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[Translate] Until March 2012, along with the Startup Canada Team, I will be working exclusively on building Startup Canada in preparation for our public launch. Thank you to everyone for your support and understanding as we focus, focUS, FOCUS ! Have a brilliant holiday and a Happy New Year.

2011 in Review

[Translate] As 2011 comes to a close, I wanted to re-cap the year with my family and friends, old and new. The theme of the year it seems was that of transition and development. January 2011 – Spent New Years with Cyprian in Cuba – on New Years eve, our resort was set ablaze due to an...

iCUE 2012 Global Summit Announced

[Translate] April 25-26, 2012, London, United Kingdom     The  2012 iCUE Global Summit will convene leaders of youth entrepreneurship organizations from over 20 countries and takes place over two days. Highlights include: Rigorous TEDx style global best practice sharing sessions VIP...

ICUE’s New Look

[Translate] This week the International Consortium of University Entrepreneurs (iCUE) launched its new branding and website. The new website not only contains information about iCUE and its more than 17 member organizations, but it also features an interactive World Map, a Global Events Calendar, a video...

NACUE and University Enterprise – Government support for Student Entrepreneurs

[Translate] Tuesday 15th November Government to boost young enterprise and encourage a new wave of student entrepreneurs with significant investment in university enterprise societies Innovation fund will award individual university enterprise societies up to £8,000 to kick-start entrepreneurial...

Re-engineering Canada’s Manufacturing Sector through Re-engineering Culture

[Translate] Published in CME 20/20 – Click here to read the entire article.  Canadians like to think of themselves as great collaborators. The label Team Canada is used both within diplomatic circles and as a sports metaphor to describe our national character as collegial competitors. But in the...

Silicon Valley Comes to the UK

[Translate] In 2008, when President of Oxford Entrepreneurs, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to dine with some of the top entrepreneurs from Silicon Valley at the Oxford Castle – Biz Stone (Twitter), Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn), Philip Rosedale (SecondLife), Elon Musk (SpaceX) and Joe DiNucci...

Innovation 2011 Registration Now Open

[Translate] INNOVATION 2011 – Canada’s R&D Partnership Conference will take place November 20-22 at the Hilton Hotel in Montreal, PQ. INNOVATION 2011 is a networking and professional development conference that draws from the global community of technology transfer and industry engagement...

The Best City in Canada to be an Entrepreneur

[Translate] Earlier this week I had the opportunity to visit beautiful Saskatoon for the Growing Saskatchewan Conference thanks to the support of Community Futures Saskatchewan and Western Economic Diversification Canada. Over 200 enterprise support professionals from all sectors and regions of the...

Building Relationships & Networking

[Translate] Networking is the key to success in business according to Keith Ferrazzi, business coach and author or Never Eat Alone, a book about the power of relationship building and networking. Networking helps you find jobs, recruit talent, win new customers and discover investors who will support...

10 Reasons to Start-Up in Canada, eh!

[Translate] Whether you are looking to start a business or have already turned a profit, as entrepreneurs, you are always looking for new opportunities and sometimes the grass may seem greener on the other side. Why venture south when Canada is the place to be? Here are some reasons to Start-up in...

Public Servants invited to Entrepreneurship / Innovation Roundtable

[Translate]   Click here to download Programme A Public Sector Horizontal Policy Round Table on Small Business, Entrepreneurship & Innovation: Enhancing Public Sector Horizontal Communications September 29, 2011- 8.30am – 4.00pm – FREE British High Commiss ion, 80...

ICUE Seeks Founding Benefactors

[Translate] Open Letter: Over the course of the last two years NACUE has developed into a world class national charitable organization fueling student entrepreneurship across UK further and higher education institutions. NACUE has been a critical founding partner and incubator of the International...

BC Visit and Grow Conference 2011 Lessons / Inspirations

[Translate] This week I had the opportunity to attend the 2011 Grow Conference in Vancouver BC – a conference convening investors, entrepreneurs and enterprise support professionals from across Canada and Silicon Valley. I was fortunate enough to have won a free ticket to the conference via a Twitter...

