(Calgary 20/07/12) Earth Day Canada and The Toyota Canada Foundation recognized Navarana Smith of Canmore, Alberta as the 2012 Toyota Earth Day Scholarship National Award Winner in Calgary yesterday.

 

Navarana was selected from a group of 20 regional scholarship winners (listed below) who were chosen from a pool of hundreds of applicants across Canada. She was recognized for her outstanding achievements in environmental community service, academics and extracurricular participation.

 

Navarana shared her ideas for sustainable practices (developed as a representative at the Jasper Summit on Sustainability) with teachers at local schools to incorporate environmental education into the curriculum. She led numerous campaigns, petitions and presentations in her school and organized a community film screening of the award-winning documentary, SPOIL.  Her passion to protect pristine natural areas also motivated her to spearhead an initiative that addressed over 260 students in response to the proposed supertanker-related traffic through British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest.

 

“Navarana has worked hard at getting her community involved in improving the state of the environment,” said Jed Goldberg, President of Earth Day Canada. “She is not only achieving great things now, Navarana is a shining example of youth who are leading the way for future environmental action.”

 

“We are extremely honoured to recognize Navarana of this year’s Toyota Earth Day Scholarship program,” says Seiji Ichii, President & CEO, Toyota Canada Inc. “The tremendous work she already accomplished is incredibly inspiring, and we look forward to the great work the scholarship recipient will accomplish in the future.”

Navarana received the National Award and a Panasonic notebook computer in addition to the $5 000 Regional Award at a ceremony held at the Calgary Farmers’ Market.

 

The Toyota Earth Day Scholarship Program was established by Earth Day Canada, with financial support from the Toyota Canada Foundation, to reward and encourage environmental commitment and action among students. This entrance scholarship is presented to graduating high school and Cgep students entering their first year of post-secondary education. Recognizing that environmental issues are increasingly being tackled through multidisciplinary approaches, winners are selected regardless of their intended program of study. Now in its tenth year, $800 000 has been awarded to 160 exceptional young Canadians.

 

Earth Day Canada (EDC), a national environmental charity founded in 1990, provides Canadians with the practical knowledge and tools they need to lessen their impact on the environment. In 2004, it was recognized as the top environmental education organization in North America for its innovative year-round programs and educational resources, by the Washington-based North American Association for Environmental Education, the world's largest association of environmental educators. In 2008, it was chosen as Canada’s “Outstanding Non-profit Organization” by the Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication. EDC regularly partners with thousands of organizations in all parts of Canada. earthday.ca

 

Toyota Canada Foundation (TCF) is a national non-for-profit, private charitable foundation, with a long-standing commitment to the Environment, Education and Safety and it supports charitable and non-profit organizations dedicated to good work in these areas.

 

The Toyota Canada Foundation has a long history of partnering with like-minded organizations and supporting programs in the areas of Environment, Education and Safety, including:

 

 

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For media inquiries, please contact:

 

Keith Treffry

Director, Communications

Earth Day Canada

416.599.1991 x 107 | keith@earthday.ca

 

Alice Young Jeon

Summer Student, Public Relations

Toyota Canada Inc.

416.438.6320 x 2715 | aliceyoung_jeon@toyota.ca

 

Digital photos:

Available by request at scholarship@earthday.ca

Contact Jennifer Mack at 416.599.1991 ext. 108 for details

 

 

 

Lauren basden
Halifax, Nova Scotia

 

Luke Ehler
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

 

Hayley Whelan
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island

 

 

Simon Lesprance
Jonquire, Quebec

 

Janie Masse–Dufresne
Val David, Quebec

 

Isabelle Neveu
Prvost, Quebec

 

Olivia Toussaint–Martin
Qubec City, Quebec

 

Leehi Yona
Dollard des Ormeaux, Quebec

 

 

Veronika Bylicki
Vancouver, British Columbia

 

Brian Irwin
West Vancouver, British Columbia

 

Liam Maclure
Victoria, British Columbia

 

 

Laurissa Christie
Tara, Ontario

 

Matthew Green
Toronto, Ontario

 

Simon Harmgardt
Oakville, Ontario

 

Abigail Holt
London, Ontario

 

Sara Wyngaarden
Elmira, Ontario

 

 

Genevieve Carpenter-Boesch
Gray, Saskatchewan

 

Nikita-Kiran Singh
Red Deer, Alberta

 

Darren Touch
Calgary, Alberta