Terasen Gas competition for B.C.’s brightest young environmental minds
| April 17, 2009 |  Follow us on Twitter |
SURREY, B.C. – Do you know how much water the average British Columbian uses per day? What about the two most common sources of air pollution? Chances are more than 400 students from around the province know the answer to these questions, and more.
The annual Terasen Gas Environmental Mind Grind starts this weekend, in honour of Earth Day this coming week. Elementary, middle and high school students from the Interior, Okanagan and Nanaimo will meet for an academic challenge designed to promote responsible environmental stewardship.
“We’re very pleased to be a part of this event. This is our fifth year supporting the Mind Grind, which puts students’ knowledge of local environmental issues to the test,” says Ruth Sulentich, Terasen Gas Community Relations Manager. “The Mind Grind tests students in a fun and motivating manner and winning high school teams and students have the opportunity to share $4,000 in scholarship money.”
As the title sponsor, Terasen Gas began a new tradition last year with each member of the winning high school team receiving $1,000 towards post secondary education. Members of the runner up high school team receive a $300 bursary.
The Terasen Gas Environmental Mind Grind is organized by environmental educators in each of the participating communities, with regional first-round competitions being held around the province.
- April 17 Quesnel
- April 18 Central Okanagan (Kelowna), Nanaimo
- April 25 South Okanagan (Penticton), Kamloops
Regional event winners will then compete in the B.C. Playoffs hosted in Lake Country on Friday, May 8, for the scholarships.
The City of Kelowna has been an organizer of the event since its inception in 2000. “Environmental education is part of the City’s mandate, and the Mind Grind is an opportunity to educate a lot of students on a wide variety of topics. With the game show format and great prizes, the event is a fun, exciting way for students to learn about the environment,” notes Tracy Guidi, Community and Media Relations, City of Kelowna.
Teams of students from Grades 4 to 12 sign up in January and work with their teachers learning from specially prepared study packages covering many topics including: energy conservation, air quality, transportation demand management, forestry health, species and spaces, waste reduction, water conservation and watershed health.
Terasen Gas is mainly composed of the operations of Terasen Gas Inc. and Terasen Gas (Vancouver Island) Inc., both indirect wholly owned subsidiaries of Fortis Inc. Fortis Inc., the largest investor-owned distribution utility in Canada, serves more than two million gas and electric customers and has total assets exceeding $11 billion. Its regulated holdings include Terasen Gas and electric utilities in five Canadian provinces and three Caribbean countries. Fortis Inc. owns non-regulated hydroelectric generation assets across Canada and in Belize and upper New York State. It also owns hotels and commercial real estate in Canada. Fortis Inc. shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and trade under the symbol FTS. Additional information can be accessed at www.fortisinc.com or www.sedar.com
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