Marc G. Serré, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources, on behalf of the Honourable Seamus O’Regan Jr., Minister of Natural Resources, today announced a $605,000 investment in two biomass projects in the Lac-Saint-Jean region.
August 13, 2021 Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec Natural Resources Canada
Canada’s forest sector is an important source of employment for many Indigenous communities. The Government of Canada is investing in Indigenous-led development projects across the country to promote new economic opportunities in the forest sector and in their communities.
Marc G. Serré, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources, on behalf of the Honourable Seamus O’Regan Jr., Minister of Natural Resources, today announced a $605,000 investment in two biomass projects in the Lac-Saint-Jean region:
$400,000 to Akua Nature Inc. to support the construction of new infrastructure that will allow for the conversion of forest biomass into natural health products, based on traditional First Nations medicine.
$205,000 to Inukshuk Synergie to help operationalize its plan for having franchises commercialize its biomass energy heating systems, providing a turnkey energy solution to communities in the region.
These investments will create employment as well as increased knowledge and economic opportunities for Indigenous participation in the forest sector on their traditional lands. We recognize the value, both economically and spiritually, that the forest sector brings to these communities, and we’re working toward building a stronger Indigenous forest sector.
The funding is part of Natural Resources Canada’s Indigenous Forestry Initiative, which provides financial support to Indigenous-led economic development projects in Canada’s forest sector. Benefits of the program include increased Indigenous participation, engagement and economic development in forestry-related opportunities, businesses, careers and governance.
By investing in Indigenous participation in the forest sector, we can advance Indigenous self-determination, close socio-economic gaps and provide greener solutions that tackle climate change and transition toward a low-carbon economy.
“Indigenous Peoples play a critical role in Canada’s forest sector. Investments like these support workers, their families and the community, all while advancing innovation in the industry and reconciliation between Canada and the Indigenous Peoples who have lived on this territory since time immemorial.”
Marc G. Serré
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources
“Indigenous businesses and entrepreneurs are essential to Canada’s economic recovery. This investment in Indigenous knowledge will create economic opportunities for the Mashteuiatsh First Nation and the Lac-Saint-Jean region. We will continue to work with our Indigenous partners in Quebec, and all across Canada, to find green energy solutions and fight climate change.”
The Honourable Marc Miller
Minister of Indigenous Services
“With the support of the Indigenous Forestry Initiative for these two projects, we will be able to develop new products and services that will allow First Nations expertise to shine, build bridges between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people and make sustainable investments in our community.”
Mélanie Paul
Co-president, Akua Nature
President, Inukshuk Synergie
“Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takuhikan has agreed to use $125,000 (Akua) from the Aboriginal Initiatives Fund III, Economic Development component, Entrepreneurship category of the Government of Quebec to support this initiative, which is fully in line with our values as a contributing nation to regional development. When it comes to the economy and job creation for our people, we have always been and will continue to be open, especially when it comes to sustainable development projects that are focused on the future and that defend our most fundamental values.”
Jonathan Germain
Vice-chief, Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takuhikan
“When projects like these are established in our community, everyone wins. Especially since these projects are guided by an accomplished and recognized businesswoman in the person of Melanie Paul. As you can see, we are open to participate in economic projects on Nitassinan, as long as they respect our environmental values. Our knowledge and our spiritual link with Mother Earth remain essential to the development of the entire region, and we are proud to be by your side today.”
Sylvie Langevin
Vice-chief, Pekuakamiulnuatsh Takuhikan
Ian Cameron
Acting Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of Natural Resources
613-447-3488
Ian.Cameron@canada.ca
Today, the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, announced $3.6 million in federal funding that will better protect the banks against coastal erosion of the Cap-aux-Meules cliff sector located in the municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine, in Quebec.
Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, August 13, 2021—The Government of Canada continues to invest in public infrastructure to protect communities and infrastructure from shoreline erosion caused by extreme weather conditions.
Today, the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, announced $3.6 million in federal funding that will better protect the shorelines against coastal erosion of the Cap-aux-Meules cliff sector located in the municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine, in Quebec.
