Niagara College’s global projects supporting sustainability and gender equality, equity, and social inclusion are reducing barriers to business development and employment around the world.
NC recently completed the Crafting Women Brewmasters in Bhutan Project with the goal of supporting female and young brewers in Bhutan, South Asia. The project, initiated in 2020, was part of a seven-year program developed and funded by the Government of Canada’s Canadian Trade and Investment Facility for Development (CTIF) and carried out through a partnership between NC and Ser Bhum Brewery Private Ltd (SBB), a Bhutanese craft brewery.
“This project has helped elevate the understanding of professional brewing in Bhutan,” said Sonam Lhaden, SBB’s co-founder and CEO. “NC’s experts have helped us write a gender policy plan and see how business and sustainability can go hand in hand, which is a big step toward having an equal and sustainable working environment.”
Although the project is complete, NC and the Bhutanese brewery will continue their engagement and collaboration.
“Due to what we have learned, we will now work on developing a brand identity and implementing sustainable business practices,” added Lhaden. “Our first step is to install equipment that will help us improve our brewing practices.”
In addition to the sustainability and gender equality-related achievements, the partnership enabled the creation of new products by SBB, drawing from NC’s Teaching Brewery’s expertise. The new recipes, a lager and a honey wheat, will be launched this upcoming spring.
As part of the project, a team of experts from NC was hosted by SBB in Bhutan in September 2022 to support project deliverables related to the expansion plan, capacity-building, standard operating procedures, and health and safety.
Last January, a group from the Bhutanese brewery visited NC to learn about best practices in Niagara’s craft beer industry.
“The whole trip was exciting,” said Lhaden. “The main highlights were the Brew Day at NC, where we joined students to craft a beer at the Teaching Brewery, visiting local breweries, and attending the Master Brewers Conference in Niagara-on-the-Lake.”
CTIF’s Project Director, Phil Rourke visited NC while the College was hosting partners from SBB to familiarize himself with the project’s progress.
“The practical approach that Niagara College took toward this project and their patience, creativity, and commitment have made a real difference,” said Rourke. “These elements created the conditions under which Ser Bhum was able to achieve what they were expecting. I witnessed people coming together from very different backgrounds working together to produce something new and valuable. I was smiling the whole time while at Niagara College and kept thinking: Yes, we were correct when we first wondered how we could help – it is indeed possible.”
Through these initiatives, NC continues to support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG number four (“Quality Education”), SDG number five (“Gender Equality”), SDG number eight (“Decent Work and Economic Growth”), and SDG number 13 (“Climate Action”).
Over the past 20 years, Niagara College has successfully completed more than 100 capacity building and training projects in over 25 countries, including Barbados, Bhutan, Chile, Colombia, Grenada, Jamaica, Malawi, Mexico, Saint Lucia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Vietnam. For more information on Global Education and Partnerships and how to get involved, visit ncglobal.ca.
