(TORONTO) May 18 2021: Natalie Suzor, student at University of Windsor, was named 2021 HSBC Women’s Entrepreneurial Leader by Canada’s largest student leadership development organization, Enactus Canada, and long-time program partner, HSBC Bank Canada.
Currently the project manager for The Liberty Project at Enactus Windsor, Natalie‘s work with The Liberty Project employs women who have overcome human trafficking, addiction, and abuse to take part in a 10-week consultation and transitional employment program. Through The Liberty Project, over 4,500 people were impacted whilst creating employment opportunities for 8 people and providing financial education to 110 people.
The HSBC Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership award is designed to recognize, celebrate and honour women university and college students who exemplify success and inspire their peers, community and country through entrepreneurial leadership. The program has been running for eleven years and has engaged hundreds of women leaders across the country. The award announcement took place at the 2021 Enactus Canada National Exposition on May 18.
“As we strive to create an environment where diversity thrives, we are thrilled to support the next generation of female leaders through our partnership with Enactus,” says Caroline Tose, Chief Operating Officer, HSBC Bank Canada, and executive sponsor for the partnership. “A big congratulations to all the nominees and 2021 HSBC Woman Entrepreneurial Leader of the Year, Natalie Suzor.”
In recognition of the national award, Natalie Suzor and the Enactus team at the University of Windsor will receive a $2,500 bursary and a $5,000 project grant to be used in the development and delivery of an initiative focused on the advancement of women in their community.
The top 50 award applicants were also invited to participate in the HSBC Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership Forum held as part of the 2021 Enactus Canada National Exposition. This forum inspires open dialogue, builds leadership aptitude and establishes connections amongst generations of top entrepreneurial women leaders.
The following five students were also recipients of the HSBC Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership award and will receive a $1,000 bursary and $2,500 project grant for their Enactus teams:
- Sandra Adderley-Melbourne from George Brown College faced the challenges of this year with true entrepreneurial leadership by looking at things from a different perspective. Sandra helped pivot projects and overcame barriers to empower her team of 50 members and 6 projects to create positive impact in the community.
- Adrianna Biernat from Nova Scotia Community College – Ivany saw this challenging year as an opportunity and focused on leveraging the online environment to grow her team of ONE to 61 members across 6 NSCC campuses.
- Andrea Dyck from Lambton College led and grew One Future – an agricultural project focused on Indigenous communities across Canada. One Future grew from 5 First Nations to 31 First nations whilst securing funding for 3 aquaponics facilities and 4 greenhouses. This helps enhance food security for 7,061 people, create 9 full and part-time jobs and supply the three Nations with a total of 725,400 pounds of food worth $835,290.
- Navy Nguyen from Cape Breton University helped her team launch Unpack – a social enterprise that delivers groceries to students and community members who have been unable to access stores due to restrictions brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. Unpack has created 10 new employment opportunities while bringing food to 16 homes through their connections with Walmart and PC Express.
- Nicole Sapieha, Okanagan College led her team to create a financially sustainable social enterprise model with their flag ship project, Fruit Snaps. Due to the dedication of Nicole and her team, Fruit Snaps successfully diverted 18,000 lbs of waste, saved 3.8 million liters of water, prevented 36 tonnes of CO2 emissions whilst donating 34,000 servings of Fruit Snaps to local schools and food banks.
The Enactus Canada National Exposition unites 1,500 delegates including the country’s brightest university and college students, academic professionals and top Canadian CEOs to enable progress by supporting entrepreneurial action through competition, recognition and education.
For competition updates, visit nationals.enactus.ca. All competition results will also be published on enactus.ca/events/national-exposition following the event.
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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 HSBC BANK CANADA: HSBC Bank Canada, a subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc, is the leading international bank in the country. We help companies and individuals across Canada to do business and manage their finances internationally through three global business lines: Commercial Banking, Global Banking and Markets, and Wealth and Personal Banking. HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC Bank Canada, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 64 countries and territories in Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa. With assets of US$2,984bn at 31 December 2020, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organizations.
Media Inquiries:
Gaston Calzato
Manager, Marketing & Communications
Enactus Canada
gaston@enactus.ca | 647.867.6357