First Canadian to receive Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion

[Translate] Published July 21, 2011 by the Ottawa Technology Transfer Network Earlier this spring, Buckingham Palace announced that uOttawa alumnus and entrepreneur, Victoria Lennox, 27, was the first Canadian, and one of the youngest, recipients of a Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion for...

NACUE is Growing – 20 New Positions Open for Applications

[Translate] Posted on August 5, 2011 by NACUE NACUE is delighted to announce the creation of twenty paid positions, with applications open immediately. NACUE has achieved significant growth over the past two years and is now at an extremely exciting phase of expansion. The recruits will form a new team...

Day 1: Canada’s wireless technology advantage – Wavefront

[Translate] August 15, 2011 I arrived in Vancouver this morning for the Grow 2011 Conference, arriving a few days early to  meet with StartUp Canada partners and explore the city. The last time I was here was in the Summer of 2008 on my way home to Cambridge, ON after spending six months backpacking the...

Day 6: Ending with a new beginning – onward home

[Translate] July 16, 2011 As the last ‘business day’ of my trip, I spent today in rainy Cambridge. The first meeting of the day was with Kosta Maroulakis (NACUE East England Director) and newly appointed President of CUTEC, Liz Williams.  Through the meeting we developed a greater understanding of...

Day 5: Learning by developing and new beginnings

[Translate] July 15, 2011 This morning I had the opportunity to judge the St. George’s Apprentice Challenge finals between 5 competing Teams of 11-12 year olds in West London. The most moving part of the morning was in speaking with the children and asking what they learned from the 1-week long...

Passion, resilience, curiosity, memory & behaviour

[Translate] A poem prepared as a short speech by Andy Penaluna for the NACUE Celebration for the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion. Passion An enterprising person needs passion, as without passion, there is no resilience. Resilience Resilience needs interest, if we are not interested, we get...

Day 4: A royal affair for enterprise promotion

[Translate] July 14, 2011 This afternoon was the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion Ministerial event and Buckingham Palace reception. It was a day that I will remember always. I shared the day with Matt Smith, NACUE’s Policy Director and Founding Member, who accompanied me as one of my...

Day 3: Grassroots movements & enabling serendipitous moments

[Translate] Today I spent a wonderful day in Cambridge planned and hosted by NACUE Founding Member and Director of our East of England Pilot Project, Kosta Mavroulakis. NACUE, through the generous support of the Hauser Forum, is undertaking an ambitious project to build a student enterprise ecosystem...

Day 2: The art of the start – learning by doing & re-defining failure

[Translate] My first day back in London reminded me how wonderful this city is! After the overnight flight I took the Gatwick Express into London to drop my luggage off at a flat that I found through www.airbnb.com (superb site), located beside Tower Hill overlooking the Tower of London and Trinity...

Day 1: If one person can inspire so many, imagine what thousands can do…

[Translate] Queen’s Award 2011 Trip At the request of the NACUE Team, I will be blogging for the next six days about my trip to the UK for the Queen’s Award for Enterprise ceremony and reception and on my ruminations re: entrepreneurship promotion, education, policy and networks. On April 21,...

Every Entrepreneur Should Have a Mentor

[Translate] I am often asked by NACUE Fellows and younger colleagues to provide advice about how to start their first venture and always near the top of my list is – to surround yourself with experienced, well-networked and supportive mentors. Notice the plural – mentorS. No one person will be able...

ICUE 2011 Global Round Table a Success

[Translate] POSTED ON NACUE BLOG – On April 26th young entrepreneurship catalysts from across the world convened in London under the banner of iCUE – the International Consortium of University Entrepreneurs – to share best practice, to align global messaging and to celebrate the global rise...

Lennox First Canadian to Win the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion

[Translate] OFFICIAL NEWS RELEASE – Today, the 85th Birthday of Queen Elizabeth saw the announcement of Ottawa entrepreneur, Victoria Lennox, 27, as the first Canadian and one of the youngest recipients of a Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion for 2011. The awards are made each year by The...

