Halifax has never been better positioned for long-term growth and prosperity, and everyone should be thinking about how they can take advantage. The 1st Annual Halifax State of the Economy Conference was a forum for business, government community leaders to discuss Halifax’s economic progress, identify challenges and approaches to meet them head on, and mobilize for the opportunities ahead.
Day 1: HALIFAX IDEAS DINNER
The conference opened with the Halifax Ideas Dinner on May 23rd, a gala event featuring world-renowned economist and city thinker Richard Florida. Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class, and Who's Your City, brought a fresh perspective on socio-economic trends and an encouraging assessment of where cities are now, how we got here, and where we are headed.
Florida currently serves as a Senior Editor at The Atlantic; professor of business and creativity at the Rotman School of Management , University of Toronto; and visiting scholar at the University of Texas at Arlington's School of Urban and Public Affairs.
Day 2: conference Sessions
Halifax Index Release
This session included the release and presentation of key findings from the much-anticipated Halifax Index. The Halifax Index represents a major step forward in understanding the relationships between the people, economy and the quality of place that make Halifax what it is and how we compare to our benchmark cities. The Index will become the definitive framework for understanding Halifax’s community progress and is unlike any economic tool used in Canada.
AGREATERHalifax Panel Discussion
A panel discussed Halifax`s Economic Strategy, AGREATERHalifax - what`s happened and what`s ahead. Leaders from business, not-for-profit, government, education and the community discussed opportunities and challenges that have emerged and how we should meet them head on.
Creating The Next Big Win for Halifax
Is there something about Nova Scotia’s DNA that hinders us from developing business-led clustering and achieving greater productivity? Facilitated by Deloitte, this session explored what Halifax and Nova Scotia can do to join the ranks of globally recognized business-led economies. A summary of the discussion will be posted soon.
View Deloitte's Future of Productivity presentation
Community Marketing 2.0
The conference closed with a lunchtime session focused on Halifax International; Community Marketing 2.0, featuring Russell Riblett, Director of Sales, GIS Planning.
Conference attendees were treated to performances by these talented Nova Scotians: