Have you seen the name EIMSKIP on Portland’s waterfront? Transporting inbound items such as German chocolate and ski equipment, and outbound products like Maine blueberries, this Icelandic-based company has provided a boost to the Maine economy–one that will continue to strengthen as we maximize our international exposure. Today we speak with EIMKSIP station manager Petur Peterson, Janine Bisaillon-Cary of the Maine International Trade Center and Dana Eidsness of the Maine North Atlantic Development Office.
Guests
Janine Bisaillon – Cary
Janine Bisaillon-Cary is President of the Maine International Trade Center as well as the State Director of International Trade. In addition to leading the Trade Center and consulting with Maine’s internationally active industries, Ms. Bisaillon-Cary serves on the boards of the Maine Port Authority, the Eastern Trade Council, and the International Business and Logistics Industry Advisory Board at Maine Maritime Academy. Ms. Bisaillon-Cary is the former Vice President of MITC as well as the former Vice President of Resource Trading Company. She holds a B.A. in Economics and French from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst; a Certificate of French History and Literature from the Sorbonne University, and a Global Leaders Executive Education Certificate from Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. Ms. Bisaillon-Cary has worked for over twenty years in international markets, including the seafood export and consumer goods import markets. Her work has focused mostly on Western Europe, Latin America, and East Asia.
Dana Eidsness
Dana joined Maine International Trade Center as a partner in January 2014 to open and run the newly-formed Maine North Atlantic Development Office (MENADO). In this role, Dana works with MITC, Invest in Maine and partners to develop trade and investment opportunities for Maine businesses in North Atlantic markets, including Northern Europe, Scandinavia and Eastern Canada. Additionally, Dana interfaces with the Arctic Council Secretariat, the North Atlantic Ocean Cluster Alliance and other Arctic and North Atlantic-related organizations, to represent Maine’s interests and to ensure that the state is included in important discussions regarding North Atlantic resources, sustainable development and emerging trade routes.
In prior positions, Dana served Director of International Business for the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, managing their international program and Shanghai Office, she was Executive Director of the Forum on Democracy & Trade from 2009-2011, Vermont Director of International Trade and Director of the Vermont Global Trade Partnership from 2005-2009; and she worked as a regional director for the Maine International Trade Center and as an International Project Manager for the Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), a program of the U.S. Department of Commerce and National Institute of Standards and Technology. Earlier in her career, Dana worked in the private sector in a variety of international positions and as an international business development consultant
Eidsness holds a B.A. in International Studies, with a minor in International Business and emphasis on Chinese language and culture from Dominican University in San Rafael, CA. She completed 2 years of study at World College West (now Presidio World College in San Francisco) in the International Service and Development Program. Dana lives on Orr’s Island with her husband and two daughters.
Petur Peterson
EIMSKIP’s Portland Station Manager.