The Co-operators Provides $47,000 to Help Students Make an Impact!

en fran�ais

GUELPH, ON, Jan. 5 2010 – As the world’s attention has been focussed on Copenhagen and the global problem of climate change in recent weeks, Canadian students have been taking action to boost the health of the environment on their campuses, in their communities, across the country and beyond. Twelve exceptional post-secondary students who participated in Impact!: The Co-operators Youth Conference for Sustainability Leadership have received a total of $47,000 to support their environmental projects.

The four-day conference brought 180 students together in Guelph, Ontario this past September to learn from and work with sustainability experts from business, non-governmental organizations and academia. The students developed recommendations for more sustainable practices in various sectors of the economy, and each made a personal pledge to work to create a healthier, greener world in the years ahead. The Co-operators created the Impact! Fund to support them in their efforts.

The 12 successful applicants announced today are:

Keleigh Annau of Mount Allison University, who received $5,000 to expand for Lights Out Canada, an initiative that has already reached more than 125,000 students with informative presentations about energy conservation.

Robert Courteau of Bishop’s University received $1,300 for the Lennoxville Plastic Bag Ban, which is raising awareness of the environmental impacts of plastic bags in an effort to reduce and ultimately eliminate them from Lennoxville, Quebec, including the campus of Bishop’s University.

Jonathan Glencross of McGill University received $3,500 for Sustainable McGill, an initiative to provide information to students, faculty and staff to promote more sustainable practices on campus.

Alla Guelber of Royal Roads University received $5,000 to create a workshop as part of Green Jobs Workshop, which is promoting a green economy in Calgary, which is her hometown.

Am�lie Marsolais-Ricard, a student at McGill University, was granted $5,000 to support the construction of a green roof and other elements of a green bicycle shelter at College Durocher in Saint-Lambert, Quebec.

Alison McDonald of Trent University, received $5,000 toward the construction of a root cellar for the Seasoned Spoon Cooperative Caf� at the university, and to educate students and others about sustainable food systems and storage methods.

Marco Mwenda of Assiniboine Community College received a $5,000 grant to support the Marquis Project in Manitoba, which develops sustainable farming practices that are shared with farmers in Tanzania.

Emil Noordeh, who is studying at the Schulich School of Business at York University, was awarded $1,385 to help with the development of an educational video and website about water conservation, as part of the Did You Know: H2O project.

Elisabeth Poirier-Garneau, a student at Universit� de Sherbrooke, received a $5,000 grant for Sustainable Product Information: Moving Beyond the Barcode. She is researching the potential for cell phone-read bar codes on food products that would provide information including their nutritional value and environmental impacts.

Ellen Quigley, from the University of Saskatchewan, received $5,000 for Water Water Everywhere, through which she has partnered with the City of Saskatoon’s Water Treatment Division and We Are Many to supply and promote the use of tap water, rather than bottled water, at events in Saskatoon.

Eliese Watson, a student at Mount Royal College, will use her $5,000 grant to promote urban bee-keeping in order to create more ecologically diverse ecosystems within the city of Calgary. The project is called A.B.C. – Apiaries and Bees for Communities.

Sara Wicks of the University of Guelph received $1,000 for Reduce the Juice: Bike Generators. Together with other partners in Waterloo, Ontario, the youth-led conservation project will promote the use of bicycle-powered electricity generators at local cultural events and energy generating demonstrations.

More information about the conference and the projects above can be found at www.impactyouthsustainability.ca.

About Co-operators Life

Co-operators Life Insurance Company, with its head office in Regina, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Co-operators Group Limited. Through its operating subsidiaries, The Co-operators offers home, auto, life, group, travel, commercial and farm insurance, as well as investment products. The Co-operators Group Limited is a 100 per cent Canadian-owned co-operative with assets of more than $7 billion. It is owned by a group of Canadian co-operatives, credit union centrals and like-minded organizations. The Co-operators is well known for its community involvement, and is listed among the 50 Best Employers in Canada. www.cooperators.ca.


Co-operators investit 47 000 $ pour aider des �tudiants � avoir un Impact!

English

GUELPH, ON, le 5 janv. 2010 – Pendant que le monde entier avait les yeux riv�s sur le Sommet sur le climat de Copenhague, des �tudiants canadiens passaient � l’action pour am�liorer l’environnement de leur campus, de leur collectivit�, de leur pays et d’ailleurs. Ainsi, 12 �tudiants parmi les plus m�ritoires qui ont particip� � Impact!, la Conf�rence jeunesse Co-operators de leadership en d�veloppement durable, se sont partag�s 47 000 $ pour la r�alisation de leurs projets environnementaux.

