(TORONTO) March 22, 2021 – The Enactus Team at Nova Scotia Community College – Ivany have created Project Hive Five – an eco-friendly beeswax food wrap whilst employing at-risk youth.
A group of students from the Enactus team at Saint Mary’s University have managed to reduce food waste by redistributing surplus produce to those who need it most through Square Roots.
The Enactus team at Durham College created 3eehive – an apparel brand that protects the dwindling bee population by providing educational tools to combat bee habitat destruction with through embedded seed tags that allow customers to grow their own impact.
POLY is a social enterprise created by the Enactus team at the University of Ottawa that manufactures small-scale plastic recycling systems to reduce plastic waste.
The Enactus team at Wilfrid Laurier University – Waterloo have created dissolvable shampoo/conditioner/body wash tablets that reduce plastic bottle waste through EarthSuds.
Seeder is a social enterprise created by the Enactus team at University of British Columbia – Vancouver that repurposes on-campus food waste and serves it on a pay-what-you-can basis to ensure everyone has access to the food they need.
The Enactus team at Okanagan College has created Fruit Snaps – a healthy and delicious snack made with unwanted fruit from orchards. They also create apple juice using the same resources.
Thanks to these initiatives, Enactus Nova Scotia Community College – Ivany, Enactus Saint Mary’s University, Enactus Durham College, Enactus University of Ottawa, Enactus Wilfrid Laurier University – Waterloo, Enactus University of British Columbia – Vancouver and Enactus Okanagan College have been named 2021 Scotiabank Climate Action Challenge Regional Champions. The teams were chosen by Canada’s largest experiential learning platform, Enactus Canada, and program supporter Scotiabank.
“The creative solutions Enactus students developed and executed to tackle climate issues are truly inspiring,” said Nicole Almond, President of Enactus Canada. “They exhibit the forward-thinking business acumen our future leaders need to drive sustainable change.”
To date, Project Hive Five has diverted $1200 worth of waste. Square Roots has provided fresh fruits and vegetables to over 14,800 households this year whilst diverting 64.71 metric tonnes of waste. Through 3eehive, 21,000 wildflower seeds were distributed as they impacted over 30,000 people. Thanks to POLY’s initiatives, they were able to divert over 40,000 water bottles worth of plastic. EarthSuds has conserved over 16,000 litres of water. Through Seeder, 250 people were impacted through their efforts. Thanks to Fruit Snaps, 36 tonnes of Greenhouse Gas Emissions have been diverted.
In addition to the above–mentioned Regional Champions, Enactus University of Ottawa received the Best Project Idea Award for their mycelium-based packaging idea after competing in a national live project idea pitch competition Friday morning.
“We are proud to support Enactus Canada and their entrepreneurial approach to advancing the economic, social and environmental health of Canada,” says Sandra Odendahl, Scotiabank Vice President, Social Impact and Sustainability. “A well-deserved congratulations to the Scotiabank Climate Action Challenge Regional Champions and Best Project Idea Award recipient. We can’t wait to see the impact your work will have in driving positive environmental change.
These Enactus teams will now move on to the national level of competition taking place virtually in May 2021.
The Scotiabank Climate Action Challenge empowers post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach and empower others to tackle climate change and its impacts. Student teams from Western, Central and Atlantic Canada presented the impact of their climate projects through video-based presentations to panels of business executives serving as judges as part of the Enactus Canada Regional Competition. Since 2009, through this challenge, 11,454 Enactus students have helped conserve 639,951,197 litres of water, divert 458,022 tonnes of C02 emissions and introduce 10,797 organizations to green business practices. The Scotiabank Climate Action Best Project Idea Award launched last year in an effort to encourage the generation of new project ideas.
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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 3,000 post-secondary students led 275 community empowerment projects and business ventures last year in communities coast to coast, directly impacting over 39,000 lives.
As a global network of 35 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: Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: “for every future”, we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success 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 approximately 90,000 employees and assets of approximately $1.2 trillion (as at January 31, 2021), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.
Media Inquiries:
Gaston Calzato
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Enactus Canada
gaston@enactus.ca | 647.867.6357
Stephanie Cangelosi,
Scotiabank
Stephanie.Cangelosi@Scotiabank.com
416-816-5453