Canadian Youth Business Foundation launches Global Entrepreneurship Week Canada 2013
Canadian Youth Business Foundation launches Global Entrepreneurship Week Canada 2013
Official host of Canada’s largest week-long celebration of entrepreneurs driving economic growth
TORONTO, ON – November 18, 2013 – Today, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) officially marks the beginning of Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) Canada, November 18-24, 2013; a week committed to celebrating entrepreneurs and inspiring young people to embrace innovation, imagination and creativity through entrepreneurship. GEW is celebrated in 140 countries around the world by 7.5 million people. The theme of GEW Canada this year is storytelling.
As the official host of GEW Canada for the fifth consecutive year, CYBF is the hub of activity for celebration events across the country, enabling and mobilizing partners from coast to coast. This year, there are over 350 events planned by over 150 host organizations, signifying the largest impact, involving the greatest number of people for this celebration to date.
“Every year during Global Entrepreneurship Week, the CYBF highlights the imagination, the creativity and the dedication ofCanada’s young entrepreneurs to the rest of the world,” said the Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism) (Agriculture). “Our government is empowering entrepreneurs by creating the best business conditions possible for entrepreneurs to be successful.”
CYBF is itself contributing to the festivities by leading a national campaign to compliment the storytelling theme – entitled “Hello My Name is…”. This campaign involves a series of online Meetups that provide successful entrepreneurs with a platform to share their story with aspiring entrepreneurs. Covering such topics as Food and Beverage businesses, “Mompreneurship”, and student entrepreneurship, the Meetups will offer not only the opportunity to hear these stories, but to ask questions of individuals who have experienced the successes and challenges of life as an entrepreneur. This campaign also offers Canadians the opportunity to submit their own entrepreneurial story for a chance to win a trip to the Global Entrepreneurship Congress 2014 inMoscow.
“Canadais a country rooted deeply in entrepreneurship. It is our intention to help inspire and support new and emerging entrepreneurs by showcasing and celebratingCanada’s entrepreneurial culture during GEW,” says Julia Deans, CEO, CYBF. “Through the ‘Hello, My Name Is…’ campaign, international activities and local events, we are helping to create new connections and opportunities to share the stories and experiences that will inform the next generation of Canadian entrepreneurs.”
On the global front, CYBF is working with organizations within the network of the Youth Business International on the Young Entrepreneurs: Around the world, around the clock campaign. This campaign, asks entrepreneurs to post a photo or a short film, telling the world about their business, what time it is and what they are doing that day. Each submission is added to world map, developed by MapHook, which charts the global youth entrepreneurship landscape around the world.
CYBF is partnering with StartupCanadaon the Canadian Mentoring Challenge, a nation-wide challenge taking place during GEW designed to fuel entrepreneurial mentoring activities across the country and to celebrate and raise the profile of mentors as a key part of the Canadian entrepreneurship community. During this week we encourage organizations and individuals acrossCanadato organize mentorship events in their communities our goal is to collectively mentor more than 10,000 enterprising Canadians.
Startup Canadais also hosting a Day on the Hill in Ottawa: a startup gathering the largest contingent ever of Canadian entrepreneurs to meet on Parliament Hill with the nation’s elected representatives to advance the national entrepreneurial agenda through a discussion of entrepreneurship and its important role in the Canadian economy.
s part of the celebrations, CYBF is pleased to recognize entrepreneurial organizations fromOttawa, led by InvestOttawa, who aim to host more GEW events than any other city in the country, a feat that they accomplished in 2012. Organizations from around the city have organized bootcamps, competitions, webinars, seminars and social events to support entrepreneurship in their community.
For more information about Global Entrepreneurship Week Canada, visit www.gewcanada.com or to hear stories from Canadian entrepreneurs and tell your own entrepreneurial story, visit www.cybf.ca/helloGEW .
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About the Canadian Youth Business Foundation – Canada’s Entrepreneur Gateway
The Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) is a national non-profit organization dedicated to growing Canada’s economy one young entrepreneur at a time. We look at character, not collateral, when providing youth aged 18-39 with pre-launch coaching, business resources, low-interest financing of up to $25,000, and industry-leading mentoring to help them launch and sustain successful businesses. CYBF’s co-financing partner, the Business Development Bank of Canada, leverages CYBF’s application process to provide up to $30,000 in additional support for CYBF entrepreneurs.
Established in 1996, CYBF has been recognized as a global leader in advancing youth entrepreneurship. CYBF is a founding member of the G20 Young Entrepreneurs’Alliance, the Canadian member of The Prince’s Youth Business International, and the Canadian host of Global Entrepreneurship Week (being held November 18-24 in 2013).
About Global Entrepreneurship Week Canada
Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) is an international movement to inspire millions of young people to embrace innovation, imagination and creativity through entrepreneurship. From November 18-24, 2013, we will come together to champion Canadian entrepreneurship as part of this global movement. Join the Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) – as we celebrate our 5th year as the official host of GEW Canada and get involved in celebrating, encouraging and showcasing entrepreneurialCanada. www.gewcanada.com.
About Youth Business International
Founded in 2000 by HRH The Prince of Wales, Youth Business International (YBI) is a global network of independent non-profit initiatives helping young people start and grow their own business and create employment. YBI supports under-served young entrepreneurs with a combination of training, access to capital, mentoring, and other business development services. YBI members have helped over 100,000 young people to create their own business and generate employment. An estimated 70% of these businesses are still trading after three years, with many going on to create significant levels of employment and further benefits for their communities. www.youthbusiness.org.
For more information please contact:
Nicolee Tattersall
Manager, Media Relations, CYBF
(416) 408-2923, ext. 2208
ntattersall@cybf.ca