UK Government Backs NACUE to Extend Enterprise Nation-Wide

[Translate] OFFICIAL Press Release -  The Government announced on March 28th its commitment to work with the National Consortium of University Entrepreneurs (NACUE) to create student-led enterprise societies in every University and most Further Education Colleges across England. This was one of a...

Research Money Conference Targets Youth

[Translate] The 10th Annual RE$EARCH MONEY Conference   in collaboration with the National Research Council of Canada 11-12 May 2011 Canadian Museum of Nature Fourth Floor Gallery 240 rue McLeod Street Ottawa, Canada Visit the site to register:...

Standards, Lock-ins & Critical Mass

[Translate] As those who know me are aware, I love building networks – particularly enterprise support and promotion networks. While building an enterprise network is no easy task, I am frequently asked by those in the process of building such networks, how they can be sustained and grown beyond the...

2nd Annual National Varsity Pitch Competition

[Translate] It’s that time of year again! UK students and graduates have the opportunity to compete in front of a panel of celebrity judges for the National Title, £10k, a host of other prizes, and a Golden Ticket to the Global Student Entrepreneurship Awards through NACUE’s 2nd Annual National...

Global Roundtable Meeting & Ministerial Reception

[Translate] On April 26th, 2011, I will be chairing a meeting that brings together the leaders of national youth entrepreneurship organisations from across the world. Convening at the Canadian High Commission in London, UK, the 2nd Annual International Consortium of University Entrepreneurs (ICUE)...

NextGen Entrepreneurs need Political Acuity

[Translate] Political Acuity <Definition> The ability to appreciate, understand and use formal and informal power relationships within organisations and within the political structure and predict how new events will affect individuals and groups – In short, the understanding of the political /...

Motivating Millennials

[Translate] In April 2010, I re-entered the workforce after having founded NACUE subsequent to my studies at Oxford University. Through developing NACUE as an entrepreneur, in retrospect, I took for granted that I was working alongside exceptional, enterprising and ambitious graduates from across the UK,...

Go Global in 2011 – Entrepreneurial Programmes and Conferences

[Translate] Entrepreneurs, especially NextGen entrepreneurs, understand the importance of networking, building relationships, engaging in collaborative activities and ongoing learning to build and grow their ventures, capacities and leverage. NextGen entrepreneurs also know that beginning with the...

Lennox Speaks at UNCTAD Expert Meeting

[Translate] Published on NACUE Blog – Between 19−21 January, Victoria Lennox, NACUE’s Founder & Chair, flew over from Canada to represent NACUE at the 2011 UNCTAD (United Nations Conference for Trade and Development) Multi-Expert Meeting on Entrepreneurship Education, Innovation &...

Entrepreneurship 2.0

[Translate] Prepared for ‘Emerging Student’ – January 2011 – The UK Government has recently set out their ambition for this to be ‘the decade of the entrepreneur’. While ‘business professionals’ are busy cat-fighting on the Apprentice and bankers continue to get bashed ...

The Rise of the University Entrepreneur

[Translate] Countless headlines paint an increasingly bleak picture for graduates. With record levels of debt, as well as soaring unemployment, students are under pressure to take action.­­ The view amongst many students and employers is that a degree is no longer a guarantee of a prosperous career...

New Blog for NextGen & STEM Enterprise

[Translate] Welcome to my new web blog covering topics of interest and experience – including entrepreneurship, innovation, enterprise clusters, risk capital, SMEs, disruptive ideas, and personal and professional development. I have been motivated to write this blog after having returned to Canada from...

Key Lessons from Innovation 2010

[Translate] From December 5 – 7, 2010, I had the opportunity to attend Innovation 2010, Canada’s R&D and Commercialisation Partnership Conference held at the Westin Hotel in Ottawa and organised by ACCT Canada, Federal Partners in Technology Transfer and the Government of Canada Networks of ...