Four for Friday - Youth in action, NII, the Future of Food and Re-learning the Truth in Truth & Reconciliation
It's been a little over 3 months since I've been back working for Catapult Grey Bruce. During that time, I have been connecting weekly with organizations and individuals across Grey-Bruce who are doing cool things and excited about the entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Catapult's mission is to provide you with knowledge, resources and connections to help you take your business to the next level. I was inspired by the Nuclear Innovation Institute's "Three Thought Thursday" and created “Four for Friday” to share some of the awesome work happening locally in case it helps you in your endeavours!
I hope you enjoy these posts, and I welcome feedback! Feel free to leave a comment below or get in touch.
1.Arran-Elderslie Youth Council
I have been connecting with this group on and off over the past year, as they have been establishing themselves within our community. There's a great summary of their work on the Municipal Innovation Council's blog. This socially-driven group of youth are identifying solutions to issues facing youth in our local communities. Their next initiative is an event aimed at empowering women & girls in Bruce County and their collaborative, youth-led approach is one we can all learn from and be inspired by.
This infographic summarizes a recent panel discussion on SMR and Hydrogen featuring Susie HO, NII Senior Advisor for Next Generation Nuclear. Source: Canadian Nuclear Association via Twitter.
2. Nuclear Innovation Institute (NII)
On the topic of NII, I was delighted to tour and learn more about their work this week. It’s fascinating! It's so rare that we encounter people thinking twenty and thirty years down the road, but those are the horizons NII is working towards. Learning more about their focus on Next Generation Nuclear, Clean Energy and Net Zero restored my optimism for the potential to both grow our economy and protect our planet.
Small modular reactors (SMR), fusion and hydrogen fuel technologies are advancing rapidly and Canadian companies and utilities are at the forefront.
Coming from an agricultural background, I'm especially excited to learn more about Net Zero and Bruce Power’s commitment to achieve “net zero nuclear” by 2027. It’s an ambitious goal, but if it can be accomplished anywhere it’s here where we have thriving ag and energy sectors.
3. Future of Food
Jo-Ann McArthur of Nourish Food Marketing
In addition to Catapult, I am also a restauranteur and revenue diversification has never been more important to our industry than over the last sixteen months. This workshop was a great chance to meet some fellow food entrepreneurs, in addition to highlighting the trends identified in the Nourish Network 2021 Trend Report. It was very interesting to see how COVID-19 has impacted our relationship with food and changed consumer habits. A recording of the webinar can be found here.
No matter what industry you're in, it's worth considering that it takes 66 days to form a habit and thanks to COVID, we have been living in a modified way for eighteen months now. How have your customers' behaviours changed and what habits will stick around post-COVID?
Do you have a new food business idea?
Grey, Bruce and Simcoe Counties have partnered with the Henry Bernick Entrepreneurship Centre to offer an 11-week Farm to Retail Workshop. Applications due by October 11, 2021.
The OFIFC Planning Wheel is inspired by the traditional medicine wheel and focuses on starting any work with vision in the east, before moving into knowledge, reason and finally action last.
Over the last year, I have been unlearning the history of our country and re-learning the truth about our relationship with Indigenous people and what it means to be a descendant of settlers to Bruce County.
As we approach the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation, it’s especially important we recognize that understanding who we are means also understanding how we got here.
There's a tremendous number of resources to educate ourselves and better inform our dinner table conversations to start the process of reconciliation. Below are a few I've found impactful:
21 Things You Don't Know About the Indian Act by Bob Joseph
The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King
Indigenous Canada Course offered by the University of Alberta
The illustrated history of the Chippewas of Nawash - Written and Drawn by Polly Keeshig-Tobias.
Interview with Dr. Sarah Carter and guest host Dr. Melissa Arcand: Lost Harvests: Prairie Indian Reserve Farmers and Government Policy - The Diversity Imperative Podcast
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer