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Nov. 5, 2019
Print | PDFMember of Parliament Saini, Counsellors Singh and Davey, colleagues and friends, it’s my great pleasure to welcome you all to the official opening of the new home of the Lazaridis Institute for the Management of Technology Enterprises.
Before we begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are meeting on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee people and it is a privilege to be here for the purposes of this event. It is also an opportunity to reflect on the opportunities we have to support inclusion and opportunity in all our organizations.
Since launching just four years ago, the Lazaridis Institute has become an indispensable resource for tech firms from across Canada, and an excellent example of how universities and private companies can work together to advance common research and business objectives.
The Scale-Up Program continues to deliver sector-leading mentorship and programming to a diverse selection of Canadian companies that have populated five cohorts from every region of the country.
By strengthening the knowledge base and global competitiveness of growth-stage tech companies, you are also creating a more fertile environment in which the next generation of Canadian tech firms can thrive.
The academic and research arms of the institute support Laurier’s mission to connect research, scholarship, and creative activity with communities positioned across disciplines to address the most pressing local and global challenges facing us today. It also means Laurier’s students are getting access to knowledge in real-time through the integration of research into the classroom and Laurier’s own LaunchPad incubator.
It is fitting that the Lazaridis Institute now finds itself in the heart of downtown Kitchener, one of this country’s most developed and concentrated hubs of talented people and businesses.
The undisputable energy of this city is driven by individuals, teams and firms looking to make their mark on the future of everything from smart cities to search engines.
None of the progress that has been made over the last four years would have been possible without the investment and guidance from Mike Lazaridis and Mark Pecen and the incredible leadership of Dean Micheál Kelly, Executive Director, Kim Morouney and Research Director, Nicole Coviello.
You and your teams have made a tremendous impact on Laurier’s status as a future-focused institution and I wish you even more success in your new home.
I would now like to introduce our next speaker, Member of Parliament for Kitchener Centre Mr. Raj Saini. Congratulations, MP Raini on your recent re-election in your riding. We look forward to continuing our work with you as Laurier expands its presence in the City of Kitchener.