Sault Ste. Marie science festival wins award

NEWS RELEASE

SCIENCE NORTH

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SAULT STE. MARIE, ON - The Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival, a popular event under the direction of Science North in collaboration with eight partnering organizations from Sault Ste. Marie, has been awarded the 2017 FEO Achievement Award in the category Best New Festival or Event ($100,000 or less) across the province of Ontario.

Festival and Events Ontario (FEO) is a non-for-profit organization supporting event organizers and festival suppliers by sharing knowledge, enabling networking and providing leadership on education, advocacy and promotion.

“Science North’s travelling festival series gives people across Northern Ontario the opportunity to learn and get excited about science,” said Eleanor McMahon, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. “Our government is proud to support the expansion of this award-winning festival in Sault Ste. Marie for Ontario’s 150th anniversary, teaching people about science and technology and inspiring the next generation of innovators. Congratulations to Science North on this well-deserved recognition from Festival and Events Ontario.”

“We are very pleased to be a partner in the Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival and very proud of the achievement of this award and the teamwork that made this a success,” added Scott Lund, Chair of the Science North Board of Trustees.

“We are looking forward to continuing to work with the Sault Ste. Marie partners to shine a spotlight on the science and technology happening in Sault Ste. Marie, and bring our Bluecoat brand of interactive and hands-on science delivery to the festival,” said Guy Labine, Science North CEO. “As a major tourist attraction and tourism driver for the North, one of Science North’s main priorities is to develop more science experiences in Northern Ontario.”

The Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival is the only festival of its kind in the area.

The Festival strives to engage a variety of audiences in experiences that highlight science and technology in Sault Ste. Marie. The Festival offers an opportunity for families to interact with science together, for students to be inspired by scientists, and for seniors to become engaged and fascinated by live exotic species of insects.

It also provides an opportunity to become a sustainable annual event that results in economic benefits for Sault Ste. Marie.

The Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival group of partners includes Algoma University, Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre, Entomica, Invasive Species Centre, Natural Resources Canada – Canadian Forest Service, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Sault College, Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre and Science North.

The 2017 Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival is supported by Ontario150 (#Ontario150) and co-presented by Quattro Hotel, CTV, 104.3 Country, and 105.5 KiSS.

“We are thrilled that the Sault Ste. Marie Science festival has won ‘The Best New Festival’ in Ontario award. The Science Festival is a great opportunity for Algoma University faculty and students to showcase their research within the community with people of all ages. We’re looking forward to the 2017 festival!” — Dr. Celia Ross, Acting President and Vice Chancellor of Algoma University.

“The Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre is proud to be a part of the Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival now in its third year. The community support and engagement of all ages is what has made for a truly unique and now award winning experience! It’s a great opportunity for us to engage with local youth and help foster the next generation of science and technology leaders, which is an important part of the work that the Innovation Centre does. We look forward to this year’s event and continued partnership with Science North.” — Don MacLennan, Acting Executive Director, Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre

“The Best New Festival Award from Festivals and Events Ontario is a testament to the strength of the partnership that we have created with Science North and the other Festival partners. The Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre appreciates this recognition for the Science Festival and thanks Science North for their leadership.” — Mike Delfre, CEO at Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre

“It is amazing news that Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival has won the 2017 'Best New Festival' in Ontario award at the recent FEO Conference Gala. Entomica would like to thank Festivals & Events Ontario for the recognition, Science North for initiating the festival in Sault Ste. Marie and inspiring all the partners to participate. We’d also like to acknowledge our fellow partners for the privilege it has been working with them over the past two years to make this festival such a success. We’d like to dedicate our recognition to the many volunteers, the senior centres, sponsors and the hundreds of seniors that participated in the Science for Seniors component of the festival and made magic happen. Here’s to making it all happen again this coming spring.” — John Dedes, CEO, Entomica

“As one of the founding Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival partner organizations, the Invasive Species Centre is honoured to be able to share in this award and to be acknowledged by Festivals and Events Ontario under the ‘Best New Festival Award’, 2017. Working as part of this great team of partner organizations has been rewarding and beneficial to the community, helping us all to spread invasive species awareness and to support science-based knowledge, learning, and expertise.” — Tracey Cooke, Executive Director, Invasive Species Centre

“As a founding partner of Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival, Natural Resources Canada’s Great Lakes Forestry Centre recognizes the value of promoting science within the community. Bringing together government and non-government groups for the common purpose of promoting science and its importance in our daily lives, the SSM Science Festival provides something for everyone. The Festival serves as a testament to the success of the diverse local and regional collaborations and we look forward to growing this relationship with our partners.” — Great Lakes Forestry Centre, David Nanang, Director General

The Science Festival partners are proud to demonstrate their commitment to science education and inspiring life-long learning in science through their respective participation in the development of a third annual science-based festival to be held in Sault Ste. Marie from April 24 to 29, 2017.

For more information on FEO visit: festivalsandeventsontario.ca

For more information on the Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival, visit: http://sciencenorth.ca/ssmscifest/

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