One of the pieces of Squamish's future was presented to local businesspeople this week. Unfortunately, practically no one was there to hear about it.
Rather than scolding our business community for missing out - it was a nice day, after all - we'll let people in on the secret in the hopes that it sparks something for Squamish.
George Hunter, president of Leading Edge B.C., spoke to the Squamish Chamber of Commerce luncheon Tuesday (May 18) about making B.C. the next hot global location for technology.Sounds like nothing to do with us? Think again.
High tech is back - it's recovered the levels it had before the dot-com bubble burst of 2001 and is in growth mode, especially in B.C., which is a magnet for creative talent and some world-class innovations.
Leading Edge B.C. is working to showcase B.C.'s technology to the world in the hopes of attracting more creative talent and most importantly, venture capital to feed this burgeoning industry.
Squamish and Whistler are ideally positioned at the north end of a West Coast high-tech corridor that extends down to California and includes Silicon Valley, Microsoft world headquarters and Vancouver, Hunter noted. With the 2010 Olympics coming, there will be plenty of opportunities for demonstration projects - like the proposed Hydrogen Highway to Whistler - that will showcase the Sea to Sky corridor and B.C. to the world not just as a place to visit, but a place to invest.
High-tech has flirted with Squamish, with two rapidly-growing companies founded by one local (former) resident alone - but they've grown up and moved north to Whistler and south to Vancouver. It's clear that our proximity to both can be a liability as well as an asset.
But maybe there is a way for us to be more than a gas stop - even a hydrogen one - on the high-tech highway.
Hunter's suggestion for Squamish is not to try to compete with Silicon Valley or even Vancouver, but to find a technology niche that plays to our own existing strengths.
What's that slogan of ours again? Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada?
There just might be a technology gap - from GPS technology to outdoor equipment - that Squamish can claim for its own.
"I think there are a lot of opportunities for Squamish," said Hunter.
Outdoor Recreation Technology Capital of Canada sounds good.
Let's step up and take advantage of our strength.
