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Attention: Assignment/Business/Education/Aboriginal Affairs Editors
BDC Announces Winners of E-Spirit 2006
Québec City, QC, May 11, 2006 – The winners of the 6th annual E-Spirit Aboriginal Youth Business Plan Competition were announced last night in Québec City at a special awards ceremony for almost 300 Aboriginal youth from across the country.
The business planning competition, organized by BDC, featured 16 weeks of interactive business planning resources, access to mentors online and a chance to meet and network with other students, online, and in person at the 3-day event.
This year's event involved a total of 183 teams from 77 schools and over 600 students from across Canada. In addition to presentations by each team, an independent panel of experts judged business displays that included posters, detailed 3D mock-ups, product samples, business cards, promotional videos and laptop demonstrations.
"The Government of Canada is committed to improving opportunities for all Canadians, including Aboriginal peoples," said the Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). "Programs like the E-Spirit Competition serve to help young Aboriginals to participate more fully in the economic development of Atlantic Canada."
E-Spirit 2006 winners
The Gold Award was presented to R.B. Russell Vocational School of Winnipeg, Manitoba. The students are Jessica Bricklin and Laytoya Thompson, coached by Cora Bell. Their business, Eagles Nest Store, offers R.B. Russell high school students healthy alternatives such as fruits and vegetables at an inexpensive price, as well as everything from snacks, drinks and sandwiches to school supplies and health and beauty items.
The Silver Award was awarded to Technical Vocational High School of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Winning students are Michael Black, Marcel McKenzie and Robert Fontaine. Their coach was Kerry Raffey. Their business concept, Water Management Solutions Ltd., would provide water and wastewater treatment to offer customers safe, clean and pure water that meets or exceeds Canada's quality standards for urban centres.
The Bronze Award was given to Grand Forks Secondary School, from Grand Forks, British Columbia. Students awarded are Kate Russell, Cassandra Lum and Naomi McLeod. The team was coached by Anna Groeneveld. Their winning business idea, Indian paintbrush Collective, is a web portal making Aboriginal art available to global audiences. The web site will also allow artists to customize the page featuring their art and information with images and sound bites.
"The E-Spirit judging panel was very impressed with the presentations from participating teams. Business plans and booth displays showed a high level of quality, according to Jean-René Halde, President and CEO, BDC. Teams who were awarded prizes tonight should be very proud of their achievements. In fact, thanks to the significant business experience and skills attained through E-Spirit, all students will go home winners."
"E-Spirit is a great way to introduce youth to the benefits and challenges of being a real-life entrepreneur," said E-Spirit Elder, Grand Chief Max Gros-Louis. "All participants have acquired priceless experience and will not go home empty-handed," he added.
Cash prizes were awarded to the three winning schools in the amount of $2,500 for Gold, $1,500 for Silver and $750 for Bronze. Nine special achievement awards were also presented in addition to the cash prizes.
About BDC Aboriginal Banking
With more than 20,000 Aboriginals running their own businesses, Aboriginal communities show higher rates of new business creation and self-employment growth than the Canadian average. With this increased activity comes the need for a greater variety of consulting and financial services. BDC Aboriginal Banking consists of Aboriginal people who are aware of the specific needs of Aboriginal entrepreneurs, and play a leading role in the development and delivery of BDC's customized, long-term, and flexible solutions.
The E-Spirit program was developed by BDC and is supported by Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA).
About BDC
BDC is a financial institution wholly owned by the Government of Canada. BDC plays a complementary role in delivering financial, investment and consulting services to Canadian small business, with a particular focus on the technology and export sectors of the economy.
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