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Mission to enhance students’ business knowledge

Photo: Courtesy of Adam Peabody

Logan Turner is escaping the ‘historic’ winter storms that are set to pound eastern North America, as he prepares for a trade mission in South America.

Turner, a first-year University of Ottawa student, hopes his ten day trip to Peru this February will broaden his understanding of international business and South American culture alike.

“I chose this trip because it is an incredible opportunity to experience different cultures and to experience what you do in international business,” said Turner, who studies international studies and modern languages.

Turner, along with 17 other high school and university students and graduates from across Canada, will be in Peru with the non-profit organization Global Vision, completing mandates set by businesses, civil societies and government organizations in Canada.

One of Turner’s mandates is from Digital Engineering, a technology company that develops greener energy solutions, based out of his hometown of Thunder Bay. The firm’s president, Les Perrault, said they’re gathering information on the burgeoning renewable energy market in Peru.

“We understand that there’s a lot of activity in Peru right now, so we’re taking advantage of the opportunity to piggyback on the trade mission and see what we can find out,” he said.

Global Vision is a youth-oriented travel program that aims to offer practical business knowledge to students.

“They’re actually obtaining partnerships and providing value feedback to those businesses and organizations in the form of contacts and market intelligence,” said Adam Peabody, project coordinator of Global Vision. They also want to ensure both the student and the local business benefit from the relationship, he said.

The Peru trade mission will teach students about the strong links between the two American continents, said Peabody, ahead of this summer’s Pan Am and Parapan American games in Toronto.

“What we want to do with this trade mission to Peru is highlight Canada’s role as a leading country in the America’s,” said Peabody.