Calling Canadian Youth

Are you young, creative, looking for a way to make your summer meaningful, and want to help pave the path toward sustainability?

If you answered yes to these questions and have a plan to create benefits for the environment, the Youth for Sustainability (Y4S) contest is for you. This contest will give your idea momentum with funding and mentoring from the top minds in the Canadian natural foods and sustainability movement.

Create an impact

Y4S is seeking ideas that address specific needs for young people, create an impact beyond one community, and reduce carbon consumption through education. The contest features online voting from your friends, colleagues, and the Canadian public, with the final winners to be selected by a panel of judges. If you’re 25 and under or work with youth you can enter to win by going to youth4sustainability.com.

What exactly will a project look like? This is up to you—to be a leader and create a project with an enormous impact. The competition is looking for your innovation and vision. The best part is that the prominent companies sponsoring the competition will be there to help you be as successful as possible.

Help from Spiral Table

There are three funding levels: Small Idea, under $1,500; Medium Idea, $1,500 to $5,000; and Big Idea, $5,000 to $10,000. The winners of each category will receive funding to carry out their projects. It is expected that a total of five to 10 projects will be awarded.

Y4S is a call to action from Spiral Table*. The members of Spiral Table are Canadian health food industry leaders who are working with sustainability facilitators to bring about positive changes in our world. The goal is to engage Canadian youth in creating a more hopeful and sustainable future.

“We’re looking to youth to tell us how they want their future to be. We believe young Canadians have a great deal at stake and want to take action now to see positive and tangible changes in our world. This is why we started Youth for Sustainability,” says Charles Chang, owner of Sequel Naturals Ltd. and Spiral Table member.

According to Rob Sinclair, Spiral Table facilitator: “Our intention is to see the impact these projects will have toward creating a more sustainable world. Youth have a huge desire and know-how to create change. We want to run alongside this next generation of change makers. The Spiral Table members and sponsors of the contest keenly wanted to donate and give back to the community and that was the impetus for this competition.”

The Spiral Table members are Stewart Brown, Founder/CEO, Genuine Health; Charles Chang, Founder/President, Sequel Naturals Ltd.; Ian Walker, Founder/CEO, Left Coast Naturals; Bruce Martin, General Manager, Community Natural Foods; Randy Whitteker, General Manager, Ontario Natural Food Co-op; Rob Sinclair, Founder/Chief Collaboration Officer, Conscious Brands; and Miriam Karell, Founding Sustainability Strategist, Three Point Vision.