(CALGARY) 6 March 2017 – From empowering senior citizens to use technology to reconnect with loved ones to developing a simulated economy that teaches elementary school children the basics of financial literacy, young adults are taking charge to change lives for the better.
And these are just a few of the projects presented at the Enactus Canada Regional Exposition, which took place March 3-4 in Calgary.
“The event inspires and celebrates the entrepreneurial action of student teams across Western Canada,” said Nicole Almond, President of Enactus Canada, the country’s largest post-secondary experiential learning platform. “Like in business, competition drives creativity and results. Year after year, our students continue to amaze us through their innovation, drive to succeed and desire to give back.”
Four team-based competitions focused on financial education, environmental sustainability, youth empowerment and entrepreneurship took place at the event. Post-secondary student teams demonstrated the impact of their projects to panels of business executives serving as judges. Regional Champions were named in each category and will now move on to compete nationally May 9-11 at the 2017 Enactus Canada National Exposition in Vancouver.
The Capital One Financial Education Challenge is a national competition empowering post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach relevant financial skills. Since 2012, this challenge has engaged 6,316 students across the country, resulting in 620 financial education outreach projects, and directly impacting the financial futures of 69,826 people.
2017 Capital One Financial Education Challenge Regional Champions for Western Canada:
• Simon Fraser University: Count On Me
Count On Me is an 8-week workshop targeting 15-19 year-old mothers and at-risk youth that focuses on budgeting, banking, resume-building and healthy cooking. Count On Me has helped young mothers save $36 a week through better meal preparation with government cheques lasting 2.75 weeks longer. Through Count On Me, 90 youth have been directly impacted.
• Okanagan College: CANSave
CANSave is a 6-week program that teaches elementary school students the fundamentals of financial literacy. Since January 2016, CANSave has impacted over 6,000 grade 1-3 students in 91 communities across Canada with 98 per cent of students successfully completing the program.
The Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge empowers post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach viable solutions to relevant environmental issues. Since 2010, 6,518 students have helped conserve 24,405,251 litres of water, diverted 168,653,116 pounds of waste and introduced 3,322 organizations to green business practices.
2017 Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge Regional Champions for Western Canada:
• Mount Royal University: Unravelled
Unravelled is an initiative that repurposes textile waste into high-quality, zero waste yarn. In only four months, the team has collected and transformed 480 pounds in t-shirt waste into yarn while also conserving more than 3.2 million liters of water.
• Simon Fraser University: Coast Cards
Coast Cards is a social enterprise that upcycles used coasters from local restaurants into handmade greeting cards. To date, the project has diverted 1128 coasters from Canadian landfills and has reduced 77 pounds of C02 emissions. Based on an anticipated 25 per cent increase in sales, they will divert 4200 coasters and 285 pounds of C02 emissions by the end of their first year in operation.
The Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge encourages post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that address the needs and opportunities facing youth. Focused on education, learning skills and supporting the life-long success of youth aged 25 and under, this challenge has engaged 3,175 students since 2016, who have impacted more than 15,922 youth through 149 community empowerment projects.
2017 Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge Regional Champions for Western Canada:
• Simon Fraser University: Count On Me
Count On Me is an 8-week workshop targeting 15-19 year-old mothers and at-risk youth that focuses on budgeting, banking, resume-building and healthy cooking. Through Count On Me, 90 youth received workforce training and now feel more confident applying for employment. On average young mothers saved $36 / week from not eating out and all participants redirected spending toward necessary expenditures including long-term savings plans.
• Okanagan College: CANSave
Using a simulated economy, the six-week CANSave program teaches elementary school students the fundamentals of financial literacy including budgeting, saving for the future and helping others in need. Since January 2016, CANSave has impacted over 6,000 grade 1-3 students in 91 communities across Canada, with 98 per cent of students successfully completing the program.
The TD Entrepreneurship Challenge is a national competition empowering post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach relevant entrepreneurship skills to aspiring and existing entrepreneurs. Since 2007, 13,018 students have exposed 67,875 people to entrepreneurship as a viable career path and have positively impacted 15,893 entrepreneurs.
2017 TD Entrepreneurship Challenge Regional Champions for Western Canada:
• Okanagan College: Silver Surfers
To combat feelings of loneliness and depression, Silver Surfers is a mentorship program aimed at equipping seniors with the basic functions of everyday technology to help them regularly reconnect with loved ones. Silver Surfers has empowered 96 senior citizens across five different retirement homes. Seniors surveyed after participation reported using technology to connect with loved ones 1-2 times per week. With the help of corporate partners, Enactus Okanagan will also be providing permanent iPad stations in retirement homes to ensure all seniors have access to technology.
• Simon Fraser University: Coast Cards
Coast Cards is a social enterprise that employs people who have overcome addiction to upcycle used coasters into beautiful, handmade greeting cards. The team also partnered with John Volken Academy, the largest recovery centre in Western Canada to create transitional, part-time work opportunities for recovering addicts. The project currently employs five recovering addicts from the John Volken Academy, earning $12/hour.
A summary of the 2017 Enactus Canada Regional Exposition results can be viewed at enactus.ca/events/regional-expositions/western-canada.
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ABOUT ENACTUS CANADA: Enactus Canada, 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 2,734 entrepreneurial post-secondary students led 280 community empowerment projects and business ventures last year in communities coast to coast. 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.
Media Inquiries:
Jennifer Falzon
Director, Marketing & Strategic Growth, Enactus Canada
jen@enactus.ca | 416.304.1566 x222 | 416.315.2099