The Future Skills Centre (FSC) is investing $37 million in 30 community-based projects to help Canadians acquire in-demand skills and transition to new jobs or industries. The projects were selected from hundreds of submissions following a call for proposals last year. The 30 projects are distributed across the country and are the result of consultations with stakeholders. FSC hopes the timing of these investments will help address the economic and social fallout from the labour-market disruptions created by COVID-19.

"An economic recovery that works for all Canadians will require that we start to build a skills development ecosystem that is more responsive to the changing realities of workers and employers," said FSC's executive director Pedro Barata in a statement.

The successful projects were chosen according to four key themes: 1) An economic recovery powered by people leveraging AI and technological advancement; 2) Training, reskilling, and adapting within industries facing chronic skills shortages; 3) Innovative and radical approaches to training and learning to build capacity and resilience; and 4) Leaving no one behind in creating an inclusive workforce for the future.

The projects aim to do things like improve digital fluency through micro-credentials; help underemployed immigrant professionals overcome barriers to career advancement; launch low-income, young adults into IT careers; and provide access to academic knowledge, technical skills, and professional competencies for a career in biosciences.

FSC also announced that the 30 innovation projects will be integrated into a digital Community of Practice powered by Magnet, a social innovation platform that seeks to accelerate inclusive economic growth in Canada.

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