- The Killybegs Marine Cluster attended the 15th Annual Laurentic Forum Conference which took place in St. John’s Newfoundland, Canada on 23rd September 2024. The Killybegs Marine Cluster together with several key Irish stakeholders including, Atlantic Technological University. (ATU), Donegal County Council (DCC), Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), Údarás na Gaeltachta and the Western Development Commission (WDC) visited St. John’s to participate and support this cross Atlantic annual event. The conference focused in on three key areas, Blue Economy, Marine Tourism and the Creative Economy. The Killybegs Marine Cluster participated in several workshops and visits included Memorial University Newfoundland & labrador, the Marine Institute, The Launch, the Centre for Applied Ocean Technology (CTEC), the Centre for Aquaculture and Seafood Development, and their Centre for fisheries ecosystems research.
The premise of this visit not only included participation in the annual Laurentic Forum Conferencebut also to strengthen our relationship with both Memorial University and the Marine Institute of Newfoundland and Labrador. The ATU view this relationship as a significant strategic partnership, to help unlock the potential from our greatest asset, our Ocean.
Kevin Anderson, Associate Vice-President (Marine Institute) hosted our delegation and the majority of these visits. Keith Hutchings, Managing Director Canadian Centre for Fisheries Innovation (CCFI) also facilitated our delegation during the visit to the Centre for Aquaculture and Seafood Development.
St. John’s has a rich maritime expertise and history. Memorial University in Newfoundland & Labrador collaborate with Educational, Training and applied research partners, and have commercial synergy agreements with private companies seeking to avail of both their impressive Flume tank and Ocean simulators. We also visited Holyrood, home to The Launch, an Ocean Innovation Hub, which provides a suite of martime technologies including mobilisation and launch in a SMART Bay Ocean Observation, training and testing facilities for remotely operated vehicle (ROV) & autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV), Fibre links for subsea activities. The Marine Simulation and a state of the art Offshore Safety and Survival Centre (OSSC), including Helicopter survival training and home to the world’s largest flume tank was another treat to see in operation. We also visited the Centre for Applied Ocean Technology (CTEC) Centre for Aquaculture and Seafood Development, and their Centre for fisheries ecosystems research.
In addition to these comprehensive visits, we also visit the Harris Centre. The Harris Centre is a unit within Memorial University that serves as a connector between the faculty, students and staff of Memorial and the broader community. The Centre helps connect the people, communities and ideas of Newfoundland and Labrador with the resources of the University for positive impact. Our delegation and visited the impressive city centre venue, The Rooms
Overall, this was a very successful Laurentic Forum, which aims to sustain coastal communities via establishing meaningful connection both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.