A Magnificent Seven

Mayor Marty Walsh will speak at the Golden Bridges conference in Boston.

The annual Golden Bridges conference in Boston has reached its Magnificent Seven mile marker.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh will be among the listed speakers at the two-day conference at Boston’s Seaport Hotel today and tomorrow.

Mayor Walsh will join Irish American leaders and visiting boosters for counties Derry, Donegal and also Belfast in the continued effort to forge stronger ties between Boston and Massachusetts and Ireland’s Northwest.

“U.S. foreign direct investment in Ireland has transformed the economy across the island, feeding into our burgeoning innovative industries and making this country the envy of our European partners,” said Irish Echo publisher and conference convener, Máirtín Ó Muilleoir.

“Traditionally, the Northwest of Ireland — Donegal and Derry — haven’t done as well as other regions from foreign direct investment but that is starting to change with the opening of the Northwest Science Park, the founding of the M2D2 incubator in Letterkenny and Derry by University of Massachusetts Lowell, and, latterly, the investments by U.S. firms OSV of Texas and Metaverse Mod Squad of California in Derry,” he said.

“But the work is only beginning as will be clear when all those pioneers of economic resurgence will come together in Boston this week for the seventh annual Golden Bridges conference.

“I’m proud to be asked to host proceedings in the illustrious company of the mayors of Boston, Derry and Donegal, as well as leading Boston business champions, attorney Maureen Bennett of Jones Day, bio-entrepreneur Susan Whoriskey, and Elizabeth Steele of MassBio.

“Rep. Dan Ryan is inviting fellow-politicians and Irish American leaders of Massachusetts to welcome the many visitors coming into Boston for Golden Bridges at a special reception in the State House at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, a fitting way to start an annual engagement which has forged new transatlantic partnerships — most notably the BelPot, a tournament for ice hockey college teams from Massachusetts in Belfast, which was born at Golden Bridges 2014.

“However, clinching new investments is the pinnacle of our transatlantic efforts which is why I am delighted that the founders of OSV and Metaverse will be recognized at the annual Golden Bridges Awards Luncheon on Thursday, 22 October.”