The Greater Edmonton Region Chambers of Commerce

A voice for business in the Greater Edmonton Region

The Greater Edmonton Region Chambers of Commerce (GERCC) is comprised of nine of Alberta’s Metropolitan Region Chambers of Commerce: Beaumont, Devon, Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan, Greater Parkland Regional, Leduc Regional, Morinville, St. Albert and Sherwood Park. Collectively, the chambers represent more than 7,100 member businesses employing 110,000 people throughout the 24 municipalities in the Alberta Metropolitan Region.

GERCC is a voice for businesses and works together to promote economic and sustainable growth and diversification of the Greater Edmonton Region. As an advocate for its members and businesses, GERCC works to ensure the region remains competitive provincially, nationally, and internationally. The chambers collaborate to facilitate regional governance and operational changes focused on reducing the overall cost to businesses, ensuring a competitive tax structure, creating a more streamlined and user-friendly environment, and coordinating the development of the infrastructure necessary for sustainable economic growth.

Regional Development Principles

In order to guide the successful development of the region, GERCC has the following regional development principles:

A shared, long-term economic vision for the Greater Edmonton Region;
Coordination of infrastructure and services, which are regional in scope and impact and where multiple municipalities find value and benefit;
Cooperation, partnerships, and the sharing of services that optimize mutual economic benefit;
Continued choice in amenities, levels of service and associated costs by retaining the individuality and economic autonomy of existing municipalities;
A strong and effective regional operating model; and
A model that also includes a long-term economic perspective by engaging business leaders and credible business associations.

Regional Governance and Operations

In accordance with the above principles, GERCC continues to advocate for municipalities in the Greater Edmonton Region to collaborate within the Metropolitan Region to:

Develop and promote a cohesive vision for the economic growth and diversification of the region;
Negotiate a stable long-term regional and municipal funding model with the Province that includes funding for strategic regional infrastructure and incentives for member municipalities to invest in regional growth and sustainability;
Establish a model and process to ensure the coordinated planning and management of major regional infrastructure;
Promote the Greater Edmonton Region as a centre of excellence for environmental performance;
Establish a formal mechanism to incorporate business community input into all regional decisions that impact the economic development and diversification of the region or the efficiency and competitiveness of business stakeholders in the region.

Strategic Priorities

Based on the work of all chambers, GERCC has identified the following strategic priorities for their efforts in the Greater Edmonton Region:

To foster development and implementation of a vision for the economic growth and diversification which includes a structure to plan and manage major strategic regional infrastructure and services
To work with business members, organizations and all orders of government to promote, educate and champion the regions strength and capacity to be a leading world-class energy centre with a strong environmental record and reputation.
To attract and retain a well-qualified labour force to balance the demand for labour in the region – including an appropriate and timely supply of workers to support economic growth.
To create a region with a culture that holds aspirations to be a successful business entrepreneur as highly valued and encouraged.
To enhance the profile and facilitate growth and expansion of agricultural production, agri-business and value-added food processing in the region.