September 23, 2024
Hello economic developers!
As we prepare for our conference next week, I have been dwelling on some of the discussions that have been taking place as part of the NL Futures initiative.
From clean energy (yes, I am biased!) to film production, emerging industries are showing great promise for our province. In the meantime, our ‘traditional’ industries like fisheries, oil and gas, and mining? Looking pretty good at the moment too!
The future of Newfoundland and Labrador’s economy is bright, and what makes many of these opportunities really interesting is that they are spread out geographically across the province.
Are our regions and rural communities ready to seize these opportunities?
Is Our Capacity to Engage in Economic Development Shrinking?
It should come as no surprise that the demographics of our province are working against us. The Harris Centre‘s 2024 Vital Signs publication notes that “between July 2022 and July 2023, NL experienced a record low number of births, a record high number of deaths”. Yes, we are also seeing record-high immigration, but this is taking place mostly in the metro St. John’s area.
Click to download Vital Signs 2024
It would be hard to argue that the above has not had an impact on our capacity to engage in economic development. We see this even within our own organization. EDANL’s membership continues to grow, but the number and share of municipal or regionally focused practitioners has been trending downwards for some time.
It is important to recognize this. Why?
Economic Developers Play an Important Role
Economic developers play a vital role in sorting out the enabling conditions for commercial and industrial activity to take place in or near an area – from infrastructure, to planning, to housing, to recreation, to welcoming newcomers. The list is a long one.
Equally as important, economic developers help increase the chances of accruing additional positive impacts of commercial and industrial activity. They can help to extend the benefits of these developments from just jobs and property taxes to spin-offs for local businesses, organizations, and the community.
My personal opinion is that we have some work to do to get ready. But what do you think?
These things will all be a point of discussion at our annual conference October 2-3 in Twillingate. It’s always a fun event – a time to share ideas, experiences, and laughs with colleagues across the province involved in economic development in some shape or form – and we hope that you can join us!
What Can EDANL Do?
What is the role that EDANL can play? We can help develop and provide the training and professional development to those that have a hand in economic development, and we can help share the stories of past successes and failures that we can learn from and build on.
Your board is working on these things, and we will have more to say in the coming weeks and months on that front.
Thank you for your continued interest and support of the association, and I am looking forward to connecting with many of you soon! If you’re not a member and read all the way to the end of it, it’s clear you should become a member! 😉
// Kieran
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48 Kenmount Road
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A1B 4J8
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Economic Developers Association of Newfoundland and Labrador