The City of Greater Sudbury is promoting its recent efforts to grow the local economy with a progress update on its 2023 Innovation Blueprint.
The blueprint sets a vision for Greater Sudbury by 2038, placing critical minerals at the forefront of its economic potential.
By 2038, it forecasts Greater Sudbury as “a global leader in green transformation and a major player in energy transition materials and the critical mineral economy, supporting a robust and integrated cluster of small, medium and large-scale businesses as well as cutting-edge academic research.”
Alongside critical minerals and clean technology, it also urges the fostering of “at least one new secondary industry or market that transcends Greater Sudbury’s traditional economic sectors, such as health and life sciences.”
In a recent media release, the city promotes the blueprint as outlining “a bold vision for Greater Sudbury to lead in emerging industries,” which “is now taking shape through strategic investments, global partnerships, new opportunities for collaboration with First Nation communities and targeted talent attraction efforts that are reshaping the city’s economic landscape.”
Key achievements listed in the media release include:
- Unlocked new industrial land through infrastructure upgrades and risk mitigation, including an investment of $19 million in Lasalle/Elisabella Industrial Area to support business growth and new development.
- Approved three Employment Land Community Improvement Plan applications, resulting in the creation of 93 full-time jobs and generating $10.6 million in construction value.
- Completed successful global trade missions to Kazakhstan, Japan and Korea, which expanded market access for local firms.
- Strengthened relationships with First Nations partners, with collaboration continuing to grow.
- Fostered health and life sciences advancements through new med-tech investments, expanded clinic services, and the recruitment of new physicians via the Practice Ready Ontario program, providing primary care access to 12,000 residents.
- Achieved talent attraction success, welcoming over 2,700 newcomers through the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot, and recommended 407 candidates through the Rural and Francophone Community Immigration Pilot programs.
- Accelerated innovation and job creation through strategic investments via the Sudbury Catalyst Fund, supporting 12 companies across emerging sectors and contributing $2.97 million to date, resulting in 63 new jobs.
“These achievements are just the beginning,” Mayor Paul Lefebvre said, in the media release.
“The Innovation Blueprint is more than a plan. It’s a commitment to building a stronger, more resilient, and more prosperous Greater Sudbury, and while we’ve made strides across all four pillars, there are still many opportunities ahead, and we remain focused on realizing them.”