Participants saw economic development as the foundation on which solutions to the province's skills challenges can be built.
Participants saw economic development and labour market development as two sides of the same coin.
Participants in the Prince Edward Island provincial dialogue saw economic development as the foundation on which solutions to the province's skills challenges can be built. They spoke in general terms of economic and labour market development, and felt strongly that access to quality and meaningful work opportunities was fundamental to attracting, developing and retaining a productive workforce and protecting the Island's quality of life. Time and again, participants reiterated the importance of "taking care of our people." They agreed that there was a need for a focused economic development strategy, one that highlights both the seasonal and full time aspects of the PEI economy (or as some participants put it, PEI's "two economies"). Dialogue members also emphasized that economic development is a shared responsibility, one in which each stakeholder had a "piece of the puzzle" and noted the importance of good labour market information as a basis for planning and decision-making. Finally, participants discussed the need to better market PEI as a place to work, live and do business - both outside of PEI, and to Islanders themselves. As one participant put it: "there is more to us than Anne of Green Gables or the Confederation Bridge!".
Participants' comments on each of these topics are summarized below, as well as some of the opportunities for action they identified.
Participants noted that "we live in a reactive world, we manage by crisis [and] we are not planning for the future." As they explored the question of economic development, participants concluded that: