(HALIFAX) 19 March 2018 – At the College of the North Atlantic, Grand Falls-Windsor, students are transforming used plastic bags into a plastic yarn to make mats for homeless individuals.
At Saint Mary’s University, students use food waste to solve food insecurity through two different initiatives: an affordable produce bundle service and a restaurant token program that serves people in need.
Thanks to these initiatives, Enactus CNA Grand Falls-Windsor and Enactus Saint Mary’s University have been named 2018 Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge Regional Champions. The teams were picked by Canada’s largest experiential learning platform, Enactus Canada, and program supporter Scotiabank.
“The innovation our students showcase through their environmental initiatives is incredibly inspiring,” said Nicole Almond, President of Enactus Canada. “They’re proof that when organizations and communities collaborate, we have the power to drive sustainable change.”
This year, through Enactus CNA Grand Falls-Windsor’s project, Hope Matters, 12,000 bags have been recycled and 24 mats were distributed to people in need.
As Enactus Saint Mary’s Square Roots project expands across the province, bundle sales have increased by 400% and token sales by 300% since May. Over 3,000 people have been directly impacted, 3M litres of water conserved and 30,000 pounds of waste diverted.
“Congratulations to College of the North Atlantic, Grand Falls-Windsor and Saint Mary’s University for their incredible work as part of the 2018 Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge,” said Craig Thompson, Senior Vice President, Atlantic Region, Scotiabank. “At Scotiabank, we know the importance of helping to provide young people, our future leaders, with the skills and resources they need to succeed. We are truly inspired by the talent and drive of these students, who are committed to supporting a more sustainable future.”
The Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge empowers post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach viable solutions to relevant environmental issues. Since 2009, 7,864 Enactus students have helped conserve 35,604,157 litres of water, divert 534,920,168 pounds of waste, and introduce 9,488 organizations to green business practices.
On March 16, student teams demonstrated the impact of their environmental initiatives to panels of business executives as part of the Enactus Canada Regional Exposition – Atlantic Canada, held in Mississauga.
Enactus CNA Grand Falls-Windsor and Enactus Saint Mary’s will now move on to the national level of competition taking place May 14-16 at the 2018 Enactus Canada National Exposition, taking place in Toronto.
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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 3,300 post-secondary students led 275 community empowerment projects and business ventures last year in communities coast to coast, positively impacting over 26,000 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 believes that every customer has the right to become better off. When customers succeed, businesses, communities, and entire societies benefit as well. Through our CSR strategy, Better Future, Better Off, we seek to create economic, social and environmental value that benefits every customer. 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. For more information on our priorities and the impact we have made, please visit www.scotiabank.com/csr.
Scotiabank is Canada’s international bank and a leading financial services provider in North America, Latin America, the Caribbean and Central America, and Asia-Pacific. We are dedicated to helping our 24 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 89,000 employees and assets of over $923 billion (as at January 31, 2018), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (TSX: BNS) and New York Exchanges (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @Scotiabank.
Media Inquiries:
Jennifer Falzon
Director, Marketing & Strategic Growth, Enactus Canada
jen@enactus.ca | 416.304.1566 x222