OLDS — Olds College and Saskatchewan Polytechnic have signed an official Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on the Olds College Smart Farm in Saskatchewan.
The partnership, announced through a news release issued May 30, includes student work-integrated learning, technology demonstration and validation, and applied research activities.
The MOU initially covers a five-year period and will be governed by a joint committee of representatives from both institutions.
A couple of months ago it was announced that Olds College had expanded its Smart Farm operations into Saskatchewan for the 2022 growing season.
That expansion enables Olds College to partner with post-secondary institutions, industry, and local producers – including Saskatchewan Polytechnic.
Together, they provide ag-tech training and research opportunities that align with and support students, producers and the agriculture industry in that province.
“Through our partnership with Sask Polytech, we are creating dynamic learning opportunities for students while working with industry and community partners to create innovative solutions through applied research,” Stuart Cullum, Olds College’s outgoing president, said in the news release.
“Our Smart Farm ecosystem is a fundamental asset for industry, researchers, faculty, and students to develop and integrate technology and best practice.
“The Olds College Saskatchewan Smart Farm gives us the opportunity to work closely with Sask Polytech to continue to provide technical solutions and training opportunities for the agriculture and agri-food industry – and develop solutions to real-world, everyday agricultural challenges.”
Saskatchewan Polytechnic president and chief executive officer Larry Rosia sees the partnership as a great opportunity to enhance learning experiences and the applied research environment for students and industry partners.
“With this MOU in place and the Olds College Saskatchewan Smart Farm located just a short drive from our campus, the growing partnership with Olds College continues to benefit our students, applied research activities, and the agriculture industry,” he said.
"Our applied research experience and industry connections in the tech and agriculture sectors makes for a collaborative working relationship with Olds College – and provides our students with enhanced work-integrated learning experiences.”
This is not the first MOU the two institutions have signed.
They signed one back in 2017 which focused on exploring the demand for new collaborative programming and applied research into smart agriculture.
The agreement announced May 30 expands that collaboration, including the sharing of applied research activities, to advance agricultural training, applied research and commercialization in Western Canada.
