Invest in Cape Breton

There is a myth in Unama’ki - Cape Breton that the island has a talent shortage. In this episode, we explore how IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility) principles can help businesses overcome recruitment challenges by welcoming members of underrepresented communities. The conversation with Robyn Lee Seale from Build Nova Scotia and Nadine Bernard of Indigivisor covers the importance of building relationships, common mistakes, and the vital role of psychological safety.

Nadine Bernard is the Founder and CEO of Indigevisor, an Indigenous inclusion consultancy. Find them on LinkedIn and Facebook.

Robyn Lee Seale is the Diversity and Inclusion Lead at Build Nova Scotia. To connect with underrepresented communities, you can email her at RobynLee.Seale@novascotia.ca.

Alternatively, you can reach out to any of the organizations below directly:

About the Invest in Cape Breton podcast

Unama'ki-Cape Breton is on the cusp of an economic renaissance. Invest in Cape Breton is a podcast that will challenge your assumptions about the island’s economy through in-depth interviews with local changemakers. We go beyond the headlines to reveal the untapped potential for investors and entrepreneurs, and offer a preview of the island’s coming transformation. Right from the first episode, we’ll show you why there's never been a better time to invest in Cape Breton.

This podcast is an initiative of the Cape Breton Partnership. It is hosted by Michelle Samson and produced by Storied Places Media. The theme music is "Under My Skin" by Elyse Aeryn.

Canada’s housing crisis is dominating the news, but we rarely hear about the work happening behind the scenes to fix it. There are housing advocates, developers, and politicians right here in Unama'ki - Cape Breton who are making tangible progress towards solutions. 

In this episode, guests from the Nova Scotia Association of Realtors (NSAR), Doucet Developments, and By the Bay Properties offer insights on:

Roger Boutilier is the CEO of the Nova Scotia Association of Realtors (NSAR), a member-based organization that represents Realtors across Nova Scotia.

Doug Doucet is the CEO of Doucet Developments, a vertically integrated group of companies that span across real estate development, construction services, property management, leasing, maintenance, and retail and hospitality. Darla Gaudette is responsible for business development for the group of companies.

Bobby Dubeau is the President and Mario Vetro is the Co-Founder of By the Bay Properties, a Vancouver-based company that builds, improves, and manages commercial and residential real estate properties from coast to coast.

This episode is sponsored by the Construction Association of Nova Scotia (CANS) and Doucet Developments.

About the Invest in Cape Breton podcast

Unama'ki-Cape Breton is on the cusp of an economic renaissance. Invest in Cape Breton is a podcast that will challenge your assumptions about the island’s economy through in-depth interviews with local changemakers. We go beyond the headlines to reveal the untapped potential for investors and entrepreneurs, and offer a preview of the island’s coming transformation. Right from the first episode, we’ll show you why there's never been a better time to invest in Cape Breton.

This podcast is an initiative of the Cape Breton Partnership. It is hosted by Michelle Samson and produced by Storied Places Media. The theme music is "Under My Skin" by Elyse Aeryn.

Unama’ki-Cape Breton has always been windy, but something has shifted in the last couple years. Now the same wind that blows our patio furniture away is being called ‘world class’ and ‘a nation-building opportunity’. 

Government and corporate leaders are optimistic that the offshore wind and green energy projects already underway in the Strait of Canso are going to be transformative not just for the Strait Area, not just for Unama’ki-Cape Breton, and not just the province of Nova Scotia. This is going to be as big as the railway.

Find more information about the Strait Area and offshore wind at the websites below. For a guide to living, working, and moving to Cape Breton, visit WelcomeToCapeBreton.ca.

Amanda Mombourquette is a Co-Chair of the Strait of Canso Offshore Wind Task Force and the Warden of Richmond County. Brenda Chisholm-Beaton is the other Co-Chair of the Strait of Canso Offshore Wind Task Force and the Mayor of the Town of Port Hawkesbury.

Carlos Martin is the CEO of BlueFloat Energy, an offshore wind developer headquartered in Madrid, Spain.

Peter Murphy is the Contract Manager for Svitzer Canada, a towage and marine services provider in the Strait Area.

This episode is sponsored by Bear Head Energy. Bear Head Energy is one of North America's only fully permitted green hydrogen and ammonia sites. They have been working closely with local communities and Mi’kmaq nations for nearly two decades and look forward to continuing to build relationships and bringing economic benefits to the region. Bear Head Energy is a wholly owned subsidiary of BAES Infrastructure, a diversified energy company focused on developing, constructing, and operating energy transition projects. Learn more and sign up to receive updates at BearHeadEnergy.ca.

About the Invest in Cape Breton podcast

Unama'ki-Cape Breton is on the cusp of an economic renaissance. Invest in Cape Breton is a podcast that will challenge your assumptions about the island’s economy through in-depth interviews with local changemakers. We go beyond the headlines to reveal the untapped potential for investors and entrepreneurs, and offer a preview of the island’s coming transformation. Right from the first episode, we’ll show you why there's never been a better time to invest in Cape Breton.

This podcast is an initiative of the Cape Breton Partnership. It is hosted by Michelle Samson and produced by Storied Places Media. The theme music is "Under My Skin" by Elyse Aeryn.

