University of Windsor Students Named National Champions of Youth Empowerment

VANCOUVER, May 11, 2017 /3BL Media/ - Upon learning that 60 per cent of students leave high school without basic financial education, students from the University of Windsor created Youthrive, an intensive 10-week one-on-one consulting and financial literacy education program focused on accelerating young entrepreneurs.

Enactus University of Windsor has been named the 2017 Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge National Champion by this country's largest student leadership development organization, Enactus Canada, and program supporter Scotiabank. The national competition took place at the 2017 Enactus Canada National Exposition in Vancouver.

Through Youthrive, 265 youth have been empowered and over 4,500 lives have been improved.

"Young people are our future leaders; it is inspiring to see what kind of leaders they will become by looking at the engaging, compassionate and creative work done by the participants of the Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge," said Terri Williams, Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility at Scotiabank. "Congratulations to the winners and to everyone who took part in projects to address the needs and opportunities facing youth. The Enactus teams are truly making a difference in the lives of young people in communities across Canada."

The Scotiabank Youth Empowerment Challenge is a national competition that 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 5,085 students since 2016, who have impacted more than 26,505 youth through 302 community empowerment projects.

"By focusing on youth, Enactus University of Windsor is making a real impact on the long-term sustainability of their communities," says Nicole Almond, Enactus Canada president.

The 2017 Enactus Canada National Exposition welcomed 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 during 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, 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.

ABOUT SCOTIABANK: At Scotiabank, we aim to support organizations that are committed to helping young people reach their full 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 2016, Scotiabank contributed more than $70 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 23 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 88,000 employees and assets of $887 billion (as at January 31, 2017), 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 @ScotiabankViews.

SOURCE Scotiabank

For media enquiries only: Jen Falzon, Enactus Canada, jen@enactus.ca, (416) 315-2099; Diana Hart, Public and Corporate Affairs, Scotiabank, diana.hart@scotiabank.com, (416) 866-7238