Jointly hosted by the Business Council of British Columbia, the Washington Roundtable and Microsoft Corp, the first annual Emerging Cascadia Innovation Corridor Conference brought together business and government leaders to explore the potential for joint partnerships in education, transportation, university research, human capital and other areas.
Leaders on both sides of the border acknowledged the opportunity to create a single interconnected region that could be more competitive in today’s global economy and took immediate action to deepen relationships and strengthen partnerships.
At the conference, Washington Governor Jay Inslee and British Columbia Premier Christy Clark signed a formal agreement that committed the two governments to work closely together to "enhance meaningful and results-driven innovation and collaboration." The agreement outlines formal steps the two governments will take to collaborate in several key areas including trade, research, transportation and education.
In addition, the BC Cancer Agency, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance agreed to develop a new "master collaboration agreement" expanding patient access to care and clinical trials, advancing immunotherapy, enabling research collaboration, and providing better training opportunities for young scientists and researchers.
