NEIA makes submission to Newfoundland and Labrador’s business innovation agenda engagement

For Immediate Release
January 26, 2017

ST. JOHN’S, NL – The Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Industry Association (NEIA) has made a submission to the provincial government’s Business Innovation Agenda engagement process.

“Innovation in Newfoundland and Labrador is essential from both an economic and an environmental perspective,” says Kieran Hanley, Executive Director of NEIA. “It is key to the long-term international competitiveness of our firms but it is also necessary if we are to develop solutions for some of the unique environmental challenges we face.”

NEIA’s submission is in response to the government’s engagement with stakeholders aimed at developing a new business innovation agenda for the province.

“Innovation does not necessarily mean invention,” explains Hanley. “Innovation is the application of creativity in business. It can be anything from the creation of a new technology, to the use of an existing product for a new purpose, to something as simple as changing the layout of a warehouse to increase efficiency.”

Hanley says that approaching environmental problem-solving through an innovative lens in the province provides economic opportunities. “Because of our small, relatively isolated, and often remote population, we face challenges providing sustainable services in areas like waste management, transportation, wastewater, etc. But the innovative solutions we develop here to tackle those issues are products and services that can be exported to regions world-wide which face similar challenges.”

International business opportunities can also stem from local innovation in the province’s major resource industries, says Hanley. “From oil and gas, to mining, to the fishery, to aquaculture, to forestry, environments across the world can benefit from the products, services, and processes we develop here at home.

NEIA’s submission can be found online at here or can be viewed interactively below.

“NEIA is pleased to have had the opportunity to contribute its ideas and perspectives as the province develops its innovation agenda,” says Hanley. “We look forward to a continuing dialogue on driving innovation in Newfoundland and Labrador.”

NEIA is a not-for-profit association of businesses that promotes the growth and development of the green economy in Newfoundland and Labrador. NEIA has over 200 members. More information can be found at https://neia.org.

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