From Busy Berlin to Tech Corridor

Name: From Busy Berlin to Tech Corridor
Start: 2024-10-26T14:00:00-04:00
End: 2024-10-26T15:30:00-04:00
Location: Francis Green, corner of Francis St & King Street West, Kitchener

Schedule

Sat Oct 26 2024 at 02:00 pm to 03:30 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

Francis Green, corner of Francis St & King Street West, Kitchener | Kitchener, ON

Did you know Berlin (now Kitchener) had a thriving eco-system of industry “clusters” that began over 100 years ago?
We think of business or industry “clusters” as a modern phenomenon, with Waterloo Region’s technology cluster as a prime example. Yet, as we walk through Downtown Kitchener’s Innovation District, we follow the footsteps of the people of “Busy Berlin,” a largely German 19th century community that worked in equally successful clusters for their time.
They left a legacy of yellow-brick buildings transformed from the factories of yesterday to meet the needs of today’s tech sector. They also left us a culture of innovation and community building. We will explore those early clusters and the sometimes forgotten but often fascinating people and stories behind them.