Prairie Innovation Centre sees $50K bump from Johnston Group

Assiniboine Community College’s Prairie Innovation Centre for Sustainable Agriculture has received $50,000 from Johnston Group.

“As a proud Manitoba company, Johnston Group supports initiatives that make a difference in the lives of Manitobans,” said Dave Angus, President at Johnston Group Inc. “The Prairie Innovation Centre combines the strength of our Agricultural community with the strength of the next generation to generate tremendous opportunities for our Province. We are proud to support such an important initiative."

This one-of-a-kind Canadian college project will bring together collaborative learning spaces, applied research labs, multipurpose spaces and amenities that will serve to support new programs for labour market development, applied research and industry engagement in the agriculture, environment and processing sectors.

“The financial support we continue to see for the Centre further confirms the need for this project in the region.” said Derrick Turner, Director, Advancement & External Relations at Assiniboine. “We know that the future of agriculture in Manitoba belongs here at Assiniboine. A big part of why that is and why it’s possible is the outstanding support we have from community members and businesses.”

The college launched the Prairie Innovation Centre campaign in 2019 and has increased its fundraising goal twice, from $10 to 15 million, now nearing in on a new $20 million goal. In January, the Province of Manitoba made an initial commitment of $10 million toward design and costing.

“Assiniboine Community College is a leader in agricultural education in Manitoba, and has the support of the community in this project,” said Sarah Guillemard, Manitoba Minister of Advanced Education and Training. “The Manitoba government has committed $10 million towards this project and government continues to assess the project’s infrastructure and programming needs to support this important work.”

The Prairie Innovation Centre will create an enhanced agricultural training capacity, increasing seats in agriculture, environment and related technology programs from 300 to more than 800 to fill the growing agricultural labour gap.