Canadian Ventures

Government

Working in a strictly non-partisan way, EWB and its members engage directly with federal politicians and decision makers, advocating for policy innovations that make Canada’s development approach more efficient and more effective. Through these efforts and more, EWB has played leading roles in the “untying” of Canadian aid, and most recently, Canada joining the International Aid at Transparency Initiative (IATI).

Citizens

While our ultimate audience is the political class, we accept that this change must be realized through the emergence of a smart, informed and demanding citizenry. We engage Canadians in the political process through national campaigns designed to raise awareness and allow citizens to learn about intelligent development approaches and ask our government for just that.

Partners

EWB works in close partnership with business leaders and other reputable development organizations who are working alongside our African partners, business leaders and other reputable development organizations who are working towards similar goals, ensuring our ideas have a disproportionate influence in Canada’s development approach.

EWB has played an important role in successfully working with the government to strengthen its role in global development.

• November 2011 18 months of advocacy and lobbying efforts pay off as Canada signs on to IATI
• November 2011 EWB becomes the second NGO in the world to publish its aid information using the IATI standardl
• October 2011 As part of their consultations for the 2012 Federal Budget, EWB is invited to make the case for IATI before the Parliamentary Finance Committee.
• October 2011 An online campaign and street-level events from coast to coast generates over 10,000 letters, signatures and postcards from Canadians asking for IATI.
• July 2011 CIDA formally launches its Open Data Portal, two months after EWB recommended this during our “Federal Election 2011” campaign.
• June, 2011 EWB hosts a one-day blitz of Parliament Hill, meeting with 60 MPs to discuss the need for more transparent aid. This results in over 100 media stories highlighting our proposal.
• May 2011 EWB engages 95% of all candidates during the federal election. EWB releases a platform for more effective Canadian development, resulting in our positions being endorsed in a Globe and Mail editorial.

• James Haga, Director of Advocacy
• Ian Froude
• Ryan Bourque
• Erin Flanagan
• Dan Raza
• Patrick Miller
• Amir Allana
• Meaghan Langille
• Emily Stewart
• Nushka Blais
• Tanner Jerreat-Poole

• Globe and Mail editorial on Canadian development reform
• CBC article on EWB’s day of action on Parliament Hill
• CTV National interview on EWB’s day of action on Parliament Hill

Professional Associations and Licensing Bodies

EWB is partnered with multiple, leading engineering bodies at the provincial and national level to help drive change within their membership base. We offer learning and engagement opportunities to compliment their membership engagement work. Our partners include:

• Engineers Canada
• Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists, and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA)
• Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia (APEGBC)
• Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO)
• Engineers Nova Scotia
• Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE)

Educators

EWB has reached over 30,000 young engineers in training. We offer curriculum enhancements, learning modules, seminars and more, all of which enrich the superior education that these students are already receiving with content that focuses on system-level thinking and engineering’s societal impact, locally and internationally.

Business

EWB is thankful to receive support from multiple leading engineering firms and corporate partners, but this isn’t a one-way relationship. EWB provides a variety of corporate engagement opportunities from simple information sharing to employee secondment programs. Our partners give their people opportunities to work on EWB programs in Africa for extended periods of time. The goal is not just funding, it’s the unification of the engineering sector around a belief that engineers have a role to play that goes well beyond a project plan.

• Established two curriculum partnerships with leading universities
• Helped four universities explore creating Global Engineering minors
• Added 60 new classroom learning modules
• Helped over 100 faculty members and TAs to better integrate Global Engineering learning modules in their classrooms
• Engaged 150 professors and administrators in Global Engineering faculty forums, with over half engaging with their EWB chapter after the event to find ways to work more closely together
• Published five influential papers in respected journals which defined the debate for enhancing engineering education
• Published 10 articles in newspapers and engineering magazines
• Spoke at six prominent national conferences and symposia sharing our vision for an engineering profession and influencing key decision-makers to join our cause
• Created our Engineers Serve the World campaign, which in its first year alone reached 22,000 youth and potential engineers through workshops and online videos on the impact engineering can have on the world
• Surveyed 1,600 professional engineers about their views on the profession and its potential for the future
• Established a working relationship between Professional Engineers Ontario and EWB

• Sal Alajek, B. Eng., Global Engineering Team Lead
• Josh Workman, B. Eng.
• Patrick Miller, B. Eng.
• Jody Rechenmacher, B. Eng.
• Michael Stachowsky, B. Eng.
• Fraser Mah

• Global Engineer Concept

Youth Engagement

EWB gives young Canadians the opportunity to learn about global issues and how they can create positive change. This is achieved through classroom outreach, engagement with our university chapters, the national “Get Outside Your World” (GOYW) contest and more.

To learn more about how you can get involved with EWB’s youth programs or to bring EWB to your school, email youth@ewb.ca. Send GOYW contest inquiries to contest@ewb.ca. For teacher resources, or to book a presentation email schooloutreach@ewb.ca or visit teach.ewb.ca.

• 100,000 students reached since 2003
• 15,000 students in 2010–11
• 1400 essay contest entries since 2007
• 536 entries in 2010–11
• 21 university chapters reaching out to youth

Our Youth Engagement Program is currently being led by a Distributed Team of volunteers from across the country. You can reach them at youth@ewb.ca.

• Simon Fauvel
• Ashley Hammell
• Lauren Hockin
• Anna Smith
• Evan Walsh

• 2009 Program Evaluation
• University of Alberta reaching aboriginal community
• Outreach event at 2010 National Conference in St. John’s

• Fair Trade—EWB plays an active role in Canada’s Fair Trade community, promoting Fair Trade certified products and the broader principles of the movement. Examples of EWB’s Fair Trade efforts include:
  • Helping to launch Fair Trade Town and Campus initiatives across the country.
  • Reverse Trick or Treat and My Fair Valentine, which see hundreds of EWB members promote awareness of Fair Trade on Valentine’s Day and Halloween.
• New ethical products—EWB and Public Inc. have partnered to launch RUBR pucks, made with ethically sourced rubber from Liberia. Learn more at http://rubr.ca.

• Launched RUBR, an ethical product that sees Liberian rubber processed in Canada and used for hockey pucks (2011)
• First My Fair Valentine national campaign (2011)
• UBC certified Fair Trade Campus