Igniting the North….Project to Spark New Ideas and New Businesses
Prince George, B.C.- It’s called “Ignite the North” and is aimed at getting the creative juices flowing among young people and motivate them to create new things, new business, new jobs.
With seed money from the Omineca Beetle Action Coalition, Ignite the North will hold community forums in 10 different communities over the coming months. The goal is to build resiliency, create jobs and develop thriving communities in the north using innovation as a tool.
“There are actually three parts to the project” says co-organizer Shauna Harper, “There is one part where we are working with kids, another portion that is a panel, as well there will be a community forum.”
Harper says the initial plan was to visit public schools to connect with young people, but the teachers strike has impacted that idea, as most schools are deciding not to have the Ignite the North folks in the classrooms as students are focused on getting caught up on 3 missed weeks of instruction. “So what we’re doing is holding that portion at the PG Library and bringing in a facilitator that works with kids who will be talking about entrepreneurship and how to get kids thinking about thinking outside the box and thinking about building businesses.” That part of the program will be focusing on students aged 9-13.
The panel sessions are geared to youth ages 16-21, “The youth are kind of at that stage where they’re thinking what’s next?” says Harper. At the panel session, youth can hear from different entrepreneurs “Things like how they made it in the north, the opportunities in the north and also what are the mistakes the entrepreneurs have made so they realize the journey isn’t a direct path. Many of the entrepreneurs we’re featuring have followed their passions and created sustainability, and economic growth in the north.”
The forum portion of the event will be open to businesses and the community at large. “That is the one we will be marketing the most” says Harper as the other two segments will see Ignite the North connect with youth in specialized settings such as youth groups , or in the case of Prince George, at the library.
The first Ignite the North event is set for Vanderhoof and will see the community forum portion take place on October 1st from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Nechako Senior Friendship Centre.
The Prince George session will take place on November 12th, although the time and location have yet to be determined.
Ignite the North will also hold community events in Smithers (together with Telka), Fort St. James, Fraser Lake, Burns Lake, Houston, McBride, Valemount and Mackenzie.
Comments
Lets hope they explain to the kids the amount of bureaucracy they’re going to have to satisfy to be able to get their new job creating ideas off the ground. And the time it’ll take to do that. And to ensure they’re well funded enough to endure the delay. And what they’ll be facing in making sure their new employees don’t cost them more than they’ll ever make for them, and how limited they’re now going to be to rectify that, if and when it happens. It might also help if the kids were given a bit of history on the growth of that bureaucracy, and that how, as it’s kind of become a
major source of job creation in and of itself, that might affect
their enterprises in the future if the trend continues. As it likely will. Don’t think this is an example of ‘negative-ism’, it’s not. I’m all for new enterprise and innovativeness, but a proper examination of the realities of modern business life might save a lot of the new entrepreneurs from working their way into bankruptcy.
Also don’t forget the blessing from early Asian immigrants, Tides foundation, Sierra club, WWF, Greenpeace, aging so called celebrities, Rockefellers, Suzuki, CBC, Andrew Weaver, Elizabeth May, well you get my drift.
Absolutely, and if they’re still determined to go ahead after all the necessary official approvals have been obtained and constantly maintained, and received the blessings of all those who unofficially officiate and insist their opinions also be heeded ~ if the young, would-be businesspersons haven’t reached the now extended age of retirement before that all happens ~ well, good luck to them. They’ll still need it to avoid going broke in their ventures the good old fashioned way.
I thought the north sort of got ignited this last summer, with all the fires!
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