CREATING A DIVERSE & RESILIENT ECONOMY IN METRO VANCOUVER
Vancouver faces a historic opportunity to become a global knowledge and innovation hub sustained through place-based research partnerships, knowledge brokering, work-integrated-learning programs, as well as hybrid venture creations in the arts and cultural sectors.
Event Description: An expert panel discussed the future of employment in Metro Vancouver and the impact of land development, regulation and market demands on the future of the regional economy.
Host: SFU Public Square
Background: SFU Public Square convenes diverse communities through its annual Community Summit. The first Community Summit, Alone Together: Connecting in the City, (Sept. 2012) addressed the issue of isolation and disconnection in the urban environment. The theme of 2018, Brave New Work, invited participants to think critically about how to thrive in the changing world of work.
VSIR Thinking Points:
- The global shift to knowledge-intensive economic activities has raised the premium on mixed-use land development use in Metro Vancouver, resulting in skyrocketing land and home prices, reduced vacancy rates, and mounting infrastructure costs. A growth catalyst for Canada’s flourishing high-tech and green-tech economy, Vancouver’s future social and economic resiliency could be at risk given that demographic forecasts see migration levels rising by another 1 million people over the next 20 years.
- Vancouver faces a historic opportunity to become a global knowledge and innovation hub sustained through place-based research partnerships, knowledge brokering, work-integrated-learning programs, as well as hybrid venture creations in the arts and cultural sectors. This transition process could last 10 to15 years. Moreover, it will require dynamic capabilities that enable metropolitan planners and business owners to extend or diversify their economic assets while anticipating, creating, and exploiting new opportunities, both in Canada and abroad.
- Data analytics and visualization software will soon be indispensable to the Vancouver “advantage” because of the way in which these technologies enable urbanists to see the dynamic interplay of seemingly unrelated risk factors and how they will allow managers to understand the broader impact of their decisions. But if these systems become too “smart” and disconnected from a holistic strategy that views technology merely as “gateway” to solving real-world problems, then they could potentially generate a talent exodus or even a populist backlash.
Agenda and Speakers: