Academic

Avalon continues to champion the development and future availability of trained and experienced employees to explore for, finance, design, build and operate critical raw material mines and facilities. Avalon encourages innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit among students to create cutting edge technologies that leverage rare metal resources. In 2011, Avalon established the University Student Outreach Initiative program with the primary objectives:

• To build and enhance the talent pools needed to design, improve and operate facilities.
• To encourage and enable the needed geoscience, engineering and business talent pools to strengthen Canada’s emerging downstream processing and rare metals applications supply chains.
• To engage broad audiences of undergraduate science, geoscience and engineering students, graduate level geoscience, metallurgy and business students, and faculty around rare metals.

Avalon is achieving this by introducing rare metal-related subjects into course curricula, and identifying and mentoring an international network of research, development and operational capabilities. Company representatives have delivered lectures to undergraduate chemistry, metallurgy, mining and geology classes, led graduate business seminars, and sponsored and co-supervised undergraduate and graduate student projects and case competitions. Avalon has also sponsored students to participate in industry conferences, provided relevant co-op terms and research initiatives.

Industry

Avalon played a leadership role in collaboratively working with prospective rare earth producers, universities, commercial labs, consultants and the Canadian Federal Government in establishing the Canadian Rare Earth Elements Network (CREEN) in October 2013, which was re-launched as the Canadian Critical Minerals and Materials Alliance (C2M2A): a non-profit, independent organization which endeavors to grow the Canadian economy through critical mineral supply chains. C2M2A’s vision and mission will help Canada diversify its economy, foster job creation and provide an economically-viable and healthy environment for future generations.CREEN’s primary mission is to establish Canada as a significant supplier of processed rare earth materials to global supply chains. Under the C2M2A banner, Avalon has broadened and strengthened its relationships in the global sector, gaining access to technical knowledge and solutions.