Surrey Board of Trade Becomes an Official Powerplay Ambassador

Powerplay Young Entrepreneurs unveiled the Powerplay Ambassador Program at a Surrey Board of Trade Business Pitch evening on November 28th featuring Grade 5-7 students. Powerplay Young Entrepreneurs is a Canadian charity that has a mandate to help young Canadians prepare for the future of work. They often collaborate with entrepreneurs, business professionals and other community leaders that share their passion for supporting education and empowering youth. This year they have officially developed the

Powerplay Ambassador Program to foster this community connection at the grassroots level, by having business volunteers directly interact with students that participate in their elementary school program and at subsequent extracurricular events. This feature adds educational value and excitement to the program as students can further connect their learning to the real world. “The Surrey Board of Trade itself creates entrepreneurship pathways and believes in the importance of connecting students with employers and business representatives in their community,” said

Anita Huberman, CEO, Surrey Board of Trade. “It isn’t only about building a career, it is about creating innovative skill sets and building the jobs of tomorrow. The Surrey Board of Trade believes that empowering young people with an entrepreneurial mindset is the key to developing more entrepreneurial behaviour and preparing youth to flourish in our emerging economy.”

Given persistently high rates of youth unemployment in British Columbia—at 13.6%, more than double the national average—preparing youth to follow an entrepreneurial path is not only an acceptable choice, but a strategic decision. The Surrey Board of Trade Youth Entrepreneurship Program focuses on events, connections and advocacy. It is enhancing the focus on youth entrepreneurship by supporting the current workforce as well as future business owners. Nurturing entrepreneurial skills in elementary students is a key part of the strategy.

Powerplay Young Entrepreneurs accelerates positive social change by helping young people develop an entrepreneurial mindset. They provide turnkey solutions for the classroom including curriculum-based resources and teacher training. Powerplay Young Entrepreneurs also works with school districts and business leaders to create community partnerships that are scalable an¬d impactful.

The Surrey Board of Trade is a not-for-profit city building business organization that supports business and attracts business. The organization is comprised of 6,000 member contacts and over 3,000 member businesses, representing over 60,000 employees.

Thank you to the Sponsors of the Young Entrepreneurs’ Pitch event:

• Silver Sponsor - Century Group

• Bronze Sponsor - PW Trenchless Construction Inc.

• Venue Sponsor - Simon Fraser University Chang Institute for Entrepreneurship

Community Sponsors:

• Basant Motors Ltd.

• Murray Latta Progressive Machine Inc.

• Tien Sher Group of Companies Inc.