Published October 4, 2012
by iris_author
Top CEOs from Walmart, Ford, Google, CN and SC Johnson to judge post-secondary students on game-changing green business innovations
TORONTO, September 25, 2012 – Do you know a post-secondary student who has the vision to change Canada’s business landscape and the confidence to pitch their creative ideas to top CEOs?
For the second year, Walmart Canada is running the Green Student Challenge where teams of post-secondary students from across the country have an opportunity to convince some of Canada’s most successful business leaders that they have the most compelling breakthrough idea to change business as we know it. A total of $100,000 in cash will be awarded including $25,000 to the winners and $25,000 to the winners’ school.
The preeminent panel of judges includes Shelley Broader, president and CEO of Walmart Canada, Dianne Craig, CEO of Ford Motor Company of Canada, Chris O’Neill, managing director of Google Canada, Claude Mongeau, president and CEO of CN, Ana Dominguez, president and general manager of SC Johnson Canada. The challenge is a celebration of our country’s future business leaders and provides a rare opportunity for students from across Canada to showcase their talent in front of some of Canada’s most accomplished business leaders.
“Every member of our judging panel has signed on because they recognize the value of discovering the young minds who will change the future landscape of Canadian businesses by thinking green,” said Shelley Broader, president and CEO of Walmart Canada. “Businesses today are looking for ways to introduce sustainable business practices that improve the bottom line. The Walmart Green Student Challenge gives students the chance to introduce Canada’s next big sustainable business idea.”
The winner of the inaugural Walmart Green Student Challenge in February 2012 was a team of three from the University of Waterloo that presented an integrated energy hub for retail distribution centres. The hub would integrate solar rooftop panels, be connected to the smart electricity grid to provide grid balancing and auxiliary services, and produce net economic benefits estimated at $1.35 million per year over 20 years.
“Last year’s winners pushed the boundaries of innovative thinking, and I am thrilled to confirm Walmart Canada is investigating the feasibility of implementing their winning entry,” said Andy Ellis, senior vice president of supply chain and logistics with Walmart Canada. “The leadership, vision and passion demonstrated by last year’s semi-finalists were beyond what we expected, and it demonstrated the quality of leadership that exists among our country’s best and brightest students.”
The panel of judges will be looking for three key criteria when they evaluate the proposals of this year’s Walmart Green Student Challenge submissions: the winning idea will present a new way of doing business, have a significant sustainability benefit, and have a strong business case to back it up.
To learn more about the Walmart Green Student Challenge and how to enter, please visitwww.greenstudentchallenge.ca, visit our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/WalmartGSC or follow us on twitter at @WalmartGSC.
Posted in: Opportunities
