Through the IMPACT DD program

ABRAM-VILLAGE – March 11, 2025 – After two years of success and triumph, RDÉE Prince Edward Island’s “IMPACT: Towards Responsible and Sustainable Development in Atlantic Canada” (IMPACT DD) project is looking to recruit a third (and possibly final) small group of francophone or bilingual businesses and organizations to accompany them on their sustainable development journey free of charge.

The first cohort was made up of the Société acadienne et francophone de l’ÎPÉ (SAF’Île), Urbainville Farms and Double Hill Cidery. The second group, which is almost finished with its journey, includes the French Language School Board, Buyers Canada, Fromagerie PEI and Famous Peppers/Pathfinder Foods.

“We now need to support three more clients to reach the total of 10 clients planned for this three-year project,” said Florian Enjalbal, RDÉE PEI’s economic development manager in charge of this project, as he officially launched the recruitment period at the “Soirée des 4 E” on March 10 in Abram-Village.

He also launched a promotional video clip on the program, featuring SAF’Île representatives talking about the benefits of their sustainable development journey.

PROGRAM DETAILS

Enjalbal explained that clients each receive approximately 16 hours of training to learn how to analyze their operations and practices, determine their sustainable development (SD) objectives, set up an internal SD committee, consult their partners/suppliers and prepare an SD plan. They also receive 25 to 100 hours of individual coaching from coordinator Israël Poulin to guide them through the process.

The RDÉE hopes to complete its recruitment period around the beginning of April, so that it can start training the last group in May or June, to be able to complete the project by the end of March 2026. An attempt will be made to organize a small “graduation” ceremony for the “graduates” of each year.

“The experience has been very interesting and constructive for the first seven clients,” added Enjalbal. “We’d like to be able to share this great enthusiasm, great learning and new way of seeing and doing things among three more clients.”

Interested parties are asked to visit the www.rdeeipe.net/impact web page by April 5 for further details and to fill out a brief application at https://forms.gle/THTE19SgjcFMJ41W6 .

GREAT VALUE

The coaching offered to each of the clients is worth around $15,000 but is provided free of charge through the project. In the medium term, participants should see a reduction in their operational costs and a maximization of their productivity, an improvement in their reputation and innovation in the way they do things as they experiment with new techniques and tools. They should also see an improvement in their employees’ well-being at work, and should be able to better attract and retain employees and better manage their risks. All this while reducing their environmental impact and resource consumption and increasing the social benefits of their activities.

The IMPACT project, which is offered in all Atlantic provinces, aims to make everyone aware that sustainable development aims toward a healthier and more respectful use of all resources, be they financial, human, material or natural. The program often refers to ESG criteria: environment, social and governance. So it’s much more than simply “going green”.

The IMPACT DD program, funded by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the Secrétariat du Québec aux relations canadiennes, is delivered in partnership with the Centre québécois de développement durable and RDÉE Canada.

To promote sustainable development, IMPACT also presents an annual award at the Acadian Entrepreneurs’ Gala, recognizing a company or organization for its SD efforts. The project also organizes public awareness workshops and publishes articles on a variety of SD topics.

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PHOTO: RDÉE PEI’s executive director Stéphane Blanchard, left, and Florian Enjalbal, the economic development manager in charge of the IMPACT DD project, discuss recruitment of the third group of participants for 2025-2026 during the official launch of the campaign on March 11 in Abram-Village.

 

For further information, please contact:

FLORIAN ENJALBAL
Economic Development Officer
Responsible for IMPACT DD project
RDÉE Prince Edward Island
florian@rdeeipe.org

ISRAËL POULIN
Coordinator
IMPACT DD Project
consultant.agora@gmail.com