Invitation to attend

 

Course-based export/import projects:  Do the benefits justify the costs, and if so how can resources be provided?

 

If you have used projects in which students investigate export opportunities for real businesses, or have considered using them, you may be interested in this panel session at AIB 2014.  The above question will be addressed by 6 panelists, including 3 faculty who use such projects in their courses, the owner/manager of a business that participated in such a project, and a student who participated.  The 6^th panelist, Janel Quiring, is Director of International Trade for the Province of British Columbia and the lead negotiator for the Province in the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement negotiations. Janel will provide an overview of trade policy and will comment on the role of international business education in providing the human resources that SMEs require in order to take full advantage of the trade opportunities available to them.

 

Venue: AIB 2014 at Vancouver’s Westin Bayshore Hotel

Date:     Thursday, June 26th

Time:     13:00-14:15

Room:   Oak 1

In course-based export/import projects, students investigate and report on real export opportunities for participating businesses as a major assignment in a course.  This hands-on experience complements the students’ study of international business theory, and it puts them in a better position to recognize and capitalize on international opportunities once they enter the workforce.

 

In this session panellists will address the following questions:

 

1)      How have recent improvements in telecommunications technology created new possibilities for running course-based export/import projects?

 

2)      What is known about the costs and benefits of such projects?

 

3)      What are the barriers to the use of this sort of pedagogy, and how might these barriers be overcome?   Is there a role for course-based export/import projects in governments’ broader trade facilitation strategies?

 

We are hoping for a lively discussion with questions and contributions from the audience.