EDCO Member Updates

EDCO Member Updates

Register for 'Meet the Candidates'

DEI Strategies Survey


At the Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO), we believe that diversity is part of what builds and enhances our communities’ vitality and vibrancy. Inclusion is the way we perceive and embrace all differences. EDCO is committed to creating an inclusive and safe space for economic developers through professional development and relevant programming for our members and their communities.

 

Your insights will help us enhance our efforts to create a more inclusive environment. The survey serves three purposes:


  • Assessment: Understand your DEI initiatives and identify gaps to enhance our service offerings.
  • Engagement: Celebrate your contributions to DEI.
  • Future Planning: Create programming to meet your needs.

 

Your participation is voluntary. Thank you for helping shape a more inclusive future Ontario!

Take the Survey

One week left to apply for the 2024 EDCO Scholarship Fund!


The EDCO Scholarship Fund was established by the EDCO Professional Development Committee. The purpose of the fund is to encourage and assist members, especially those new to the profession, in achieving or maintaining one’s professional designation (Ec.D. or CEcD).


The program funds $4,000 of professional development annually. Funds are dispersed as follows*:

·         $1,000 scholarships to Northern Ontario recipients

·         $1,000 scholarships to Southern Ontario recipients

·         $1,000 to an emerging professional recipient

·         $1,000 to an organization for DEI training


Apply by October 31st, 2023. For Guidelines, information and to apply click below!

2024 Scholarship Fund Information and Application

This year's EDCO Awards of Excellence Program deadline has been extended!


This program is for all those undertaking municipal economic development activities within the Province of Ontario. Participants are not required to be members of EDCO and all projects produced or implemented in the last 12 months are eligible (October 2022 to October 2023).


Deadline to Submit your application is Monday, October 30, 2023


Celebrate your team. Celebrate your community.

Learn More About the Awards Applications

Environics Analytics and EDCO have partnered again to bring a special offer to our members. Do you endeavour to make strategic decisions that are data driven but lack the budget needed to access the data?


JOIN US WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 1ST at 11 AM


Get to know your communities in more detail using the Spotlight platform from Environics Analytics. Granular, detailed data about your local populations can be brought to life with simple-to-read, updated dashboards, and powerful insights that give you so much more clarity about your jurisdictions. Webinars and showcases are being held throughout the fall.


This offer’s objective is an attempt to make data accessible to Ontario’s smaller municipalities about their populations and their expenditure and lifestyle attributes. The aim is to arm Ontario’s smaller municipalities with access to this data to:

  • Help inform strategic plans and Master Plans
  • Provide insights into local populations to help with communications, engagement and service delivery
  • Develop a deeper sense of understanding of local populations to help decision-makers better anticipate jurisdictional needs and provide services and programs that are more relevant and valuable


This special offer democratizes data and makes this platform available for up to 90% off the regular price.


Join us on November 1, 2023 to learn more!

Register for the November Webinar

Mark your Calendar for CollaboratiON: Building Ontario Together!

EDCO’s 67th Annual Conference and Showcase

February 6-8, 2024


November 14, 2023

Windsor-Essex Agenda



8:30 AM       Registration & Networking

9:00 AM Welcome

9:15 AM     Supporting the Agri-business Value Chain 

10:30 AM    Break

10:45 AM Creating a Cluster & Tour

12:00 PM Tour & Lunch Break & Networking

1:00 PM  Workforce Development: Attracting in-demand skilled workers

and creating inclusive workplace culture for newcomers and

diverse workforce

2:15 PM Break

2:30 PM Tourism Panel 

3:45 PM Question & Answer Period from the day

 

 

Learn More & Register for Windsor-Essex Here

EDCO Insider allows individual communities to easily and cost-effectively create their own customized apps and build incentives for people to visit places of interest or make purchases locally.


Take advantage of this service powered by 468 Communications, and drive economic development by rewarding people for exploring your community!


Learn More

My Main Street

Clarkson Village’s Turtle Creek Cards and Gifts hits reset button with help of My Main Street


When Satinder Ghotra came across Turtle Creek Cards and Gifts in a Clarkson Village plaza, she instantly saw the business' potential. The shop had been open for 15 years—a community staple selling cards and gifts to the steady stream of Mississaugans coming in for the Canada Post outlet at the back. But its owner was ready to exit the business.


“I was looking at the location and the potential there,” says Ghotra. So, in February 2022, she and her husband, Manmohan, bought the business.


Read More Here

Member Requests

Destination Canada is excited to be hosting an International Symposium on Destination Stewardship from November 6-8, 2023, at the Canadian Museum of History, in Gatineau, Québec. Registration is officially opened. 

 

This three-day event will bring together global thought leaders, stakeholders, partners, and knowledge keepers from diverse sectors for a unique discussion on redefining tourism and destination stewardship.

 

Building on the excellent work already taking place in this space, the Symposium will explore how we can transform ourselves into destination stewards, while unpacking how a regenerative approach to tourism can have a positive impact on residents, their communities, culture, economy, and the environment. 

 

You can expect to hear from some of the world’s leading thinkers, including our keynote speaker David Allison, a human behavior expert, advisor to global brands, and a leading advocate for discarding demographic stereotypes. He is the behavioral science pioneer behind Valuegraphics: the world’s first database that can predict and influence behavior for anything on earth.

 

The objective of the Symposium is to showcase dynamic new ideas and best practices in destination development and stewardship from around the world. We invite you to join us on this journey to:

·      Hear, learn, and be inspired by stories and experiences shared by international speakers and industry experts.

·      Engage in thought-provoking onsite activations.

·      Create meaningful connections with other participants. 

·      Prepare for future conversations with investors and local communities.

·      Identify opportunities for your organization and work. 

·      Feel connected to a community of like minded people. 

 

Register now 

 

Tickets are limited so we encourage you to register to secure your spot. 


The #GrowingYourWorkforce conference is a forum for anyone developing solutions to our most pressing workforce issues. It’s an opportunity to step outside “the everyday” to learn and build alongside peers in economic development, workforce planning and our employment ecosystem across Ontario.

Consider joining us on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023 at the beautiful WhiteOaks Resort & Spa in Niagara-on-the-Lake.



Information and link to register available at growingyourworkforce.ca

News

Ontario Introduces Better for Consumers, Better for Businesses Act


The proposed Better for Consumers, Better for Businesses Act, 2023, would introduce a new Consumer Protection Act and amend the Consumer Reporting Act. If passed, it would strengthen protections and make life easier for consumers and businesses.


With our increasingly online world, consumer habits and business practices have evolved. Stronger consumer protections and better compliance by businesses would help strengthen confidence in the marketplace while supporting Ontario’s continued economic growth.



Read more here.

Ontario Strengthening Economic Development Opportunities in the Northwest


GREENSTONE – The Ontario government is providing more than $5.7 million through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) to six economic development projects in Greenstone.


The NOHFC promotes economic prosperity across Northern Ontario by providing financial assistance to projects that stimulate growth, job creation and skills development.


Read more here.

Check out the EDCO Career Page

Events

October 1-31, 2023 -Knowledge Work: Building a Ladder of Opportunity


October 9-27, 2023 -Foreign Direct Investment and Exporting


October 18 - November 15, 2023 - Advancing Economic Development Opportunities - ONLINE Fall


October 24 & 25, 2023 - 2023 Ontario Tourism Summit


November 1-5, 2023 -Ontario Digital Media Export Business Mission to India Joy


November 1-30, 2023 -Innovation: Building an Ecosystem for Growth


November 2-3, 2023 -Real Estate Development and Reuse


November 13-14, 2023 - Economic Development Marketing & Attraction


December 1-31, 2023 -Inclusion: Overcoming the Digital Divide


December 7-8, 2023 - Business Retention and Expansion


February 4 - 6, 2023 - IEDC 2024 Leadership Summit

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