 employees. I can only speculate, but in a single world, talent.

Huawei is a new company, with just over a decade history. The Ottawa region has been building ICT companies for over five decades, with an exceptional track record in innovation, large scale integration, software/hardware integration and market adaptation. As Huawei moves farther up the integration chain, Ottawa represents a major talent pool.

These two companies and their operations in Shenzhen and Ottawa illustrate the direction of sustainable economic development. We are in a world of global supply chains and you have to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses to compete in those supply chains. Breconridge is competing by executing its low end manufacturing in Shenzhen and Huawei is competing by utilizing the telecommunications R&D capability in Ottawa. Both cities and both companies are winners.

These company visits in Shenzhen have also brought home to me the practical side of other global trends. In my former company, Lansdowne Technologies, we did proposals for many large government projects. These often involved teams from many countries (and time zones) and tight deadlines. We often joked about bringing in the cots and throwing the pizza under the door as we worked 16 hour days to meet deadlines.

Our visit to both Breconridge and Huawei put a different meaning to bringing in the cots and tossing the pizza under the door. A global reality is that cities are now our economic driver and will be into the future. The jobs are there and the cities will only get larger.

I see China as a practical country. If the jobs are in the city, that is where people will go to find them. We had a free ranging discussion with Alec Hart the General Manager of Breconridge’s Asia operation. We received a briefing on the facility in Shenzhen, its manufacturing capability, its integration into Breconridge’s operations, its types of clients, the usual. Then we noticed on the site plan that there were two dormitories, several canteens and some sport fields. I recall in my first trip to China in 1995 that the factory we visited had a farm out back which produced the vegetables for the lunch that the company provided all employees.

Things do change. Shenzhen was a fishing village of 30,000 people 30 years ago. Today, it is a modern, even by Western standards, city of over 15 million. Alec tells us that the average age of his employees is 28 and few were either born or live in Shenzhen. The jobs are in the city, but the families are back home. Most employees live on the factory grounds, sending the bulk of their wages home to the family. Wages are relatively standard, so competition for labour is more based on the housing and living conditions provided. I was surprised to learn that Breconridge serves four meals a day. A major recruiting tool is your employees telling their friends that you have great living quarters!

I keep seeing China as a practical country. You could debate the direction of change, but it is happening so fast that any conclusions would be far surpassed by reality.

It is fortunate to be travelling with our Mayor Larry O’Brien because the cities that we are visiting put the entire management of the City in perspective before dealing with the question of sustainable economic development, my specific interest area.

Urban planning in Chongqing must not only deal with the challenge of population, it must also accept the geographic realities of a mountainous terrain and two major river systems. We are also not talking of a new city but a city first settled over 3,000 years ago. The development of a nice symmetric grid system with a gently sloping underground infrastructure is definitely not an option.

Chongqing refers to itself as a phoenix. Its geographic area does resemble the mythical bird rising into the air and the City is in the midst of a major renewal as it becomes China’s western gateway. It has developed a planning strategy of a circle with two wings. The circle represents the reconstruction of the urban core and the two wings, the development of the new regions that stretch northeast and southeast.

The redevelopment of the core is not being done as one massive project, but as a series of smaller districts, each with its own designation for concentration. For example, in the west is a large area that will house over a dozen universities.

Several of the rookies on this trip had a negative impression as we drove in from the airport to our hotel in the city’s downtown. We passed through older areas of the city, many in various stages of reconstruction. The fog and drizzle did not help.

Grey fog and mist in Chongqing

Vision for the future ....

Then came our trip to and briefing on the New North Zone. This area was farmland a few short few years ago. The region could be planned from scratch and did not face the challenges of the river gorges in the city centre.

The rookies went from wondering why we had chosen Chongqing as an area of focus, to “are we in China or in Silicon Valley?” The streetscapes, the buildings, the landscaping and even the BMW’s and Audi’s all could have been in Palo Alto. OK, the Chinese characters on the buildings and the distinct lack of sun did let you know this was China, but our Starbucks addicts never had a problem!

I have commented in the past on the Chinese commitment to the low carbon environment, and it was clearly seen in two of our meetings. Some of our delegation had visited the China Energy Conservation Investment Corporation (CECIC) in Beijing and we visited their office in Chongqing. The City is a major industrial location and does face significant challenges as it struggles to meet China’s new low carbon goals. Chongqing has been chosen by the Chinese government as the pilot large city to identify the major obstacles to meeting the low carbon targets. A major question that they are trying to address is how to identify technology solutions and link them to the market needs. CECIC is developing a platform that links market need, technology and funding. This is exactly the type of vehicle that will allow our emerging companies like Plasco, Clearford and Thermal Energy to better partner in China.

Mayor of Ottawa, Larry O'Brien makes ceremonial presentation in Chongqing

Our meeting with Chongqing Energy Investment Group also proved to be fruitful. They are one of the largest power suppliers in the region with over 2.3 million households on their grid. If you look at their challenge, they are in a market in which demand is growing both from increasing population and the movement to a new level of economic importance, and yet new standards of carbon footprint must be met. They are experimenting with a variety of clean energy alternatives, including options for energy reduction. We in Ottawa are looking at many of the same challenges, albeit at a different scale, so once again there is the enormous potential for partnership in finding and implementing solutions.

As we progress through China, it is becoming increasingly evident that we are in a global economy, with nobody having all the problems and nobody having all the solutions. Partnership and cooperation are the keys to building sustainable economies.

April 11, 2010 – Beijing

It is early Sunday morning in Beijing, early Saturday evening back home in Ottawa, and I am having one of those goose bump moments that are rare in the world of economic development. In my business, it is seldom that you are able to see immediate cause and effect to your actions. Our job is to develop strategies and tactics that often take years to pay off and particularly in today’s world of global supply chains and global competitiveness. But as I sit here this Sunday morning, watching Phil Mickelson make his charge for the lead in the third round of the 2010 Masters (remember the 12 hour time difference), I am feeling that years of hard work are paying off.

In September of 2006, OCRI launched its China program with a trip to Shenzhen, Xiamen, Shanghai and Beijing. OCRI had focussed programs in the United States and Europe. It was increasingly evident that the world was changing and any true global strategy would have to address the increasing influence of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) economies. Our analysis showed clearly that China was likely to be our strategic third option (after our domestic and the US markets) but that Ottawa was like a grain of sand on the beach of China’s economic awakening.

How do you start? We had been warned that it would be a long journey. We were looking at a country with well over a billion people. It was half way around the world and 12 time zones away. Few of our companies had been successful there. Many of our companies looked at the challenges of culture and IP enforcement and said that it wasn’t worth the battle. This wasn’t the United States - an excellent product with a solid value proposition would not get you in the game. This was a land of relationships.

And the journey did prove long, we are now 3 ½ years later and I am making my eighth visit. Relationship building takes commitment and time. It is the first visit for our new CEO Claude Haw. The staff that we dealt with at the Canadian Embassy in Beijing have completely turned over. One of our earliest friends at the Z-Park in Beijing, Dr. Xia, retired this winter and it is our first meeting with his replacement Zhou Yunfan.  Three years ago, Mayor Larry O’Brien, accompanying us on this trip, was still a businessman in a seemingly impossible campaign for Mayor. China was a place on the map, for the companies with us, not yet considered a strategic market. Accredited Destination Status looked like a distant dream putting our tourism sector at a distinct disadvantage. My China Project Manager, Sophie Chen was just getting married, never mind preparing to return after maternity leave. Joan Sun, doing a tremendous job of replacing Sophie during her maternity leave, was still busy raising her daughter with only vague ideas of setting up her Canada China consulting company.

So why the goose bumps this morning? Our early research proved that we needed a competitive advantage and an entry point. Consequently, our emphasis on ICT and Ottawa’s emerging cleantech sector. Ottawa had a Sister City agreement signed in 1999 with Beijing making Beijing our obvious city of concentration.

What has been achieved in the last three days? Our Mayors have recommitted to the agreement signed in 1999, moving our cities to a new level of cooperation. Our Mayor met with members of the team of artisans that will travel to Ottawa next week to begin construction of the Chinese Arch that will be placed at the entrance to Ottawa’s Chinatown. It has been presented to Ottawa and Canada by Beijing and China to celebrate the 40^th anniversary of the modern Canada China diplomatic relationship. Our tourism organization signed an agreement with their sister organization here linking the UNESCO World Heritage sites of the Great Wall and the Rideau Canal. OCRI signed an MOU with the Beijing Investment and Promotion Bureau to increase cooperation in investment between the two cities.

