“Getting a chance to travel to India was something I’ve always dreamed of,” she says. “When
I heard I could go there through the Global Edge program, I jumped at the opportunity.”
From May to August Laxon’s ‘classroom’ will consist of the hallways and offices of India’s haute couture design firm
Lecoanet Hemant.
“Learning the business practices and norms of the country,” she says, “has been a lesson that I will never forget.”
That’s the idea behind Global Edge which encourages enterprising Ontario youth to explore international business with a strong focus on
entrepreneurship and small and medium-sized businesses. The Global Edge program seeks to increase entrepreneurial awareness among post-secondary
students and institutions. In India, George Brown College has partnered with the Institute of Apparel Management in India to provide invaluable
learning and working opportunities for students.
As Laxson’s thoughts move to her future, the program’s impact is obvious. She says, “Bringing this knowledge about running
a successful entrepreneurial business will surely help when I consider doing so in Canada.”
This kind of engagement with entrepreneurial values is extremely satisfying for the team that worked to bring the Global Edge Program to George
Brown College:
“We were determined to offer this tremendous opportunity to as many qualified students as possible” says Maureen Loweth, the Dean
of the Faculty of Business, Arts and Design. “As economic and social globalization increases and labour markets become more mobile, tomorrow’s
leaders will be expected to work in foreign countries and bridge cultural differences to achieve social, economic and political objectives. So
we appreciated the value of the Global Edge Program immediately.”
GBC has successfully transferred this value to its students: in 2010, more GBC students have been provided with international work experience
through the Global Edge program than any other Ontario College.
The program’s focus on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) complemented the college’s efforts to encourage and incorporate
entrepreneurial skills and learning into its programming.
“Sometimes, in discussions of globalization, the size of the numbers involved distracts from the innovative and entrepreneurial activities
that really drive the global economy,” says Helene Vukovich, Associate Dean, Faculty of Business Arts and Design. “In Ontario, for
example, more than 2.8 million people were employed by an SME in 2009. SMEs accounted for more than 40% of economic activity in the province,
which represented approximately $245 billion in 2009. In 2006, these businesses exported $51.5 billion of goods around the world.”
Vanessa Burton, a 2nd year student in GBC’s Fashion Business Industry diploma program, is clearly enjoying the unique benefits of working
at an SME at Tahiliani Designs Ltd.
“I am interning with Tarun Tahiliani, a very talented designer widely credited as having brought couture to India,” she says. “Although ‘TT’ is
a very successful and well-established brand, the design studio and head office is a relatively small operation. Tarun is very much a part of
the day-to-day activities and I have had multiple opportunities to meet and talk with him.”
Miah Mills, interning at India’s Crew B.O.S. Ltd. echoes Vanessa’s sentiments:
“As a future designer, I was able to see the flip-side of operations and the processes involved in product development, sourcing,
costing and order fulfillment. This hands-on experience has opened up many doors for my personal career and has shown me how to apply the information
that I have learned at George Brown College to life within my chosen industry.”
George Brown is organizing a youth entrepreneurship forum during the fall intercession week to showcase returning Global Edge students’ international
work experiences. The program’s organizers hope this forum will encourage more students to take advantage of this valuable opportunity.
“Each of these students is applying the practical instruction they received at George Brown College in the global economy,” says
Marilyn McNeil-Morin, Chair, School of Fashion Studies and Performing Arts. “They’ll return with an understanding
of how their skills translate in the global apparel industry and they’ll bring that understanding back to GBC’s classrooms enriching
the experience of all our students. We make sure they know what a big responsibility it is and our students really embrace it. The feedback we’ve
received from overseas employers has been wonderful.”
For more information about the Ontario Global Edge Program, contact Aida Viveiros at aviveiro@georgebrown.ca or
by phone: 416-415-5000 Ext.2868
Return to: News and Events, Fashion Studies at George Brown College
|