The works include, among other things, the resurfacing of the cliff as well as the installation of a beach recharge. In addition to increasing the resilience of residents of the Cap-aux-Meules sector to the effects of climate change, this project aims to prevent serious disasters that could be caused by coastal erosion, rock collapses, subsidence and cliff collapses.
The Government of Canada will invest $ 3.6 million in this project from the Green Infrastructure stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. The federal government has yet to meet its obligation to consult with the Mi’gmaq Nation. Quebec and the Municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine are also investing in this project and their contributions will be revealed at a later date.
“I am delighted to announce today a federal contribution of $3.6 million for the protection of shorelines in the municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine. Thanks to this project, the community of the Cap-aux-Meules sector will be better equipped to deal with extreme weather events, which will increase the safety of its residents and its infrastructure while further protecting our precious natural heritage. The Investing in Canada Plan invests in thousands of projects, creates jobs across the country, and builds cleaner, more inclusive communities.”
The Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities
Emelyana Titarenko
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities
873-355-9576
Emelyana.Titarenko@infc.gc.ca
SEEK Limited (SEEK), the Australian listed tech company which owns two leading online employment marketplaces JobStreet and JobsDB in Southeast Asia, today announced a USD48M investment in JobKorea, Korea’s largest online employment platform. SEEK will own a 10% stake, and Peter Bithos, CEO of SEEK Asia, will join JobKorea’s Board.
Peter Bithos, CEO of SEEK Asia (left) and Yoon Byung-joon, CEO of JobKorea (right)
Commenting on the investment, Peter said: “This partnership is a big win not only for SEEK and JobKorea, but more importantly for all jobseekers and employers in Asia. With JobKorea, the leading job marketplace in Korea, we can now touch the lives of an additional 25 million jobseekers and 5 million employers in one of the largest economies in the world.”
“Through this investment, we look forward to helping JobKorea with our market-leading insights into big data, how to leverage AI, and our commercial and technical experience building the leading jobs and career marketplaces across APAC,” he added. “We also look forward to learning from JobKorea as it continues to build on its leadership in one of Asia’s most dynamic, sophisticated markets.”
This investment will provide an opportunity for SEEK to add value to JobKorea’s market leading position, while SEEK focuses on its operations, fast-tracking its ongoing transformation and growth of its existing Asia businesses. SEEK’s digital teams continue to make major inroads in building products and solutions driven by AI and market data, which combined with SEEK’s deep local insights and resources in each location, differentiate it from other international players.
For JobKorea, this partnership will provide an opportunity to leverage SEEK’s experienced management team and their significant expertise in operating global online employment and human capital management platforms.
Yoon Byung-joon, CEO of JobKorea, said “We are delighted to have a partnership with SEEK, a company with a wealth of experience in the global online employment market. We believe that this relationship will be an opportunity for JobKorea to make a quantum leap to the next level. With competition becoming ever fiercer to hire talented people such as good managers, developers or tech specialists, JobKorea will move toward a global HR platform that connects the Korean employment marketplace internationally.”
The remaining 90% of JobKorea is owned by Affinity Equity Partners (AEP), a leading global private equity player and the largest in Korea. AEP acquired 100% of JobKorea in May 2021.
About SEEK
SEEK is a diverse group of companies, comprised of a strong portfolio of online employment, educational, commercial and volunteer businesses. SEEK has a global presence (including Australia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, South-East Asia, Brazil and Mexico), with exposure to over 2.9 billion people and approximately 27 per cent of global GDP. SEEK makes a positive contribution to people’s lives on a global scale. SEEK is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, where it is a top 100 company and has been listed in the Top 20 Most Innovative Companies by Forbes.
SEEK operates leading online employment marketplaces across Asia through JobStreet (https://www.jobstreet.com.sg/) and JobsDB (https://sg.jobsdb.com/), with presence in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Shenzhen, Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines. The business has a strong brand and a significant presence in the South East Asia region, attracting 400 million visits a year. https://www.seek.com.au/about/
About JobKorea
JobKorea, established in 1996, is the largest online employment marketplace platform operator in Korea. The Company operates two online employment marketplaces, JobKorea (full-time) and Albamon (part-time), where employers place their job postings and candidates search through the platforms to find suitable positions. JobKorea is the only employment marketplace platform in Korea that services both full time and part time markets.
