In the past three weeks, Generation Next has gotten two emails, from internationally trained professionals. These professionals were seeking information on how to find a job in Canadian market. While a number of initiatives are in place to help these engineers, the news does not reach the community.
On August 27th, the Government of Canada is funding two projects that will help internationally trained nurses put their knowledge and skills to work sooner. The Honourable Steven Fletcher, Minister of State (Democratic Reform), made the announcement on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.
The College of Nurses of Ontario will receive over $776,000 in Foreign Credential Recognition Program funding for its project entitled Moving Ahead: Assessment of Internationally Educated Nurses – Part 2, as well as its Nursing National Benchmark project.
“The Government of Canada is helping internationally educated health professionals enter the labour market to improve the quality of life of all Canadians,” said Minister of State Fletcher. “Through Canada’s Economic Action Plan, we are working with partners to develop a common approach to foreign credential recognition. These projects contribute to a fair, efficient and timely system that will help internationally trained nurses find work in communities across Canada.”
The College of Nurses of Ontario will work with nursing regulators across Canada to harmonize national registration requirements for foreign-trained nurses, including language standards. The College will also collaborate with partners to develop a model for a future national assessment service.
Additionally, a database of international nursing education programs will be established to provide for fairer and faster assessment of international education.
“The Moving Ahead initiative will foster greater labour mobility, retention and recruitment of licensed nurses, while helping to reduce some barriers currently faced by internationally educated applicants,” said Ms. Laurel Brunke, Chair of the National Nursing Assessment Service Steering Committee, and Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the College of Registered Nurses of British Columbia. “The Steering Committee looks forward to continued support of this initiative and is inspired by the impact it will have on creating a stronger Canadian health care system.”
“The College is very pleased with the progress of the language fluency benchmarking initiative to date,” added Ms. Anne Coghlan, Registered Nurse, and Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of the College of Nurses of Ontario. “Once implemented, the fluency benchmarking project will assist in harmonizing the requirements for language fluency of applicants across the country, and will support the work being done under the Moving Ahead initiative.”
_______________
Investing in Tomorrow’s Scientists
U of A grad student Nathan Deisman with engineering professor Rick Chalaturnyk’ and Gary Goodyear, minister of state (science and technology)
Researchers across Canada will benefit from new facilities and equipment, and universities will have more opportunities to develop and attract top scientists, thanks to a major Economic Action Plan investment by the Government of Canada. The announcement was made by the Honourable Gary Goodyear, Minister of State (Science and Technology), and the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs, while touring labs at the University of Alberta and the Université du Québec en Outaouais, respectively.
“Our government is investing in science and technology to strengthen the economy and improve the quality of life of Canadians,” said Minister of State Goodyear. “This significant investment will help develop, attract and retain the world’s best researchers at Canadian universities while strengthening Canada’s long-term economic competitiveness.”
The federal government will invest in the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s Leading Edge Fund and New Initiatives Fund. The funding is supporting the renewal and expansion of research infrastructure across Canada that will support exceptional researchers and improve labs and facilities.
“As Canada begins to emerge from the global recession, investments in science, research and innovation are essential to creating and securing well-paid, skilled jobs, both now and in the future,” said Minister Cannon.
“Tomorrow’s prosperity depends on our ability to compete within a diverse, global economy — to get there, we need to start with competitive infrastructure,” said Dr. Indira Samarasekera, President of the University of Alberta. “World-class facilities are a magnet for global talent, and these funds make a tremendous difference in researchers’ capacity to conduct leading-edge interdisciplinary research and discovery learning.”
“The Leading Edge and the New Initiative funds have been instrumental in supporting state-of-the-art research infrastructure in institutions across the country,” said Dr. Gilles G. Patry, President and CEO of the Canada Foundation for Innovation. “This additional investment from the Government of Canada will ensure our researchers continue to have the tools they need to remain competitive in the global economy.”
The government will invest $200.5 million in the Leading Edge Fund and the New Initiatives Fund. Funding for this program will be drawn from a $600-million investment for research excellence as part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan. Through these investments, the Government of Canada is working to ensure that the world’s best science and innovation opportunities — as well as the world’s best researchers — are right here on Canadian soil.
___________________
Green Makeover for Peel schools
Students in Mississauga now have seven cleaner, greener and more energy-efficient places to learn.
Through Ontario’s Green Schools Pilot Initiative, schools are able to install new technology to help make them more energy-efficient. Seven local schools are benefitting from this initiative: Glen Forest SS, John Fraser SS, Clarkson SS, McBride PS, Ruth Thompson MS, Philip Pocock CSS, and Corpus Christie ES.
These schools are among 150 across the province that have received support through this initiative.
This $2.4 million investment for Mississauga supports Ontario’s efforts to reduce environmental footprints in its publicly funded schools.
This investment promotes better, greener learning environments and helps teach our students the importance of energy conservation,” said Leona Dombrowsky, Minister of Education.
It is also an important part of the government’s Open Ontario plan to strengthen education, which has already delivered results: smaller class sizes, higher test scores and an improved graduation rate. It also creates local economic benefits and supports a stronger, cleaner, greener economy.
“By using green products and technologies in our schools, we are setting new standards for school energy efficiency while supporting jobs in Ontario’s new green economy,” said Minister of Government Services Harinder Takhar.
____________________
BRT Makes Key Improvements to Service Schedule as Back to School Season Approaches
Councillor John Sprovieri, Councillor Bob Callahan, Councillor John Sanderson, Councillor John Hutton, Councillor Grant Gibson, Councillor Elaine Moore, Councillor Sandra Hames, Councillor Gael Miles, Mayor Susan Fennell and Councillor Vicky Dhillon (AP)
Brampton Transit will implement a number of major service improvements this September, designed to address increased demand for the back-to-school season and fully integrate conventional transit routes with the new Züm Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service, launching on September 20.
As part of Brampton Transit’s goal to improve service across the city, changes will be made to existing routes and schedules. For detailed information on all new routes, schedules and services, please visit www.bramptontransit.com or call 905.874.2999.
