From Nova Scotia to Iceland

Emma Eisses is always up for an adventure in a new country. Having been bit by the travel bug yet again, Emma is off to Iceland for seven months as an intern.

The recipient of the Nova Scotia International Business Development Internship, Emma will be travelling to Iceland to complete an internship for seven months. The paid internship, funded by the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture, was a competition open to graduates of Dalhousie’s Faculty of Agriculture and the Sobey School of Business at Saint Mary’s University. Emma was the sole recipient of the internship award.

“I feel very privileged and excited to receive this position,” Emma says. “It’s a great opportunity for me to gain experience in the international agri-food industry. I truly believe it will open some pretty amazing doors for my future and I can’t wait to see where I end up after Iceland!”

Trade and connections

A native of Debert, N.S., Emma will be working under the Trade Commissioner to Iceland. Her main goal will be building linkages between Nova Scotian agri-food exporters and Icelandic importers. She will be building connections and networks in order to strengthen trading relationships. Emma explains that a lot of trade between Iceland and Nova Scotia is within the fishing industries.

“Fisheries is one of the things we trade most with them, which is surprising because they have a strong fishing industry as well,” Emma explains. “Our fishing industries are different though so we are able to trade different types of fish and shellfish. I have always found aquaculture really interesting so I’m excited to get to work with it a bit.”

In addition to her work in Iceland, the internship program requires Emma to complete one month of work in Nova Scotia. Before she travels to Iceland, Emma will work in Halifax at the Department of Agriculture for two weeks. She will then move to Reykjavik, Iceland and work in the Canadian Embassy in Iceland for six months. After six months, she moves back to Nova Scotia and completes two more weeks at the Department of Agriculture in Halifax.

“This internship is a brand new program,” Emma says. “It’s almost like a pilot program for other countries because eventually they would like to be able to do this in other countries as well.”

Applying her expertise

Not only is she excited about the traveling opportunities, Emma is excited to be working in the area that she studied. Emma is a 2013 graduate of the Dalhousie’s Faculty of Agriculture’s International Food Business (IFB) program. The IFB program teaches students to understand the agri-food industry from a global business perspective.

The IFB program is a “dual degree” program. This means that students who graduate from the program will graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration from CAH Vilentum and a Bachelor of Agriculture in International Food Business from Dalhousie Faculty of Agriculture. Students also have the opportunity to travel through the IFB program.

In year one, North American students will study at the Dal Agricultural Campus and European students will study at CAH. Year two is offered in the Netherlands, where both groups of students will study together. This continues in year three when both groups of students study at Dal AC. Student’s complete year four at their home university. Along with their studies, students complete two different three month work placements – one in Europe and one in North America.

“The IFB program was the perfect fit for me after high school,” Emma explains. “It combined my love of agriculture and travel all into one amazing program. I grew up on a dairy farm and was in the 4-H program so I have always been involved in agriculture, but the program definitely broadened my understanding of the industry and all the different aspects associated with it. There is so much more to agriculture than people realize and I think that there are some really exciting opportunities for those that study it.”

A taste for adventure

Emma’s passion for travel started at very young age. Having come from a family of avid travelers, Emma has been many places, both with her family, her classmates, and even by herself.

“I went to Barbados last spring for five days by myself,” she laughs. “Solo trips are the best trips. You do your own thing and I have gotten to meet so many incredible people that way.”

Although her trip to Iceland will be for work rather than pleasure, Emma is just as excited. She explains that she is excited to experience the different culture. Emma has been to Iceland before, but only for a short time. She visited Iceland for one week in her first year of the IFB program. IFB students spend one week in Iceland for orientation and have the chance to meet their classmates from the partner institution. This time, the time of year that she is going, Emma explains that Iceland will experience 20 hours of darkness, something that will be very different for her.

“I’m not sure how I feel about 20 hours of darkness,” Emma laughs. “It will definitely take some getting used to!”

As her departure draws nearer, Emma looks forward to her new adventure in Iceland. She is excited to be spending time in a new country while working at something that she loves. When asked what her plans are after her internship is over, Emma explains, “I’m not sure at this point, possibly some more travel!”