USA/Canada Economic Summit



The USA/Canada Economic Summit is an international event that will bring together leaders and innovators in business, government and economic development from Canada and the United States.



View Event Agenda
Download .pdf agenda for printing


Attend this one day event on October 7 and the pre-summit event October 6.

The summit will focus on three principal areas of bi‐national cooperation, innovation and collaboration:

  • Business and industry linkages
  • University‐based research
  • Technology transfer and commercialization

The summit will make you aware of existing bi‐national initiatives and introduce you to emerging opportunities to access and focus available resources.

Breakout sessions focused on industry sectors – life sciences, aerospace – will identify future action steps. For all participants, the summit will serve as a robust networking event leading to new business and future collaborations in research, commercialization and business development.

Featured Guests

Joel Garreau – author of The Nine Nations of North America, describing how the continent behaves not like 50 states or three countries, but nine separate and powerful civilizations or economies that pay scant attention to political boundaries in the course of forging their own destiny.

Livio Di Matteo – Read Di Matteo's rationale for a North American Central Economic Region linking Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario, North and South Dakota and Minnesota. Livio Di Matteo is professor of economics at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay.

Joel Kotkin – an internationally recognized authority on economic and social trends. He is the author of several books including The New Geography: How the Digital Revolution is Changing the American Landscape and The City: A Global History. He recently authored a piece titled North America Needs an Energy Community and is currently writing about the United States in the year 2050.

Confirmed guests include: Jim Phillips, President and CEO, CanAm Border Trade Alliance;
Dr. Michael Hawes, Executive Director, Canada-U.S. Fulbright Program;
Dr. Robert Kelley, President, University of North Dakota;
Dr. David T. Barnard, President, University of Manitoba;
Ron Koslowsky, Vice President, Manitoba, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters;
Jay Bender, Falcon Plastics, Brookings, SD;
John Langstaff, President Cangene Corporation, Winnipeg;
Dr. Gary B. Glavin, Deputy Director, National Microbiology Laboratory, Winnipeg 

Event Information

October 7, 2008
October 6, Pre-summit event
Alerus Center & Canad Inns Destination Center Grand Forks
Grand Forks, ND
Two day Attendance fee: $225
Monday Night Pre-summit Keynote fee: $50

Register Now

Accommodations: Canad Inns Destination Center Grand Forks, attached directly to summit venue. Call 701-772-8404 to book rooms at special $US99.00 conference rates.

For more information: call 701-775-3354, or email connectsummit@mediaproductions.com.

US Partners

Economic Development Administration, US Dept. Commerce
Grand Forks Region Economic Development Corp
Canad Inns Destination Center Grand Forks
City of Grand Forks
Xcel Energy
University of North Dakota
Brookings Economic Development Corporation (South Dakota)
Ingenuity Frontier (Northwest Minnesota Manufacturing Technology Group)
Praxis Strategy Group
Alerus Financial
UND Center for Innovation – NDSU Research/Tech Park – ND Dept. Commerce

Canada Partners

Consulate General of Canada
Destination Winnipeg Inc.
University of Manitoba
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters Association