Mars Lands in the Arc!

Technology-led companies and policy makers from around the Milton Keynes city-region attended the first joint Oxford to Cambridge Arc (O2C) - Sparc Technology Network event at Oakgrove School in Milton Keynes in December 2007. Rob Wallace, Director of Strategic Partnerships at the MaRS Convergence Centre in Toronto, Canada, was a special guest of the O2C Arc and presented the MaRs (originally Medical and Related Sciences) Convergence Centre story, sharing his experiences with Dr. Nicholas Miles the Executive Director of the O2C Arc, and invited guests, and discussing future links between the O2C Arc area and the Greater Toronto Area and Ontario Innovation Corridor.

Dr Miles, Ross Wallace and Chris Dunkley answering questions from the audience.

The non-profit private sector driven MaRs centre connects communities in science, business and capital to help create a more efficient commercialisation marketplace in Canada. The Centre incubates science-based companies, but involves creative industries. MaRS hosts music and film festivals, art exhibits and collaborates with the Design Exchange and the Ontario College of Art and Design on, for example, visualisation initiatives such as a cartoon company now working with a medical related MaRS start-up maaking visualisation teaching material for nurses and medical students, particular those operating in developing countries. The CEO of MaRS, IIse Treumicht, an former manager of a venture capital company and an entrepreneur, is on record as stating that she believes in ‘structured serendipity’. MaRS has been specifically designed so maximise the benefits of structured serendipity!

“The emphasis is on inclusion, building collaborative relationships. Taking disaggregated clusters of researchers, business people, entrepreneurs and investors and knitting them together so they speak to create a unified, cohesive and coherent voice.,” said Ross.

Phase one is already 90% pre-leased with a strategic mix of over 50 companies and organisations comprising leading researchers and technology transfer groups, growth businesses ranging from start-ups to mature companies, venture capital and professional services firms, and community organisations.

Click here to see the video of this event

For more information on the work undertaken at MaRS please visit www.marsdd.com.