The October GTEx Forum was well attended by local greentech enthusiasts as well as visiting Belgians who were in town as part of a trade mission to western Canada. There were plenty of opportunities for networking before and after the presentations. Fittingly, the discussions focused on European sustainable technology and design companies that have begun to set up shop in Canada.
The companies that participated specialize in various aspects of the built environment, including passive house architecture (A2M), revitalization of urban areas (Walas Concepts), advanced HVAC systems (Jaga), and outdoor LED lighting (Shréder). They each offer concepts or products that were at one time conceived or developed in Europe. One of the reasons they transfer well out of Belgium and the Netherlands is our similar climates. The companies need to adapt to the Canadian market, however, with its unique set of socio-economic constraints. It was interesting to hear all of the presenters agree that British Columbia, and Vancouver in particular, was more open to adopting European greentech products and concepts in sustainability than the rest of Canada.
Wilco van Bemmel of Walas Concepts acted as the moderator for the meeting. He also presented on behalf of the Dutch Urban Design Center (DUDOC). Itis a platform in Vancouver for Dutch companies to promote their business cases for sustainable development. Wilco highlighted some of the hot topics that their partners are working on: water solutions, climate control, algae and horticulture, urban farming, modular and passive homes. Exciting stuff. He also invited us to come and enjoy a coffee and test out the co-working space at Dudoc.
There is no doubt that there is great innovation happening in the greentech sector all across Canada. But it cannot be ignored that northwestern European countries are generally regarded as being ahead of the game in this department. They simply have not had the resources nor the land to exploit like we have, so it has been out of necessity. There has been pressure on the natural resources and construction of the urban built environment for much longer over there. This has resulted in highly refined products and concepts like those discussed at the meeting. It’s going to be exciting to see more transfer of these across the atlantic. It will also be interesting to see what impact, if any, the new government and the upcoming paris climate talks have on sustainable development in Canada and abroad.
15/11/18
