Local education leader part of Idaho delegation to France

IDAHO FALLS — A delegation of Idaho state, businesses, and education leaders recently visited France to promote the Gem State and build new opportunities.

The trip included the local CEO of the Idaho Falls Center for the University of Idaho, Marc Skinner, who was invited to help represent Idaho’s higher education.

“I was honored for them to ask me to go,” Skinner said.

Along with Skinner, Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke, Director of Southern Idaho Economic Development Organization Jan Roger and COO of ReDox Bio-Nutrients Sam Straights.

The trip lasted five days between April 7 and April 11, during which time the group visited numerous businesses and industries to find ways to connect Idaho with the French.

Skinner said many of those businesses have operations in Idaho like Chobani with its plant in Twin Falls.

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According to Skinner, the reason for the trip was France had sent a delegation many years ago, and that group visited Chicago, Minneapolis and Twin Falls. He said this was a “return trip” with Idaho sending delegates to France this time around.

Tariffs being a constant topic of discussion within global politics, Skinner said the group wondered what the reactions might be once they arrived but were surprised by the respectful questions they got.

“We were in places of business where they import and export products, (and) export to the United States,” Skinner said. “It’s on their mind, especially in agriculture. It’s something they’re watching carefully.”

Being higher education-focused, Skinner said the group visited the University of Burgundy, which allowed him to talk with university leaders to connect the two entities through its agricultural programs.

Skinner said the University of Idaho is currently building the nation’s largest research dairy and part of the trip was finding ways to connect the French ag industry to this endeavor.

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Skinner said a memorandum of understanding is in the works to bring students from France to Idaho or Idaho to France. Talking with faculty at the University of Burgundy, he said their agricultural programs require students to go abroad for a semester.

“We would love to have those students come to Idaho, if they choose to, but we would also love to be able to create pipelines so that (Idaho) students could go and have an experience in France,” Skinner said.

With the trip now over, Skinner told EastIdahoNews.com, the work begins on maintaining those connections.

Skinner said with the University of Idaho having a focus in agriculture, he’s reached out other Idaho universities to see how these new connection could benefit them as well.

“There’s just such potential for us to do more with our peers in France,” Skinner said.

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