As the #1 player, JobKorea has 25 million jobseekers and 5 million employers with 11 million unique visitors and 110 million job postings in as of yearend 2020. https://www.jobkorea.co.kr/
Protecting more nature is an essential part of addressing biodiversity loss and fighting climate change. Here in Canada, working in collaboration with provinces, territories, Indigenous peoples, and other partners is critical to protect and conserve Canada’s nature and to recover Canada’s species at risk.
Today, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, announced as part of the Enhanced Nature Legacy up to $796 million in funding to support provinces and territories and other partners’ actions to recover species at risk and protect and conserve lands and freshwater.
This investment includes up to $210 million over five years to support interested provinces and territories to develop bilateral nature agreements with the federal government, $209 million to protect priority ecosystems, and $377 million to support recovery actions for priority species such as boreal caribou, Atlantic salmon and Pacific salmon.
Bilateral nature agreements will be collaboratively developed with provinces and territories to advance our shared interests in a more integrated approach to conserving nature, establish more protected areas, protect and recover species at risk and their habitat, while at the same time advancing Indigenous reconciliation. The agreements will also help support a green recovery by ensuring the coordinated delivery of nature-based solutions to climate change.
Collaboration will be necessary to achieve the changes we need for nature. It is by working closely together with provinces and territories, Indigenous peoples and communities, industry, not-for-profit, philanthropic and other stakeholders that we will succeed in protecting nature and build stronger communities.
Today’s announcement is a fundamental feature of Budget 2021’s commitment to invest an additional $2.3 billion over five years in Canada’s Enhanced Nature Legacy to continue supporting nature conservation measures across the country, including Indigenous leadership in conservation.
Today, the Honourable Hedy Fry, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, announced federal funding of more than $53 million for two public transit projects that will improve the SkyTrain network in the Vancouver region.
Vancouver, British Columbia, August 13, 2021—The safety and well-being of Canadians are top priorities of the governments of Canada and British Columbia. Investments in public transit infrastructure during this unprecedented time help create jobs, stimulate economic growth, and make our communities more inclusive and resilient.
British Columbians need safe, accessible, and efficient public transit to get to work and home, to attend appointments, shop for essentials, and conduct business. Strategic investments in public transportation infrastructure play a key role in delivering this service.
Today, the Honourable Hedy Fry, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, announced federal funding of more than $53 million for two public transit projects that will improve the SkyTrain network in the Vancouver region.
Burrard Station Upgrade
The underground Burrard station in downtown Vancouver is located on the busiest portion of the Expo Line and needs redesign and upgrades to accommodate increased ridership. The project will build a new four-level subsurface expansion of the station, improve the station entry and exterior plaza, install and replace a number of escalators and elevators, as well as rehabilitate station finishes including signage, cameras, and PA Systems. The upgrades will increase accessibility and capacity as well as improve customer experience and comfort.
The Government of Canada is investing $28 million in this project.
Station Access and Safety Project
As part of its 10-Year Investment Plan, TransLink is expanding Expo and Millennium line stations to support larger five-car, 85-metre trains, which can transport more riders and will improve the SkyTrain network. However, the increase in train size and corresponding ridership will exceed the capacity of some stations. The Station Access and Safety Project will ensure safety and access at and around stations and facilitate the expansion. The project will include extending up to 30 guideway walkways in multiple stations, modifying Guideway Intrusion Monitoring systems, as well as adapting platforms to improve access for riders with disabilities. TransLink is currently studying which modifications need to be made to accommodate the new trains.
The Government of Canada is investing over $25 million in this project.
“Investments in accessible, and efficient public transit systems are at the heart of a green inclusive recovery that restarts our economy and creates good jobs. The funding we’re announcing today will help transform public transit in the Vancouver region. Upgrades to the Burrard and other SkyTrain stations across the city will allow for a safe expansion of the network for the benefit of all users, which in turn will encourage increased ridership and lower GHGs. Canada’s infrastructure plan invests in thousands of projects, creating jobs across the country, and more inclusive communities.”
The Honourable Hedy Fry, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Centre, on behalf of the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities
Emelyana Titarenko
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities
873-355-9576
Emelyana.Titarenko@infc.gc.ca
