MacLauchlan to give keynote address during workshop on hiring immigrants

CHARLOTTETOWN, PEI – Jan. 8, 2013 –  “By the year 2020, only seven years from now, Prince Edward Island and the Maritime Provinces will face population shortages relative to our workforce needs,” says former UPEI President H. Wade MacLauchlan.

“To meet our workforce and population challenges, P.E.I. and its francophone community must be strategic and proceed with a sense of urgency,” he suggests.  « Other provinces, such as Manitoba and Saskatchewan, offer models of success, including in rural areas. The four important success factors are lots of lead time, concerted strategic effort, complete community collaboration and real economic opportunities. »

MacLauchlan, a well-known and respected businessman who lives in West Covehead, will discuss this situation in a talk entitled “Demographics and Destiny: A Challenge for PEI”, on Monday, Jan. 14, at 5 p.m. in the Triple Room of Holland College’s Centre for Applied Science and Technology at 300 Kent St. in Charlottetown.

MacLauchlan’s keynote address will be part of a free information session, delivered in French with simultaneous interpretation and organized by RDÉE Prince Edward Island’s LIENS (Linking Economic Immigration to Our Successes) project. All entrepreneurs, employers, managers, professionals and organization directors are invited to attend to learn more about the benefits of hiring qualified and multilingual immigrants.

Lori-Ann Cyr, president and executive director of Diversis Inc. (a consulting firm specializing in immigration), will also give a presentation on “Hiring Newcomers: A Solution?” She will explore the phenomenon of immigration and speak about the new trend to consider immigrants as a source of human resources, especially for francophone communities.

In August 2012, MacLauchlan was chair of the Palmer Conference on Public Sector Leadership, which focused on the theme “Canada as a Leader in Immigration Policy and Practice”. He is co-chair of The Georgetown Conference, to take place in Georgetown, PEI, Oct. 3-5, 2013, on building vital rural communities in Atlantic Canada.

He is President Emeritus of the University of Prince Edward Island, where he served as president from 1999 to 2011. His previous positions include Dean of Law at the University of New Brunswick and professor of law at Dalhousie University. He was named to the Order of Canada in 2008, and was awarded the IPAC Lieutenant-Governor’s Medal for Public Service Leadership in 2010. On Jan. 17, three days after his keynote address, he will be recognized as an “Atlantic Canadian Leader” by Canada’s Public Policy Forum.

The session, funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, will be delivered in French. A simultaneous interpretation service will be available. A light snack will be served.

All those wishing to register for the free session must contact Carrie Cormier at (902) 370-7333 or at carrie@rdeeipe.org no later than Friday, Jan. 11. Storm date is Jan. 15, same time and same location.

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CUTLINE: Former UPEI president Wade MacLauchlan will address the topic “Demographics and Destiny: A Challenge for PEI”, during an information session Monday, Jan. 14, in Charlottetown.

For more information:
Angie Cormier
Coordinator
LIENS project
(902) 370-7333
angie@rdeeipe.org