Success stories

It's the individuals and businesses that continue to make a difference in the lives and communities in Western Canada. Here are their success stories.

Western Canadian success stories and how WD helped

Publication date	Region	Category	Stories
2020-01-24	Manitoba	Francophone, Women	Educalme brings bilingual mindfulness to Manitoba schools Two young teachers in Manitoba wanted to share mindfulness practices with their French-language students, but they could not find bilingual materials geared to young people. So, they created their own, and Educalme was born. Publication date: 2020-01-24 Region: Manitoba Category: Francophone, Women
2019-12-17	Saskatchewan	Indigenous, Clean technology	First Nation creates carbon-free electricity and new economic opportunity With help from Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD), Cowessess First Nation's unique hybrid renewable energy project is a first in Canada. Publication date: 2019-12-17 Region: Saskatchewan Category: Indigenous, Clean technology
2019-06-28	Pan-Western	Francophone	Official Languages: Who’s your “twin”? At Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) we’re bolstering our bilingual bench strength in both official languages. Publication date: 2019-06-28 Region: Pan-Western Category: Francophone
2019-02-05	Manitoba	Francophone, Community economic development, Tourism	Entreprises Riel At the Heart of Manitoba's Francophone Community is a documentary film produced by Tourisme Riel and Entreprises Riel, about the strong Francophone and Métis culture in the province. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: Manitoba Category: Francophone, Community economic development, Tourism
2018-09-04	Manitoba	Indigenous, Business growth, Skills and training	Vision Quest In 2018, Vision Quest marked its 22nd annual conference and trade show: "From Vision to Reality", through partnerships with 5 primarily Indigenous-based Community Futures Development Corporations. Publication date: 2018-09-04 Region: Manitoba Category: Indigenous, Business growth, Skills and training
2018-08-04	Manitoba	Women, Business growth, Skills and training	SHEday 2018 The one-day, annual conference sprouted from a desire to provide services to female business professionals and a venue for them to network. Publication date: 2018-08-04 Region: Manitoba Category: Women, Business growth, Skills and training
2018-08-04	British Columbia	Youth, Community economic development	Karina LeBlanc's Field of Dreams Canadian Olympic soccer star Karina Leblanc now has a sports field in Maple Ridge, BC, where she can share her passion for sports with the next generation of Canadian athletes. Publication date: 2018-08-04 Region: British Columbia Category: Youth, Community economic development
2018-08-04	British Columbia	Clean technology	Reduce, reuse… rethink recycling If only there were durable packaging materials that were also biodegradable. A western Canadian company may have the solution. Publication date: 2018-08-04 Region: British Columbia Category: Clean technology
2018-08-04	Alberta	Women, Skills and training	Women Building Futures - You got this! The pursuit of inclusive participation in the economy requires a change in perspectives and a change in traditional ways of thinking. This belief prompted a small group of women to set up Women Building Futures (WBF) in 1998. Publication date: 2018-08-04 Region: Alberta Category: Women, Skills and training
2019-02-05	British Columbia	Clean technology, Digital technology	Semios precision technology helps growers respond to crop threats Farmers and engineers are working together to keep fresh produce on our shelves. They are finding innovative solutions to challenges from climate change, harmful pesticides, and crop disease. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: British Columbia Category: Clean technology, Digital technology
2019-02-05	Alberta	Clean technology, Natural resources	Solving high pressure risk through intelligent innovation The aptly named, Intelligent Wellhead Systems (IWS) knows a lot about working under pressure in the energy sector. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: Alberta Category: Clean technology, Natural resources
2018-09-04	Saskatchewan	Skills and training, Youth	Saskatoon Trades and Skills Centre – creating inclusive and responsive opportunities Vulnerable, inner city youth lack the training, experience and, in a lot of cases, confidence to secure good jobs that can lead to careers in the skilled trades. At the same time, employers in many industries find it difficult to hire young tradespeople. Publication date: 2018-09-04 Region: Saskatchewan Category: Skills and training, Youth
2018-09-04	Saskatchewan	Digital technology	Solido Design Automation bought by German conglomerate Saskatchewan based Western Innovation (WINN) Initiative recipient, Solido Design Automation Inc, is a world leader in microchip design and characterization software powered by proprietary machine learning technology – a form of artificial intelligence. Publication date: 2018-09-04 Region: Saskatchewan Category: Digital technology
2019-02-05	British Columbia	Digital technology, Trade	Canadian Navigation Technology makes waves on a global level Over 600 naval vessels across the globe rely on tactical navigation software from British Columbia's OSI Maritime Inc. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: British Columbia Category: Digital technology, Trade
2019-03-06	Alberta	Francophone	Radio Cité brings Edmonton's Francophone community together Radio Cité brought the heart and the people. WD helped them with funding. Now Radio Cité is making beautiful music and so much more for Edmonton's francophone community. Publication date: 2019-03-06 Region: Alberta Category: Francophone
2019-02-05	British Columbia	Community economic development	Rebuilding after British Columbia wildfires The 2017 and 2018 wildfire seasons were the worst in British Columbia's history. British Columbians regrouped and WD was there to help. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: British Columbia Category: Community economic development
2019-02-05	Manitoba	Community economic development	Churchill Region Economic Development Fund The Churchill Region Economic Development Fund helped businesses survive when the town was cut off from ground transportation. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: Manitoba Category: Community economic development
2019-05-22	Saskatchewan	Clean technology, Francophone	Francophone farmers growing green with HumaTerra What do francophone farmers in Saskatchewan, an agricultural scientist from France and about a trillion microbial organisms have in common? The drive to make prairie soil more fertile and productive! Publication date: 2019-05-22 Region: Saskatchewan Category: Clean technology, Francophone
2019-02-05	Alberta	Indigenous, Skills and training	Investing in Indigenous Peoples in Alberta In 2015, Trade Winds to Success Training Society received $1,069,938 from Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) to support the expansion of pre-apprenticeship training for Indigenous Peoples in Alberta. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: Alberta Category: Indigenous, Skills and training
2019-12-09	Manitoba	Francophone, Clean technology, Trade	Raysolar brings renewable energy to Africa Manitoba’s Raysolar sets up solar and wind energy systems. Technical expertise combined with being able to work in both of Canada’s official languages has opened up doors to expand into Francophone African countries. Publication date: 2019-12-09 Region: Manitoba Category: Francophone, Clean technology, Trade
2019-02-05	Saskatchewan	Clean resources, Natural resources	Getting the MOST out of mine reclamation Returning a mine site to its original state is far more complex than covering it over and planting trees. The design and materials that go into the cover system must ensure that mine wastes are properly sealed off. Publication date: 2019-02-05 Region: Saskatchewan Category: Clean resources, Natural resources