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Parks Canada staff (from left): Carla Wheaton, Trevor Rendell, Jennifer Hoffman and Lois Luke.
Through the "Gros Morne-Grenfell Innovation and Sustainability Cluster" initiative, Grenfell Campus maintains vital regional partnerships in Gros Morne National Park, collaborating with entities such as Gros Morne Cooperating Association (GMCA), Parks Canada, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), Tourism, Culture, Industry and Innovation (TCII), and the Bonne Bay Cottage Hospital. Grenfell has been participating in discussions to create new multi-organizational initiatives in Gros Morne related to Arts in the Park, Community Engagement, Environment/Climate Change/Waste Management and supporting Business Incubation.
Through this partnership the various organizations have been meeting and framing an engagement and research project that joins their efforts and builds a strong foundation for the work of each organization in Gros Morne.
This process culminated with a joint gathering in July 2019 facilitated by ACOA, which lead to the articulation of six priority initiatives. Various committees worked on these in the fall of 2019.
The goal of this project is to build that foundation among the partners to strengthen the artistic, environmental, and tourism sectors in Gros Morne National Park (GMNP) and the broader region. A broad cross-sectoral approach with established common goals and targeted actions will ensure that the value to the region will be more significant than what each party acting alone could bring.
"Through this initiative we endeavour to support the tourism, artistic and environmental sectors. Grenfell faculty, students and staff will support these goals through public engagement, research projects and experiential learning," said Ken Carter, director, Research and Engagement.
Another Gros Morne partnership: Parks Canada and the Grenfell Observatory presented a "Star Party" at Trout River Pond last year, led by Dr. Svetlana Barkanova, Grenfell physics professor.
The project will involve an engagement process with the communities in the Park in conjunction with GCMA, Parks Canada, the tourism industry and other partners. Grenfell will engage Memorial University to investigate how the university's resources on all campuses can support activities in the Park.
The five initiatives identified and developed by the partners over the summer and fall 2019 are:
For Grenfell Campus and Gros Morne and its enclave communities, there are significant social and economic benefits to be gained from this project including:
Faculty and students will benefit from research and experiential learning opportunities created through engagement in Gros Morne.
Businesses, support organizations, and others in the region will build new partnerships with Grenfell Campus's diverse expertise in environmental programming, science, arts, fine arts, and business—including new resources such as the Boreal Ecosystem Research Facility, Maker Space and Fab Shops, and Functional Food Laboratory—and will create opportunities that are of mutual benefit to all partners.
"This project has significant potential to take advantage of key opportunities for growth and positively impact priority areas as identified by the Economic Growth Strategy for Newfoundland and Labrador, such as tourism, agri-tourism and the development of local agricultural specialty products," said Mr. Carter. "Grenfell Campus will play a key role to engage existing and new partners and enable cross-sectoral efforts."
