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Youth in Motion's Top 20 Under 20^TM Program

Mission "Youth in Motion helps youth make meaningful educational and career decisions while inspiring them to be contributing citizens. We are focused on developing the leadership, employability and life skills of youth to prepare them for success in life and work."

 How Youth in Motion's Top 20 Under 20 Program will benefit from Equity Through Education
 About Youth in Motion's Top 20 Under 20 Award Program
 Who does the Top 20 Under 20 Program support?
 Top 20 Under 20 Results

How Youth in Motion's Top 20 Under 20 Program will benefit from Equity Through Education
The proceeds from Equity Through Education are allocated to the Top 20 Under 20 Award fund to improve lives through education and to help diversify the Canadian workplace. Each recipient is awarded $5,000 to help them reach their educational goals. Youth in Motion also recognizes 20 Top 20 Under 20 Finalists, whom of which receive a $500 award for educational purposes.

Through the Top 20 Award Program, BMO Capital Markets champions two significant learning experiences which expose the Leaders to a range of educational and career paths: the Top 20 Under 20 Leadership Summit week and a year-long leadership development and mentoring program. Connecting directly with ETE's mandate, these unique learning experiences are truly ones which the Top 20 Leaders "otherwise would not have had".

About Youth in Motion's Top 20 Under 20 Award Program
Youth in Motion delivers programs for all youth, providing tools, skills, confidence and support to help them realize their full potential. In addition to offering financial support, the Top 20 Under 20 Award Program offers a full year of leadership training. Components of the program include:

• Bilingual announcement, nomination, application, assessment and adjudication processes; final round interviews by Order of Canada recipients
• Award Celebration Breakfast and 5-day Leadership Summit with 20 youth Leaders
• Year-long, Canada-wide Mentoring Program
• Monthly conference calls with Canadian CEOs and pre-eminent community leaders
• National financial advisors and professional career coaches paired with recipients
• Leading the Way motivational high school road show, on tour from St. John's to Victoria
• Courage to Soar Top 20 Under 20 Alumni Conference

Who does the Top 20 Under 20 Program support?
The Top 20 Under 20 Award is open to all youth under 20 across Canada. The program supports diverse young leaders who have demonstrated innovation, leadership and achievement in fields including the arts, athletics, scientific research, social innovation, entrepreneurship, and the environment. Candidates may apply or be nominated.



Top 20 Under 20 Results
The Top 20 Under 20 Leaders utilize their award monies for accredited training and post-secondary education. They experience the leadership development and mentor relationships of the Top 20 Under 20 Program to further enhance their education. With the ongoing support of Youth in Motion and the Top 20 alumni, they continue to make positive differences in their communities, across the country and internationally.

Youth in Motion's 2011 Top 20 Under 20 Leaders include:

Corey Cook, 18, from Winnipeg, Manitoba
Corey is an advocate for an organization called Mino Bimaadiziwin, an Ojibwe word meaning "The Good Life". It teaches First Nations youth lessons of their culture's history and ways to cope and deal with the specific issues that challenge them, including how to avoid substance abuse, gangs and peer pressure. Facing a variety of hardships throughout his early years, today Corey is a prime example of the program's success. Since enrolling four years ago, Corey has become both a speaker and a recognized community leader. He is called upon for interviews and has participated in the documentary, "Mino Bimaadiziwin: Touching The Sky". Corey declares, "I feel like it's the answer for First Nations nationwide, and I am proud to be a part of the solution that will restore First Nations youth everywhere their identity as a distinct proud nation!"

Tiffany Harrington, 17, from Oshawa, Ontario
It seemed to Tiffany that today's youth have lost a sense of respect for the elders in their community. To bridge the divide, she created The Cross Generational Exchange, an initiative which determines participants' interests across different categories, including culture, fashion, ecology, history, music, nutrition, recreation and sports, and then partners the youth and seniors accordingly. The project's goal is to provide a platform for the young and the elderly to share their views in seminars and forums. The participants are encouraged to think critically, work on projects together and experience days in each other's' lives: seniors are taken to local schools to see what it is like to attend school in today; likewise, students are taken to seniors' centres where they experience what an average day is like for their counterparts.

Mohsin Khan, 19, from Toronto, Ontario
Regent Park and Moss Park are among Toronto's roughest neighbourhoods. Mohsin believes many of the problems in the neighbourhoods he calls home stem from a lack of youth involvement. To create a solution, he established a non-profit, peer-lead channel for positive youth involvement opportunities. He founded Lead2Peace in 2009 and now leads a team of over 25 youth. The Lead2Peace team takes students outside their classrooms to place them into situations where they witness community-wide problems firsthand. With a $2,000 budget, the students must come up with their own social initiative plan to support their chosen issue. Funded by donations and corporate sponsors, Lead2Peace is not only encouraging home-grown answers to stubborn problems poised, it is well-positioned to becoming an enduring cornerstone in the communities it serves.

Rita-Clare LeBlanc, 16, from Halifax, Nova Scotia
Unsure what to do with a $77.12 Christmas gift that had to be invested in a project, Rita-Clare was instantly inspired when she went to a youth conference on education in Africa. With little guidance and forging into unexplored territory, she researched what it would take to build a school in Africa and found the perfect partner charity. Rita-Clare established the organization MYST: Maritime Youth Standing Together and connected with the all-volunteer, Ohio-based group called African Sky. Starting with the initial $77.12investment, Rita-Clare and her team of 30 peers have now raised $13,500 to build a brand new school in Mali. Rita-Clare is proud of their accomplishment, and that it is all youth-driven and that she has introduced philanthropy to Canadian youth who never imagined the impact they could all have.