Purpose

The young people of Nova Scotia matter. From students to professionals to entrepreneurs and all those playing in the 'gig economy'. They are the future of our Province. It is time we heard their voice loud and clear. 

     In February 2014, Now or Never: An Urgent Call for Action for Nova Scotians, a report on the pressing economic development need for the Province, was released. Since that time, little has happened. In fact, there no longer exists an actual department within Government focused solely on economic development and there certainly isn’t a cohesive strategy to move forward.

     With this in mind, we propose developing a simple, coordinated, and actionable economic development strategy for the Province from the unique perspective of young Nova Scotians - those aged 22 to 39 years. Why? These creative, committed, and brilliant young people are the ones who will live in that economic future. They should really have the strongest voice in shaping it. No other future planning has focused solely on this demographic.

     The result of our initiative will be a concise working strategy that illuminates the answers why young people will stay, come back, or move to Nova Scotia. The strategy will have the energy, optimism, and openness of youth to create and capture opportunity for Nova Scotia. It will also provide a detailed framework for people, in both the private and public sectors, to take tailor-made initiatives forward in a coordinated action, with the power to retain, return, and welcome youth to the province

 

HOW

There are no government, academic, or business agendas here. We aim to facilitate the discussion only.

 

To clear the fog and see the brighter future that is possible for Nova Scotia, we will invest in these actions:

  • We will crowdsource the strategy via our survey to address the issue of turning the Nova Scotia economy around. People everywhere will be able to freely share unique ideas in support of the future of this province. Data from the survey will provide context to both current challenges and possible opportunities.
     
  • The strategy will be developed from the perspective of young Nova Scotians only, aged 22 to 39. Youth need to see a future here and in order to make that happen they need to be involved in its development. We want to hear young people from clear across this province. From Yarmouth to Glace Bay and every community in between.
     
  • There are no government, academic, or business agendas here. We aim to facilitate the discussion only. This project comes with no strings attached – no concern about constituents, the next term in office, or financial opportunities for organizations. This initiative is truly multi-partisan.
     
  • The shaping of the strategic vision and focus will be developed from a Group of 20 young Nova Scotians, with diverse backgrounds. From the crowdsourced results of the survey, this group of 20 will develop a deliberate and inspired framework for the future.

  • The project will be facilitated by Michael DeVenney, founder of Bluteau DeVenney and Company, and, yes, he is young at heart although maybe not in years. Michael’s role is to make the project happen coordinating the steps of initiative and facilitating the discussion to develop the strategy,  not to be part of it.

    We have constructed a survey that accesses opinions on working values, lifestyle objectives, thoughts on the assets and trends for creating a competitive position for Nova Scotia, and where focus is needed to highlight the growth of our Province. The data from the survey will be private and confidential.

    The Group of 20 were provided an opportunity to consider the data, add their own experiences, and craft a short and focused vision and strategy for building a dynamic economic future that they want to be a part of. The results are now published and the conversation and action will start.