Earlier this month, Sudbury served as the first Canadian classroom for a new international training program giving Peruvian engineering students practical exposure to a mature mining ecosystem.

Eleven Mining Engineering and Environmental Engineering students from Universidad Nacional Santiago Antúnez de Mayolo in Ancash, Peru, visited Sudbury as the inaugural cohort of CORE-PACT, Peru Applied Capacity Training.

The program combined technical training, site visits and direct interaction with mining companies, researchers and post secondary institutions. For Paola Fischer, COO & Vice President of Core World Foundation Corporation, the objective was to help students better understand the industry they would enter after graduation.

“We wanted them, once they graduated and went into a mining site, to be confident and to be a better asset to the company,” Fischer said. “They could see what was possible.”

CORE-PACT was launched by NORCAT and Core World Foundation Corporation at PDAC 2026 as a capacity building initiative connecting Canadian mining expertise with Peruvian universities and mining stakeholders. NORCAT brought its experience in industry training and applied mining technology, while Core World Foundation led coordination with universities, regional authorities and mining companies in Peru.

At the launch, NORCAT Chief Operating Officer Jason Bubba said, “By combining Canadian expertise with strong institutional partnerships in Peru, we are building capacity that will drive safer operations, stronger environmental stewardship, and long-term impact.”

 NORCAT Underground Centre

During the first days of the program, students followed learning streams related to their areas of study. Mining Engineering students spent two days at the NORCAT Underground Centre, where classroom learning was combined with exposure to an underground training environment. Environmental Engineering students explored Sudbury remediation sites with Dr. Graeme Spiers and visited MIRARCO Mining Innovation’s Centre for Mine Waste, where they spent time with Dr. Nadia Mykytczuk learning how biotechnology could help the mining industry recover valuable materials from mine waste while reducing long-term environmental liabilities

MIRARCO Mining Innovation’s Centre for Mine Waste

The group also visited Cambrian College, where students attended a presentation on programs and courses supporting the future mining workforce, followed by a tour of the Centre for Smart Mining. The visit showed how academic learning is applied to real industry challenges, including a custom tow behind toboggan developed for RuffDiamond Ltd. The itinerary also included Technica Mining’s Advanced Training Centre and Dynamic Earth, where students learned about underground operations, mine safety, technology, Sudbury’s mining history and environmental recovery.

Cambrian College Centre for Smart Mining

That recovery made a strong impression on Keyla Espinoza, one of the Mining Engineering students.

“The first thing that surprised me when I arrived in Sudbury was the care for the environment,” Espinoza said. “I did not expect a mining city with so many mines to have an environment that was so well protected. What impressed me most was learning that about 50 years earlier Sudbury had been a city that was heavily affected by mining. To see the change that had taken place and how the environment had been restored was very innovative. I thought there were lessons that could be replicated in other countries.”

Fischer said Sudbury’s experience was particularly relevant to Peru, a major mining country with significant mineral resources and diverse ecosystems.

“Sudbury is very unique because it has everything there,” she said. She also saw the city’s recovery as an example of collaboration. “You didn’t stay with the problem and fight about whose fault it had been,” she said. “You found a solution and everybody worked together. It was an amazing lesson for the world.”

Seeing mining technology in practice

 Normet

The students also visited Normet, where they were introduced to technologies used in modern mining operations.

Celine Tellier, a Business Development and Marketing Representative with Normet said that connecting with students was important as mining technology continued to evolve.

“Normet is a global company, but we like to share our knowledge and technology with the next generation of mining engineers,” Tellier said.

“When they saw the technology, they were learning about it, and they could actually see it being used in practice.”

Joaquin Barboza, a Mining Engineering student, said the differences in equipment, practices and safety culture were among the most valuable parts of the Sudbury experience.

“The way people work, the regulations and the equipment are all different,” he said. “One of the things I can take back to Peru is knowledge about the machinery and how the work is done.”

Safety also stood out. “I had been told that safety is the first priority in Sudbury, and that was very important to me. It was a great opportunity, and I wanted to learn as much as I could and take that knowledge back to our country.”

Tellier said joining MineConnect offered Normet another way to strengthen connections across the sector.

“MineConnect, by definition, is connected,” she said. “The opportunities are everywhere for us to scale, to expand and to bring Normet out to markets that may not be familiar with us.”

Building connections between Peru and Northern Ontario

Fischer hopes CORE-PACT will grow beyond its first cohort. Other Peruvian universities have already expressed interest, and future groups are being considered.

She also wants to see the exchange work in both directions, with Canadian students travelling to Peru to experience its mining sector.

With post secondary institutions, research organizations and mining suppliers represented within MineConnect membership, she sees opportunities to create further connections between the two jurisdictions.

“It’s all about learning from each other’s experiences,” Fischer said.

“It’s the very beginning. Hopefully it will become a beautiful exchange and friendship between Peru and Canada.”

For the students, the first CORE-PACT visit offered a chance to see how mining technology, education, research and environmental restoration come together in Northern Ontario.

For Sudbury, it was an opportunity to share that experience with the next generation of mining professionals.