CANADA-WIDE CONTEST KICKS OFF NATIONAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY WEEK AT SCIENCE NORTH

An urgent need to attract students to the Earth sciences is sparking a national contest for Canadian youth. Sponsored by EnCana Corporation and Teck Cominco Limited and in celebration of the International Year of Planet Earth and National Science & Technology Week, the WHERE Challenge is designed to get young people aged 10 – 14 years thinking about what on Earth is in their stuff and WHERE on Earth it comes from. The hope is that by encouraging bright young minds to think about the many ways the Earth’s resources support everyday life, the Challenge will also encourage students to consider Earth sciences as an exciting educational and career opportunity.

Members of the media are invited to the launch of the WHERE Challenge. Join us Tuesday, October 21^st at 12 p.m. in the Nature Exchange on the second level of Science North. Local students will also be taking part in the event, exploring the Earth resources that are found in common household items. A scientist will also be on hand to answer questions about looming shortages across the entire Earth sciences sector.

“We’re experiencing growing shortages across our entire profession,” said Canadian Federation of Earth Sciences (CFES) President Ian Young. “The time to attract students to the Earth sciences is now, because the gap between the talent we have and the talent we need is reaching a point where it will begin to affect the Canadian economy.”

“We hope you can join us as we launch this exciting national contest and kick-off National Science and Technology Week at Science North,” said Dr. David Pearson, Science North Science Director. “Inspiring young minds to discover science, and carry it with them throughout their lives is what Science North is all about. We are very excited to promote the opportunity to students and visitors as the WHERE Challenge fits perfectly with that goal.”

For more information about the WHERE Challenge visit www.earthsciencescanada.com.

For more information about Science North visit www.sciencenorth.ca.