Okanagan College and University of British Columbia Okanagan named the 2019 Scotiabank Environmental Challenge Regional Champions
(Calgary) March 4, 2019: Students at Okanagan College and University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO) have been named the 2019 Scotiabank Environmental Challenge Regional Champions. The teams were picked by Canada’s largest experiential learning platform, Enactus Canada, and program supporter Scotiabank, for their efforts to build a greener Canada.
Students at UBCO are tackling food insecurity on campus through an initiative called Project Roots. The program repurposes food waste to increase students’ access to affordable and healthy meal options. At Okanagan College, students are taking apples that would otherwise be left to rot and creating Fruit Snaps, healthy dehydrated fruit snacks for local youth in need.
“The innovative environmental initiatives our students undertake to create a sustainable and healthy future is incredibly inspiring,” says Nicole Almond, President of Enactus Canada. “They’re proof that when organizations and communities collaborate, we have the power to drive sustainable change.”
As the regional champions, both teams will now move on to the national level of competition taking place May 8, 2019 at the Enactus Canada National Exposition in Vancouver.
Through their Project Roots, Enactus UBCO has sold over 360 produce boxes and diverted over 5,000 pounds of food waste in the last six months. At the same time, Enactus Okanagan College has diverted 1,500lbs of fruit waste and produced 300lbs of Fruit Snaps, providing 4.500 servings of fruit to more than 300 local children.
“Congratulations to the Regional Champions of the Scotiabank Environmental Challenge,” says Rod Wendt, District Vice-President, Calgary Central District, Scotiabank. “Scotiabank aims to support organizations that are committed to helping young people reach their infinite potential. As our leaders of tomorrow, the winners play an important role in protecting and conserving our environment for future generations and we look forward to seeing their achievements in Canada and internationally.”
The Scotiabank Environmental Challenge empowers post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach viable solutions to relevant environmental issues. Since 2009, 9,196 Enactus students have delivered over 846 environmental projects. Last year, they saved 11,946,205 litres of water and saved $1,769,678.85 through reduction of waste.
On March 1, student teams demonstrated the impact of their environmental initiatives to panels of business executives as part of the Enactus Canada Regional Exposition – Western Canada, held in Calgary.
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: 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.
Through our five commitments to customers, employees, communities, the environment, and strong corporate governance practices, we aim to create a better future for both society and Scotiabank. We are focused on leveraging our resources, reach, and expertise to drive economic growth, as well as protecting and enhancing our reputation, for all stakeholders and the communities where we operate. For more information on our CSR strategy please visit www.scotiabank.com/csr.