Students at Ryerson University, the University of Ottawa, the University of Toronto and the University of Windsor named 2019 Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge Regional Champions
(Mississauga) March 11, 2019: Students at Ryerson University, the University of Ottawa, the University of Toronto (UofT) and the University of Windsor have been named 2019 Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge Regional Champions will now move on to the national level of competition taking place May 8, 2019 at the 2019 Enactus Canada National Exposition, taking place in Vancouver. Canada’s largest experiential learning platform, Enactus Canada, and program supporter Scotiabank selected these teams.
- Ryerson University- partnered with a local school in Pisac, Peru to implement a horticultural education program designed to generate a sustainable revenue stream for the school.
- University of Ottawa developed Poly, a social enterprise that manufactures small-scale plastic recycling systems allowing anyone to create their own business.
- UofT’s St. George campus students recognized for developing YouElevate, providing internship opportunities for youth to teach practical, applicable skills at local start-ups.
- University of Windsor launched a 10-week one-on-one mentorship focused on youth financial literacy, marketing, budgeting and green practices.
Enactus Ryerson’s Project Sacred Valley has directly influenced over 240 youth and produced over 1300 pounds of organic produce in the last year. Through Poly they have employed 10 at-risk and disabled youth. Enactus University of Windsor’s Youthrive program has exposed 650 youth to entrepreneurship, as they created 186 eco-friendly businesses that generated nearly $30,000 in revenues.
“Being a young Canadian isn’t easy; they are experiencing high unemployment rates and increasing debt levels,” says Nicole Almond, President of Enactus Canada. “Through this challenge, we encourage young Canadians to disrupt this cycle by empowering fellow youth to take charge of their personal and professional futures.”
“At Scotiabank, we are committed to helping young people reach their infinite potential and supporting organizations that share this goal is one way we deliver on this commitment,” says Rachel Donoghue
District Vice-President, Mississauga, Scotiabank. “Congratulations to the Regional Champions, Ryerson University, the University of Ottawa, the University of Toronto and the University of Windsor, who have displayed a tremendous amount of passion and creativity through their work in the 2019 Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge.”
On March 8, student teams demonstrated their youth empowerment projects to panels of business executives as part of the Enactus Canada Regional Exposition – Central Canada, held in Mississauga.
ABOUT ENACTUS CANADA: Enactus Canada, a national charity and the country’s largest post-secondary experiential learning platform, is shaping entrepreneurial leaders who are passionate about advancing the economic, social and environmental health of Canada. Guided by academic advisors and business experts, more than 3,498 post-secondary students led 275 community empowerment projects and business ventures last year in communities coast to coast, positively impacting over 28,000 lives.
As a global network of 36 countries, Enactus uses the power of entrepreneurial action to transform lives and shape a better, more sustainable world. For more information, visit enactus.ca.
ABOUT SCOTIABANK:
At Scotiabank, we aim to support organizations that are committed to helping young people reach their infinite potential. Young people are our future leaders and Scotiabank’s goal is to help ensure that they have the necessary skills and resources they need to support their success. Together with our employees, the Bank supports causes at a grassroots level. Recognized as a leader for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, in 2018, Scotiabank contributed more than $80 million to help our communities around the world.
Scotiabank is Canada’s international bank and a leading financial services provider in the Americas. We are dedicated to helping our more than 25 million customers become better off through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of more than 97,000 employees and assets of $998 billion (as at October 31, 2018), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.