In The Loop - From Ireland!

This week I’m off on a family trip to Ireland, so I thought it fitting that I talk a little bit about the CT legislature’s newest initiative for economic development: The Connecticut - Ireland Trade Commission!

Some neat facts to consider...did you know Irish immigrants helped build US infrastructure back in the late 18th and through the 19th century - from skyscrapers, highways, bridges, and manufacturing plants across the Midwest and mines in the West? In fact my mom’s dad, my grandfather who was born in Ireland, worked across the eastern coast constructing bridges and overpasses.

Historically, did you know that nine of the signatures of the Declaration of Independence were of Irish descent, three born in America?

The Irish commitment to America is paved with 769 Medals of Honor awarded by the US Congress bestowed upon individuals born outside of the US. Out of the 769 total medals awarded 261 were to recipients born in Ireland, the single largest nationality.

An old Irish saying perfectly sums up these contributions – “May miles and miles of Irish smiles, provide for many golden happy hours!” Well, maybe there is something to those thousands of Irish Pubs back in the homeland.

On the reverse, the US has contributed significantly to modernizing Ireland. The very first Ford factory built outside of the US opened in Cork City in 1917. Now over 700 separate American companies have invested in Ireland not only with establishing operations but employing more than 150,000 Irish citizens - setting up a significant contribution to Ireland’s economic success.

Currently, CT legislative leaders and the governor are pulling together the 23-member CT- Ireland trade commission which will be made up of elected officials, a few state agency folks, and the rest being residents of CT to help build, or should I say rebuild, an economic relationship between the two countries.

Many years ago, the Sullivan & LeShane team worked with several US-based companies to allow for the importation of Irish-trained nursing and therapy staffers to assist CT in a shortage of trained healthcare providers in the US. Nowadays, even Ireland is experiencing a shortage of healthcare providers as well as the ongoing shortage facing the US once again. How times change!

From my role as a trustee at one of the local universities, we hear all the time about the up-and-coming generation of college students who are seeking year-abroad experiences to provide them with real-life understandings of the global economy. In preparation for their future careers in the corporate world, they seek that international global perspective in marketing, financial growth, and customer service. In fact, colleges and universities see the next generation of students as global. Interestingly, many colleges and universities across the country are seeing that with the universal acceptance of online learning during COVID-19, there is the potential to recruit a new group of students from not only across the country but across the world through the use of online education.

Currently, The City of Hartford enjoys the only sister city relationship in Connecticut that’s registered through the US embassy located in Dublin. This relationship with New Ross located in County Wexford (where by the way, the Kennedy family comes from!) was started long ago under the infamous Mayor Mike Peters term and kind of floated away for a while. This summer, Hartford hosted a delegation from New Ross and is planning a return engagement to New Ross in 2025.

Several other cities and towns in CT have non-registered informal relationships with Irish cities but to date, Hartford still is the only CT-recognized sister city partnership recorded at the US Embassy.

So as we wait for the official appointments by the state leaders to be announced and watch as Hartford begins to plan for their delegation to visit New Ross, those global CT companies who do business in Ireland will continue to fly the flag of a potential economic growth engine located in Ireland.

“There are good ships and there are wood ships that sail the seas, but the best ships are friendships. May there always be” - Irish Proverb