University of Ottawa Wins National Champion Title in Environmental Challenge
by Sayem Reza
In northern food-insecure communities, students from the University of Ottawa are manufacturing commercial grade hydroponic systems housed in shipping containers enabling communities to grow their own food locally.
Enactus University of Ottawa has been named the 2018 Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge National Champion by this country’s largest student leadership development organization, Enactus Canada, and proud program supporter Scotiabank. The national competition took place at the 2018 Enactus Canada National Exposition in Toronto.
Enactus University of Ottawa’s Growcer system has yielded 10,000 servings of vegetables in just 5 months. Two additional systems have been established and the team has confirmed eight additional systems to launch in the next year, which will generate over $2M in revenue and over 120,000 pounds in produce.
“Every Enactus team that participated in the Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge has played an important role in making the world more sustainable,” says Sean Albert, Senior Vice President, Toronto Region, Scotiabank. “Our partnership with Enactus is unique in that it allows us to help young people reach their infinite potential, while also driving measurable environmental change in Canadian and global communities. Congratulations to Enactus University of Ottawa.”
The Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge is a national competition empowering post-secondary students to develop and deliver projects that teach others viable solutions to relevant environmental issues. Since 2009, 7,864 students have helped conserve 35,604,157 litres of water, diverted 534,920,168 pounds of waste and introduced 9,488 organizations to green business practices.
“We are continually inspired by the innovation Enactus students bring to this challenge,” says Nicole Almond, President of Enactus Canada. “Thank you to Enactus University of Ottawa and every other team that participated in this competition for the work you’ve done to make our country greener.”
The 2018 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 results throughout the event, please follow @Enactus_Canada on Twitter. All event results will also be published on enactus.ca/events/national-exposition.
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: At Scotiabank, we aim to support organizations that are committed to helping young people reach their infinite potential. Young people are our future leaders and Scotiabank’s goal is to help ensure that they have the necessary skills and resources they need to support their success. Together with our employees, the Bank supports causes at a grassroots level. Recognized as a leader for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, in 2017, Scotiabank contributed more than $80 million to help our communities around the world.
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:
Nicole Almond
Enactus Canada
nicole@enactus.ca
(416) 702-2251