For many, Sydney Harbour is known for its hotels, cruise ships, and a giant fiddle. But that only blows over the surface of this waterbody that's 16-and-a-half metres deep. There are more cruise passengers, more commercial traffic, more ambitious plans, and more opportunities here than anyone would fathom.

In this episode, three local leaders reveal what’s happening at the Port of Sydney today, why Sydney Harbour is a tremendously strategic site for investors, and why Novaporte’s forthcoming offshore wind marshalling port is an opportunity “so enormous it’s hard to even imagine”. First Nations and settler communities across Unama’ki-Cape Breton are set to be transformed.

Stay up to date by signing up for the Cape Breton Partnership’s mailing list.

This episode’s sponsor is The Cape Breton Regional Municipality Regional Enterprise Network (CBRM REN). The CBRM REN is a collaborative effort between the Province of Nova Scotia, through the Department of Economic Development, the Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM), and the Cape Breton Partnership. The CBRM REN’s areas of focus are rooted in the CBRM’s Economic Development Strategy, entitled CBRM Forward, and the priorities of the Province of Nova Scotia including Nova Scotia Loyal, Innovation Driven, Green and Sustainable Business, and Connecting Nova Scotians.

The Port of Sydney Development Corporation supports, promotes and develops Sydney Harbour and related infrastructure with a view of growing the economy of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Marlene Usher is its former CEO (outgoing at the time of recording).

Novaporte is a 2,000+ acre deep-water port, logistics, and green energy infrastructure project. It recently announced a concession agreement with Blue Water Shipping to develop a major marshalling hub for offshore wind energy servicing the Northeast Atlantic U.S. and Eastern Canada. Kathleen Yurchesyn is its VP, Operations and Corporate Development.

Eskasoni First Nation is the largest Mi'kmaq community in the world. The Eskasoni Corporate Division’s mandate is to provide investment, business and employment opportunities for the people of Eskasoni. Steve Parsons is the General Manager of the Eskasoni Corporate Division and a Councillor for the Cape Breton Regional Municipality.

About the Invest in Cape Breton podcast

Unama'ki-Cape Breton is on the cusp of an economic renaissance. Invest in Cape Breton is a podcast that will challenge your assumptions about the island’s economy through in-depth interviews with local changemakers. We go beyond the headlines to reveal the untapped potential for investors and entrepreneurs, and offer a preview of the island’s coming transformation. Right from the first episode, we’ll show you why there's never been a better time to invest in Cape Breton.

This podcast is an initiative of the Cape Breton Partnership. It is hosted by Michelle Samson and produced by Storied Places Media. The theme music is "Under My Skin" by Elyse Aeryn.

There are over 50 tech companies on Unama’ki-Cape Breton, an island of just 140,000 people. Many are in the bustling urban area around Sydney, but a surprising number are in small, picturesque communities. Others live in the cloud, able to be located anywhere, but the founders are here. Three tech leaders explain why this innovation ecosystem is so productive, and so sticky.

This episode is sponsored by the Regional Entrepreneurship Acceleration Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT REAP), a dynamic global initiative that engages with communities around the world to strengthen their innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems and transform their economies. MIT REAP translates leading research from MIT expert faculty into practical frameworks, convenes key stakeholders who are focused on innovation and entrepreneurship, and educates regional leaders through team-based interaction to achieve economic and social progress. To learn more about their programs, visit reap.mit.edu.

Chad Munro is the CEO of Halifax Biomedical, an Orthopaedic clinical measurements company and a world leading provider of micro-instability assessment services using very precise proprietary Stereo Orthopaedic Radiography (SOR) imaging technology (HALIFAX exams).

Darren Gallop is the President and CEO of Carbide, an information security and data privacy platform that helps small to medium size businesses build, implement, and manage their information security and meet data privacy requirements.

The Verschuren Centre (VC) for Sustainability in Energy and the Environment is an independent clean technology development and deployment facility. It offers client-tailored services to support companies in developing sustainable solutions that meet industry needs.

About the Invest in Cape Breton podcast

Unama'ki-Cape Breton is on the cusp of an economic renaissance. Invest in Cape Breton is a podcast that will challenge your assumptions about the island’s economy through in-depth interviews with local changemakers. We go beyond the headlines to reveal the untapped potential for investors and entrepreneurs, and offer a preview of the island’s coming transformation. Right from the first episode, we’ll show you why there's never been a better time to invest in Cape Breton.

This podcast is an initiative of the Cape Breton Partnership. It is hosted by Michelle Samson and produced by Storied Places Media. The theme music is "Under My Skin" by Elyse Aeryn.

Unama'ki-Cape Breton is on the cusp of an economic renaissance. Invest in Cape Breton is a podcast that will challenge your assumptions about the island’s economy through in-depth interviews with local changemakers. We go beyond the headlines to reveal the untapped potential for investors and entrepreneurs, and offer a preview of the island’s coming transformation. Right from the first episode, we’ll show you why there's never been a better time to invest in Cape Breton.

This podcast is an initiative of the Cape Breton Partnership. It is hosted by Michelle Samson and produced by Storied Places Media.