Cette conf�rence de quatre jours a rassembl� en septembre dernier, � Guelph (Ontario), 180 �tudiants venus apprendre et collaborer avec des experts du d�veloppement durable provenant du milieu des affaires, du secteur non gouvernemental ainsi que du milieu universitaire. Les �tudiants ont par la suite �labor� des recommandations sur l’implantation de pratiques durables dans divers secteurs de l’�conomie, et chacun des participants s’est personnellement engag� � cr�er un monde plus sain et plus vert au cours des ann�es � venir. En soutien � leurs efforts, Co-operators a mis en place le fonds Impact!

Voici les 12 personnes dont le projet sera financ� par ce fonds :

Keleigh Annau, Mount Allison University, subvention de 5 000 $ pour la croissance du projet Lights Out Canada, une initiative qui a d�j� sensibilis� 125 000 �tudiants � l’aide de pr�sentations portant sur la conservation de l’�nergie.

Robert Courteau, Universit� Bishop’s, subvention de 1 300 $ pour le projet Lennoxville Plastic Bag Ban, qui cherche � sensibiliser la population sur les effets n�fastes des sacs en plastique sur l’environnement et dont l’objectif ultime est d’interdire l’utilisation des sacs en plastique � Lennoxville, au Qu�bec, y compris sur le campus de l’Universit� Bishop’s.

Jonathan Glencross, Universit� McGill, subvention de 3 500 $ pour le projet Sustainable McGill, une initiative d’information aupr�s des �tudiants, professeurs et employ�s de l’universit� au sujet des questions de d�veloppement durable touchant le campus.

Alla Guelber, Royal Roads University, subvention de 5 000 $ pour le d�veloppement d’un atelier dans le cadre du projet Green Jobs Workshop, qui fait la promotion de l’�conomie verte � Calgary, sa ville natale.

Am�lie Marsolais-Ricard, Universit� McGill, subvention de 5 000 $ pour la construction d’un toit vert et d’autres am�nagements d’une aire de stationnement verte pour bicyclettes au Coll�ge Durocher, � Saint-Lambert, au Qu�bec.

Alison McDonald, Trent University, subvention de 5 000 $ pour la construction d’une cave � fruits et l�gumes pour le Seasoned Spoon Cooperative Caf� de l’universit�, et pour l’information de tous les consommateurs de l’universit� au sujet des syst�mes de production et d’entreposage durables des aliments.

Marco Mwenda, Assiniboine Community College, subvention de 5 000 $ pour le projet Marquis Project au Manitoba, qui cherche � mettre au point des techniques agricoles durables et � les transmettre aux fermiers de la Tanzanie.

Emil Noordeh, Schulich School of Business, York University, subvention de 1 385 $ pour la r�alisation d’une vid�o �ducative et d’un site Web portant sur la conservation de l’eau dans le cadre du projet Did You Know: H2O.

Elisabeth Poirier-Garneau, Universit� de Sherbrooke, subvention de 5 000 $ pour le projet Donn�es sur les produits durables : au-del� du code � barres. Elle se penche sur la faisabilit� de d�velopper des codes � barres lisibles par des t�l�phones cellulaires et qui fourniraient des renseignements sur la valeur nutritionnelle des aliments et leur impact environnemental.

Ellen Quigley, University of Saskatchewan, subvention de 5 000 $ pour le projet Water Water Everywhere, en partenariat avec le Service de traitement des eaux de Saskatoon et le groupe We Are Many, pour la promotion et la fourniture d’eau d’aqueduc, au lieu d’eau embouteill�e, lors de diverses activit�s tenues � Saskatoon.

Eliese Watson, Mount Royal College, subvention de 5 000 $ pour la promotion de l’apiculture en milieu urbain afin de contribuer � la diversit� des �cosyst�mes de la ville de Calgary. Son projet s’appelle A.B.C. – Apiaries and Bees for Communities.

Sara Wicks, University of Guelph, subvention de 1 000 $ pour le projet Reduce the Juice: Bike Generators. En collaboration avec ses partenaires de Waterloo, en Ontario, ce groupe de jeunes fera la promotion de g�n�ratrices aliment�es par des bicyclettes lors d’�v�nements culturels et de d�monstrations de production d’�lectricit�.

Pour obtenir plus de d�tails au sujet de la conf�rence et des projets pr�sent�s ici, visitez le www.impactyouthsustainability.ca.

� propos de Co-operators Vie

Co-operators Compagnie d’assurance-vie, dont le si�ge social est � Regina, est une filiale en propri�t� exclusive du Groupe Co-operators limit�e. Par l’entremise de ses filiales, Co-operators offre de l’assurance habitation, automobile, vie, collective, voyage, entreprise et agricole, ainsi que des services de gestion de placements. Le Groupe Co-operators limit�e est une coop�rative enti�rement canadienne, et son actif s’�l�ve � plus de sept milliards de dollars. Il est d�tenu par des coop�ratives canadiennes, des centrales de caisses populaires et d’autres organisations � vocation semblable. Co-operators est reconnue pour sa participation communautaire et figure dans la liste des 50 employeurs de choix au Canada. www.cooperators.ca.