Minister Doug Schweitzer (Government of Alberta)

By Justin Goulet

Schweitzer says post-secondary schools must continue to evolve with today’s technology

Oct 2, 2020 | 12:05 PM

OLDS, AB – The Minister of Jobs, Economy and Innovation believes the future is bright for the provincial economy, following some big announcements this week.

Doug Schweitzer’s comments came after a $200,000 partnership was announced between Olds College, the province and Silicon Valley-based SVG ventures.

READ MORE: “Silicon Valley meets Olds College” with provincial agricultural partnership

“This is about making sure we stay at the forefront of innovation, we can capture those ideas in Alberta and turn them into jobs and opportunities for Albertans for years to come,” Schweitzer told LNN.

He said the partnership is a great way for the province to strengthen relations with outer markets.

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“It’s just the best of both worlds. We’re known for being at the forefront of agriculture and being one of the best places in the world to do that. This company from Silicon Valley saw that opportunity and wanted to be here in Alberta and that’s why they made this a big part of their priority for prospecting and growing companies,” he said.

“It’s just an excellent opportunity for us here to highlight the ability to grow in Alberta, invest in Alberta, you know get start-ups functioning in Alberta.”

Schweitzer noted the province has “an amazing resource sector” as well as strong forestry and agriculture sectors.

“Those foundations are going to continue to grow as long as we continue to innovate and make sure those innovative ideas turn into jobs and then turn into companies here in our province,” he said.

“We really want to facilitate that acceleration of the research that we’re doing into commercialization and jobs and opportunities for Albertans, because the world is just changing so quickly and every business has to rely on technology in today’s world, so making sure we’re at the forefront of agricultural technology is going to allow us to be at the forefront of a highly productive agricultural base.”

POST-SECONDARY INVESTMENTS

Schweitzer said his department is working closely with Minister of Advanced Education Demetrios Nicolaides to strongly support post-secondary schools in Alberta, noting there will be “a lot of announcements this fall”.

“[These will focus] around talent, around making sure that we have the right internship-type programs, making sure that we have the right training opportunities for Albertans and to make sure that our post-secondaries are nimble enough to keep up with a really fast-moving world that’s out there,” he said.

“The notion that we can kind of rely on the historic systems to keep up with the disruptive nature of technology today, it just simply can’t do that. We have to make sure that our post-secondary institutions have that flexibility and nimbleness to keep up with the emerging technologies that are disrupting almost every industry out there.”

On Thursday, various investments were announced for different post-secondary institutions in southern Alberta, including in Medicine Hat and at the University of Lethbridge.

$48 million was announced to rebuild Red Crow Community College’s main campus, after it was destroyed in a 2015 fire.