My name is Mackenzie Schmidt and I am currently an HBA1 student passionate for marketing and the travel and tourism industry. I studied French before coming to Ivey and am always excited to find opportunities to converse with people in my daily life in one of the 4 languages I speak. Growing up beside Lake Ontario in Mississauga, I have seen firsthand the differences individuals can make in protecting the environment by cleaning up after pets or choosing not to litter. A green and clean space is the foundation for my love of outdoor biking trails, public parks and harbours.
Additional Information
Personal Definition of Sustainability
To me, sustainability is the conscious decision for individuals and corporations to not consume beyond their means in order to reduce waste, so that future generations can benefit from our resources. For corporations, it involves a long-term focus and simplifying core activities as means to sustain revenues. Steps toward sustainability begin with one individual’s active decision to do better for friends, colleagues and their local and global community. When facing decisions regarding sustainability, organizations must consider their impact on finite resources and how their actions contribute to making a positive impact on the global community.
Sustainability-in-Action
As an executive member of my high school’s student council, I was actively involved in organizing environmental-awareness campaigns such as Earth Hour and bike to school day. Coming from a high school built beside factories and manufacturing plants, steps towards reducing air pollutants and improving environmental sustainability were major concerns for my peers and me.
More recently, at the start of my university career in London, I volunteered as a Youth Night coordinator at Oneida First Nations. The programming which I helped plan and execute fostered inclusion, sound mental health and safety through collaborative gym activities, arts & crafts and cooking classes. The result of this program led to sustained relationships with Oneida First Nations youth and resulted in greater Youth empowerment and community involvement.
I am currently involved in organizing the largest homecoming bottle-drives at Huron University College with the Volunteer Young-Adult society. Last year, we collected over 5,000 empty bottles and cans, raising money for cystic fibrosis London to help fund support programs for families impacted by cystic fibrosis.
For the summer of 2015, I am excited to participate in the Africa service learning trip and learn more about sustainable business practices unique to wealthy and impoverished areas.
