Ocean tech hub hopping
Throughout our history, Nova Scotians have harnessed the potential of the ocean to provide economic growth. Think of defence and security, energy, fisheries and aquaculture, marine transportation, and marine tourism. With over 13,000 km of coastline, our province’s blue economy potential is enormous. However, without strategic investment and action, this potential may never be reached.
Canada is developing a “blue economy” strategy to grow and sustainably modernize our national ocean sectors. This is an opportunity for our provincial and federal governments to align on a long-term commitment to foster a stronger,
sustainable, more inclusive blue economy here in Nova Scotia. Over the past few years, Nova Scotia has emerged as a global leader in ocean technology. Sustained support and investment are needed to maintain this position and provide economic opportunity for Nova Scotians.
Nova Scotia can build upon the strategy’s focus of getting more Canadians working on the water and creating meaningful middle-class jobs while prioritizing the health of our oceans. With the global ocean economy expected to outpace the growth of the broader global economy by almost 20 per cent over the next 10 years, and the oncein-a-lifetime $80-billion National Shipbuilding Strategy investment at Irving Shipbuilding, Nova Scotia is entering a significant window of opportunity. The time is now to acknowledge the value that the blue economy can provide to Nova Scotia’s prosperity.
The Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship (COVE) was founded in 2016 to fill a long-standing and well-documented commercialization gap in the ocean innovation ecosystem. The Dartmouth Coast Guard Base was repurposed and refurbished with investments from the provincial and federal government and early operations funding was provided by Irving Shipbuilding as part of its National Shipbuilding Strategy commitments.
Today, COVE has a uniquely central position within Nova Scotia’s ocean technology ecosystem. Every day, we connect people, ideas, resources, and assets to propel solutions and sustainable growth for Canada’s ocean sector. We are home to more than 60 local and global ocean technology businesses, post-secondary institutions, researchers, and marine-based service businesses that support the ocean sector. They have benefitted the province through job creation, business and economic development, global investment, and increasing the visibility and stature of Nova Scotia as a national and global ocean tech leader.
Successive governments have stated that the private sector should lead economic growth and the government should be there to reduce barriers and provide support through strategic investments.
Today, hundreds of local and global oceanbased companies have set up shop here. Many more want to make COVE their home, but we are victims of our own success and our facility is bursting at the seams and we are having difficulty accommodating the demand.
Strategic investment in infrastructure, facilities and programs is needed to accelerate the success of start-ups, scale-ups and small and mediumsized enterprises to maintain our position as a global blue economy leader. The benefits are immense. In the next 10 years, we can increase Nova Scotia’s ocean-related GDP by 25 per cent and grow 10,000 more ocean-related jobs.
Now is the time for Nova Scotia to make strategic investments to support the private sector in maximizing its potential and global impact while creating opportunities from Yarmouth to Cape Breton. While COVE supports companies throughout the province, there is also untapped potential across our province that can be easily addressed by building upon the success of COVE’S Dartmouth facility, and creating regional outreach centres in strategic locations across the province to provide all Nova Scotians with expanded access to our diverse network of partners, collaborators, investors, researchers, employers, technicians, and mentors.
As Nova Scotia recovers from the economic impacts of COVID-19, investing in the blue economy represents a unique opportunity to harness global growth and accelerate inclusive sustainable economic growth. COVE and all of Nova Scotia’s ocean technology ecosystem are ready to elevate their role in creating a prosperous and sustainable blue economy. It will require concerted effort and investment to ensure a clear path forward for COVE’S sustained operations and thus, the broader ambition for a strong blue economy. Doing so will benefit all Nova Scotians. It is time for Canada’s ocean playground to become Canada’s ocean economy powerhouse. Melanie Nadeau is CEO for the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship (COVE), an ocean tech innovation hub and business park located in Dartmouth.