One UNESCO's world heritage gems, the Quebec City metropolitan region is the perfect marriage of European and North American cultures. Firmly rooted in the 21st century, the Quebec City metropolitan region has experienced unprecedented growth in recent years, with a thriving information and communications technologies sector that has helped its economy grow, diversify, and develop niches of excellence to ensure a place on the world stage.Since the American discovery, Québec City has been the gateway to the rest of the continent. Today, Quebec is strategically located in North America, less than two hours by air from the major business centers of New York, Boston, Toronto or Montreal, and just a couple of hundred kilometres from the American border by land.Open, tolerant, dynamic and creative, Quebec City's metropolitan region offers an unparalleled quality of life. As one of North America's safest cities, the region offers free access to the provincial health care system as well as to the public school system, from kindergarten to Cegep.Quebec City's metropolitan region has one of the strongest concentrations of researchers and research centers in Canada and in the Northeastern United States. A veritable melting pot of important scientific and technological advances, Quebec City's metropolitan region is bold and daring when it comes to new ideas.The economy and investment in the Québec City metropolitan region