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Junior Achievement of Calgary, Alberta, Teens Win 2011 FedEx Access Award |
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NEWS RELEASE
Contact: JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF CALGARY, ALBERTA, TEENS WIN 2011 FEDEX ACCESS AWARD Student entrepreneurs demonstrate the powerful impact of free trade to create jobs, drive economic growth and improve society Colorado Springs, Colo. - At the 2011 North American Junior Achievement Company of the Year Competition held recently in Washington, D.C, student-run company "Spectra" won the annual FedEx Access Award. The students, who represented Junior Achievement of Southern Alberta and Western Canada High School, produced and successfully marketed the "Firefly," a solar-powered nightlight made from re-used and recycled materials. Their company, as evaluated by a special FedEx jury, presented the best business plan with the potential to create jobs, grow small business, expand global development and improve the environment. "New kinds of global, digital connections are driving our economy and these same connections are saving and creating jobs," says Mike Ducker, COO and President, International FedEx Express. "In preparing for the competition these students studied international trade issues and successfully identified strategies for trading in a dynamic global environment. Through Spectra, we can all see how their business ideas create opportunities around the world. It's easier and easier for people like these young entrepreneurs to successfully enter the global marketplace with a winning model. I congratulate Spectra on their smart business strategy." The competition is part of Junior Achievement's annual celebration of the accomplishments of JA Company Program® students, ages 15-19, in the United States and Canada. During participation in JA Company Program, students start and run their own businesses with support from volunteers from their local business community. They develop and market a product or service with the goal of realizing a profit for their shareholders. JA Company Program currently impacts more than 360,000 students a year globally. Shelley Foo, president of Spectra, commented, "We joined JA Company Program as high school students simply interested in learning about business-however, what we acquired was so much more than just that. JA Company Program has provided life changing experiences, valuable opportunities, and definitely taught us much more about life and business than we anticipated." Spectra sold nearly 400 units of their product and realized a 643% return for their shareholders. To be eligible for the FedEx Access Award, a student company must be one of the 24 finalists selected to compete at the North American JA Student Company of the Year Competition. Company members completed additional sessions on the concept and impact of global access, a program developed by FedEx to supplement the JA Company Program. The JA student company that best demonstrates a comprehensive understanding of global access takes top honors. Nancy Li, marketing vice-president of Spectra, added, "We strove to provide an eco-friendly alternative to conventional night-lights in the market. We started with an environmentally friendly mindset, by producing our nightlights mainly out of re-usable and recyclable materials. Spectra embodied the concept of access by promoting the sharing of ideas to benefit people in developing countries, and to increase the livelihood of those millions of miles away. Through our partnership with The Glassco Foundation for Children, a charity which operates several projects in Africa, we were able to distribute 40 of our solar-powered nightlights to children without electricity in Zambia." Read Spectra's blog about their experience here. About Junior Achievement® (JA) About the Access Award About FedEx Corp. # # #
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