Rewriting the Rules:
Rethinking NAFTA & International Trade – And how it Impacts our Communities
Thursday, February 8, 2018
Topics
· Economic Development & NAFTA
o Our changing relationship with the United States
o Leveraging NAFTA for your community
o Existing resources for communities to build bridges to US markets and trade and investment opportunities
· Private Sector Perspectives on the “new” NAFTA
· Politics and Partnerships: Building Effective Cross-border relationships
Speakers
Stephen Thompson, CEO of Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership, former Consul and Senior Economic Officer to the Western U.S.
Stephen Thompson joined Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership as CEO in 2017 following a four-year diplomatic assignment, where he focused on investment attraction and trade development as Ontario’s senior representative and head of office in the Western United States. Previously, he was General Manager and Director of Economic Development, Tourism & Marketing for the City of Port Colborne, Ontario. Stephen is among a select group of fewer than 40 people in Canada to have obtained the Economic Development Fellowship designation, the highest level of economic development certification in the country. A Certified Economic Developer and a Registered Professional Planner, Stephen is also a member of the Economic Development Association of Canada, Economic Development Council of Ontario, International Economic Development Council, Ontario Professional Planners Institute, and Canadian Institute of Planners. His career in economic development began in 1997 with the Region of Ottawa-Carleton. He also has experience operating a small business and working in local, regional, and provincial levels of government in both planning and economic development. He is a graduate of the University of Waterloo, with degrees in Environmental Studies /Geography and a master’s degree in Local Economic Development. Stephen currently serves the Economic Development Association of Canada as an elected board member and has been part of the University of Waterloo Economic Development Program committee since 2007. He has previously served on more than a dozen boards and committees including chambers of commerce, industry associations, investment attraction corporations and tourism organizations.
Arlene White
Business Development Manager, WP Warehousing, former Executive Director of the Binational Economic and Tourism Alliance
Daniel Kolundzic
Vice President – Nanos Research, former Political & Economic Relations Officer at the Canadian Consulate in Buffalo
Schedule:
9:00 am – 10:00 am The State of NAFTA -Intro: Speaker TBD
- · NAFTA in the Age of Trump
- · Understanding the economic implications of NAFTA
- · What will changes to NAFTA mean for our communities?
10:00 am – 10:15 am Break
10:15 am – 12:30 pm Economic Development & NAFTA
Confirmed: Stephen Thomson, CEO of Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership, former Consul and Senior Economic Officer to the Western U.S.
- · How is a changing relationship with the United States changing the opportunities for communities?
- · How do individual communities leverage NAFTA for local economic development?
- · What resources exist for communities to build bridges to US markets and trade and investment opportunities?
12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Lunch
1:30 pm – 2:30 pm Private Sector Perspectives on the “new” NAFTA
Proposed: Arlene White, Business Development Manager, WP Warehousing, former Executive Director of the Binational Alliance
- · How is trade with the US changing?
- · What do economic developers need to know about the practical aspects and issues around trade and the movement of goods?
- · How can companies link to local trade support structures?
2:30 pm – 2:45 pm Break
2:45 pm – 5:00 pm Politics and Partnerships: Building Effective Cross-border relationships
Proposed: Daniel Kolundzic, Vice President – Nanos Research, former Political & Economic Relations Officer at the Canadian Consulate in Buffalo
- · How US politics shape partnership opportunities
- · How to identify the best possible partners
- · How to build effective cross-border initiatives
Please visit: https://uwaterloo.ca/economic-development/courses-and-seminars/rewriting-rules-day-1-nafta-international-trade-and-how-they for further details.