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MLA Rick Glumac, PNWER B.C. Delegates, welcomes PNWER and BC MLAs to Parliament Building
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Consul General Brandon Lee, Canadian Consulate in Seattle, speaks on importance of NAFTA
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Kate Moran, Director of Ocean Networks Canada from the University of Victoria, and Ross Drake, CEO of Pyrus Medical, discuss innovative technology
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The Honourable Darryl Plecas, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia and Senator Arnie Roblan, former co-Speaker of the Oregon House of Representatives discuss the role of the speaker in their legislatures.
More than 125 state and provincial legislators and business leaders from the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada convened at the Economic Leadership Forum, Nov. 5-7 in Victoria to discuss regional economic issues, support international trade and build cross-border cooperation.

Attendees are better prepared to work cross-border after exploring the practical differences between the parliamentary and U.S. systems of government as part of the Legislative Leadership Academy. 

Highlights: 
  • New Canadian Consul General Brandon Lee addressed PNWER for the first time
  • PNWER welcomed new B.C. Delegate MLA Rick Glumac 
  • NAFTA, Modernization, or Not at All presentation and discussion. NAFTA Resolution passed by PNWER Executive Committee. 
  • How to implement lessons learned from the hurricane and fire season and how to ‘design for resilience’ 
  • Energy efficiency to reduce energy and GHG emissions
  • Alex Alben, Chief Privacy Officer for Washington State joined B.C.’s Drew McArthur, Acting Privacy Commissioner for B.C. to discuss key strategies to ensure privacy of public data, and prevent cyber breaches like the Equifax breach which put millions of U.S. records at risk.
  • Tour of Victoria’s working harbour featuring Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps, airplane service, ferries,  & marine trades. 
  • Discussion on the ‘Nerd Bird’ Harbour-to-Harbour air service between Vancouver and Seattle and update on ultra-high speed rail
  • Automated, Connected Electric Share (ACES) Vehicles and a plan for an I-5 Corridor between Seattle and Vancouver 
  • Technology solutions to speed up border clearances while enhancing security 
  • The Innovation session showcased Kate Moran, Director of Ocean Networks Canada from the University of Victoria, and Ross Drake, CEO of Pyrus Medical, a Seattle technology company that allows surgeons to use virtual reality to perform delicate operations in real time.

More highlights in detail here.


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SELECT SPEAKERS
Photos courtesy of Tourism Victoria.

Thank you to our Economic Leadership Forum Sponsors

PNWER Partners