Our Mayor loves to show off Ottawa, a global example of a sustainable city. My count is that we have commitments of at least five organizations from Beijing to visit Ottawa this year to continue our discussions on building green cities, cross investment between our companies and encouraging science and technology cooperation. Not that I needed more work, but in a virtual world, it is still person to person contact that cements a relationship and moves it forward.

Mayor O’Brien is also a successful technology entrepreneur and that agenda was moved forward. Two of our cleantech companies significantly moved their Beijing agendas forward, Plasco and Clearford. Wesley Clover, a company owned by Ottawa’s most successful ICT entrepreneur, Terry Matthews, used the opportunity to build its network in Beijing and move forward its investment plans in China. Ottawa companies are being successful in China.

As a bonus, I received an invitation to the official opening of Huawei’s Ottawa R&D Centre on the same day that Huawei was presenting to a seminar in Beijing on the advantages of doing R&D in Ottawa and Canada. Chinese companies are discovering Ottawa.

I had a premonition that this trip would bring it all together for our China strategy when I was able to upgrade to Business Class on my entire Air Canada flight from Ottawa to Beijing, a rare event as any frequent flier knows. But I never dreamed that I would see a three and a half year journey, involving so many people, working against incredible odds, come together to produce the results of the last few days. It is a great feeling, even if I am half way around the world from home. Now Claude and Mayor O’Brien will probably expect an encore!

By Mayor Larry O’Brien

On April 6th, I embarked on a 10-day economic development mission to the Chinese cities of Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The mission, coordinated by OCRI, aims to strengthen existing relationships between our cities and to further establish Ottawa as one of China’s strategic partners.

Friday evening marked the conclusion of our delegation’s visit to the City of Beijing. We spent two short but jam-packed days in back-to-back meetings with government officials and professionals from a number of hi tech industries.

As Mayor of the City of Ottawa, my first and most important responsibility is to ensure the safety and security of the City’s residents, which means ensuring access to clean drinking water, waste management, fire and police services. But I also recognize the role of the City in ensuring the prosperity of our citizens, which means creating the kind of environment in which our citizens and companies can prosper. With that focus in mind, I am pleased to report that our mission to Beijing to promote investment and partnership opportunities was extremely successful.

On Thursday of last week I announced that Beijing Mayor Guo Jinlong and I had signed a Memorandum of Understanding re-committing to the principles of our original 1999 sister-city agreement.  That was just the beginning of a waterfall of successes stemming from this mission.  OCRI has now signed a new agreement with the Beijing Investment Promotion Bureau, and the Ottawa companies who are participating in this mission have had a number of successful meetings with potential customers, investors and partners. I was very pleased to see Tourism Ottawa sign a collaboration agreement with Badaling Special Zone Administration, the managers of the Great Wall of China.

The goal of our visit to Beijing was to promote partnerships in the areas of Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Cleantech. For that reason, we were delighted to hear about Beijing’s commitment to building a world-class environmentally sustainable city when we visited the Beijing Urban Planning Exhibition. We met with the Beijing Energy-Saving and Environmental Protection Center where we were introduced to their impressive plans and programs for meeting the goals of the city.  During that meeting, we received confirmation that a delegation from Beijing will be traveling to Ottawa to meet with a broad range of our Cleantech companies.  This is important given the ongoing negotiations between the City of Beijing and Plasco regarding the  implementation of a waste-to-electricity facility in Beijing based on the leading-edge solution which has been developed and demonstrated in Ottawa.

Our delegation also had the privilege of attending and participating in the ICT and Cleantech Cross-Investment Seminar at Z-Park which included presentations by Canadian investment groups like Wesley Clover and Cleantech Capital. It was there that we learned of Huawei’s plans to significantly increase the number of people in their Ottawa R&D centre.

While the focus of our mission is clearly business development, it was a pleasure last evening to be hosted by Mayor Guo at a banquet where we were able to talk frankly about the role of Mayors in our two cultures and the tremendous opportunities of our bilateral relationship. As we begin to emerge from the global economic recession and move forward in a new economy, China has emerged as the key global market- 1.3 billion people, an impressive education system and strong economic growth.  Business partnerships with China will continue to become a more integral part of our economic progress both here in Ottawa and across the country.

My hope is that this mission will continue to provide opportunities to strengthen relationships, and that by working together we can further grow the prosperity of the people of both Ottawa and Beijing.

-30-