Victoria STOSKY

Age: 22 Calgary

Victoria Stosky has devoted much of her university career to empowering former sex-trade workers to become financially independent through education, job skills and money management—but she doesn’t see it as giving back. “We’re part of the same world and should be given equal opportunities,” says the business student and soon-to-be university grad.

Victoria helps lead a program called Empoweru, an initiative of Enactus, the world’s largest student-run international nonprofit organization, which seeks to create sustainable change through entrepreneurship. She is currently a copresident of the Enactus team at Calgary’s Mount Royal University and says being part of the organization has been just as beneficial for her as it has been for the women whose lives she has helped turn around. Many women complete Empoweru, and some even apply to, and are accepted into, a school program. “For those women, they finally see their impossible dreams as a reality. It’s like a light at the end of the tunnel,” she says. And for her, it’s a chance to put her major in human resources and minors in entrepreneurship and social innovation to immediate good use. She’s developed her leadership skills and made both friends and professional connections. But, “most of all, it’s about following my passion,” she says.

When Victoria graduates this December, she’ll likely be looking for a career in the social enterprise industry, and there’s no doubt that the work she’s done already will help her change the world. “Seeing what these women have been through compared to where they end up years down the road is so inspiring,” she reflects.