Support for farming solutions
UPEI School of Sustainable Design Engineering receives $2M from Cavendish Farms
Cavendish Farms is giving $2 million to the University of Prince Edward Island’s School of Sustainable Design Engineering (SSDE) to support sustainable farming solutions in the agricultural industry. “With our roots on Prince Edward Island, Cavendish Farms is proud to support the UPEI School of Sustainable Design Engineering as they develop innovations for the agriculture industry here on the Island and across the globe,” said Robert K. Irving, President of Cavendish Farms. “Cavendish Farms has a strong commitment to the environment and sustainable farming practices. This donation will help continue to further sustainable farming for years to come.”
The university says SSDE advances knowledge, grows industries, improves health, and betters society by developing engineers with exceptional design skills combined with global perspectives. Recognized nationally for program innovation, the SSDE works to find solutions to complex, real-world challenges through a collaborative team approach. Teams function like an engineering consulting firm where students work alongside global experts from higher learning, research and development, industry, and community partners.
Engineering is a key priority of UPEI’s friend- and fund-raising INSPIRE! Campaign. This donation is the largest single donation to the campaign to date.
“We are deeply grateful to Cavendish Farms for their generous support of our INSPIRE! Campaign, and for their vision to advance sustainable solutions of direct benefit to the agriculture industry and our communities,” said UPEI President and vice-chancellor Alaa Abd-El-Aziz. “The generosity of Cavendish Farms will enable a level of innovation pursuit that we have not experienced here on P.E.I. before.”
The goal of the INSPIRE! Campaign is to ensure that UPEI will continue to evolve and deliver exceptional learning experiences and opportunities that prepare students for success. Launched on Oct. 2, 2015, the campaign has four key priorities that align with the university’s strategic plan: engineering, experiential and global learning, veterinary medicine, and athletics. Cavendish Farms is a produces frozen and fresh potato and appetizer products for the North American and international food industry. They operate six processing plants including three on Prince Edward Island.