Ottawa, Ontario – April 9, 2019 – 4-H Canada is pleased to announce the launch of its newest club outreach initiative Discover Science, offering 4-H youth members the unique opportunity to develop their skills and interest in the area of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

For the first year of this initiative, 4-H clubs will take part in a science experiment ‘in a box’. The Discover Science kit will contain all the components needed to build a wearable health monitor following the engineering design process to build, test and refine the device. Wearable technologies are becoming more and more integrated in our lives. Thanks to this initiative, 4-H members will learn about human health and how it can be tracked and improved using technology.

“With this initiative, our goal is to encourage young people to be engaged actively in STEM by learning to do by doing through fun and interactive experiences,” said Shannon Benner, 4-H Canada CEO. “We are grateful to our founding Science & Technology pillar partner Bayer Canada and for the support of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) for investing in youth and working with us to build global citizens with the passion and skills to create sustainable change.”

These kits were created in 2017 by the National 4-H Council in the United States as the Incredible Wearables kit, and developed by the University of Nebraska–Lincoln with the support of various donors. Thanks to 4-H’s resource-sharing network of 70 countries, 4-H Canada is able to distribute the kit to 4-H clubs across Canada, offering youth members the chance to spark science and cultivate their scientific curiosity.

The Discover Science kits will be distributed to 90 Canadian 4-H clubs in Canada this spring, introducing over 2,200 young members to inquiry-based learning and the importance of science in everyday lives.

“We’re thrilled to support 4-H Canada launch its Discover Science initiative to 4-H youth across the country,” said Al Driver, Country Division Head, Bayer Crop Science Canada. “As a life science company, we understand that exploration and innovation are key factors helping to solve some of the world’s most pressing challenges, and it’s encouraging to see the large number of clubs and youth participating in this pilot program.”

This pilot year will pave the path to more exciting opportunities for youth to broaden their understanding of STEM, with other topics to come in future projects. For more information on Discover Science, visit 4-h-canada.ca/discoverscience.

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