2006 Topic Competition Report For Canada

Seven Canada teams were selected to receive targeted financial literacy training prior to project implementation. The teams then shared presentations with HSBC judges as part of the Canadian National Exposition. Following are the competition winners:

National First Place

British Columbia Institute of Technology, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

BCIT SIFE created economic opportunities for struggling women entrepreneurs in poverty-stricken downtown Vancouver. The team worked especially close with one participant named Hinda, a talented chef of gourmet vinaigrettes and unique preserves. In partnership with BCIT SIFE, Hinda developed a pricing strategy, identified competitors, created effective branding, actively marketed products, and organized meetings with possible vendors. To date, Hinda's Finest has generated $15,000 in revenue, allowing Hinda to provide for her child without the aid of social assistance. Hinda's products are now sold in two Vancouver stores and she has been approached with an offer by a west coast food grocery chain.

National Second Place

University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

With their community outreach projects, UBC SIFE is looking to fuel the dreams of youth and to help struggling individuals in Vancouver's downtown eastside. The team is working to bridge the gaps in the education system for young adults and through Project Briefcase, is teaching budgeting, money management, expense management, risk and return skills to youth during an innovative and interesting workshop. The team is also operating two programs, Entrepreneurship 101 (E101), which helps teach new immigrants the central business knowledge required to start their own businesses, and Creations, which guides graduates of E101 towards the implementation of the business that they created in E101. To date, Project Briefcase has motivated over 100 youth and Creations has helped 3 new immigrants become financially stable entrepreneurs.

National Third Place

Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

The SIFE team at Wilfrid Laurier University has created incredible programs focusing on teaching financial literacy skills to women. Makeover for Success teaches women living in shelters basic financial and job searching skills like; borrowing options, debt consolidation, budgeting, basic bankruptcy concepts and information for improving credit scores. Second Chances is a program that uses interactive cases to teach female inmates how to create a business plan. The workshops also focus on personal budgeting, credit card information and how to effectively recover from bankruptcy. To date, Makeover for Success has inspired 18 women and Second Chances has inspired 35 women.

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