Platinum, Gold and Bronze for 4-H Members at Canada-Wide Science Fair

Ottawa, Ontario – May 18, 2018 – 4-H Canada is ecstatic to announce that five 4-H members were medal-winners at the Canada-Wide Science Fair held in Ottawa, Ontario this week.

Mac Dykeman from B.C. took home top honours in the Junior category, earning a gold medal and platinum award for her project “Safer Chick-ments: An innovative solution to reducing stress in chick shipments.”

Mac’s project was voted one of the top three out of 406 in the entire science fair. Mac received several other awards as well, including the Youth Can Innovate Award and the Junior Innovation Challenge Award for best junior project in her category.

Four other 4-H’ers won bronze medals at the Intermediate level:

  • Neleah Lavoie (P.E.I.) for her project “Cost-effective Extraction of Chitin and Chitosan from Lobster Shells”
  • Lara and Liesl Stewart (Alberta) for their project “Biosecurity Disinfectant Efficacy”
  • Amanda Hardman (Alberta) for her project “Crickets for Lunch”

All five of these 4-H’ers earned top spots at the 2018 4-H Canada Science Fair in Truro, Nova Scotia in March 2018, an event made possible with the generous support of Bayer – 4-H Canada’s Science & Technology pillar partner.

These five brilliant young minds then moved on to the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Ottawa this week to compete among the brightest and most innovative students from across the country. Mac Dykeman will now go on to attend the 2019 International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix, Arizona with the Canadian team.

“The creativity and passion for science from our 4-H members never ceases to amaze me,” said Shannon Benner, 4-H Canada CEO. “Having our 4-H members competing and winning at the highest level in the country is a testament to our youth and the importance our programming places on STEM learning. A huge congratulations to Mac, Neleah, Lara, Liesl and Amanda and all those that participated. I am already looking forward to next year.”

“Congratulations to all of the 4-H members for their outstanding efforts, and for being such a great ambassadors for the 4-H STEM community,” said Luc Bourgeois, Technical Issues Manager at Bayer, and Canada-Wide Science Fair Judge. “The innovation, passion and enthusiasm that was on display was second-to-none, and demonstrates that the 4-H Science & Technology program is developing strong leaders in STEM. Congratulations to all the participants who made it to the Canada-Wide Science Fair.”

4-H Canada’s participation in the Canada-Wide Science Fair is part of an ongoing commitment to furthering science and technology skills and knowledge development for youth through 4-H programming. Together, 4-H Canada and Bayer are working to develop responsible, caring and contributing Canadian youth.

To learn more, visit https://4-h-canada.ca/SF18. For more information on the 4-H Canada Science Fair, visit: https://4-h-canada.ca/sciencefair.

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About 4-H Canada
For over 100 years, 4-H Canada has been one of the most highly respected positive youth development organizations in Canada. 4-H Canada has close to 25,000 members and more than 7,700 volunteer leaders. Our goal is to help young Canadians “Learn To Do By Doing” in a safe, inclusive and fun environment. We believe in nurturing responsible, caring and contributing youth leaders who are committed to positively impacting their communities across Canada and around the world. To learn more about 4-H Canada, please visit 4-h-canada.ca and follow our FacebookTwitter and Instagram pages.

About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the Life Science fields of health care and agriculture. Its products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen. In fiscal 2017, the Group employed around 99,800 people and had sales of EUR 35.0 billion. Capital expenditures amounted to EUR 2.4 billion, R&D expenses to EUR 4.5 billion. For more information, go to www.bayer.ca.

For more information, media may contact:

Jay Poulton
Director, Marketing and Communications
4-H Canada
613-759-1013 ext. 131
jpoulton@4-h-canada.ca
Kris Allen
Communications Specialist
Bayer Inc.
403-723-1830
kris.allen@bayer.com