The Engineers Canada Leadership Scholarship consists of eight scholarships of $4,000 each annually to provide financial assistance to undergraduate students in CEAB-accredited engineering programs. These scholarships are awarded to undergraduate engineering students returning in the fall who have completed one year of engineering studies and who demonstrate potential to be leaders in advancing engineering in Canada.
Meet the 2023 recipients of the Engineers Canada - Leadership Scholarship
- Badr Abbas
- Reeda Awan
- Kasey Burgess
- Sarah Cushnie
- Maria George
- Annalise Gignac
- Mi Kadouri
- Luke McCarvill
Badr Abbas
University of Toronto
Chemical Engineering (Minor in Bioengineering)
“After graduation, I hope to bring a new perspective to industry by practicing and advocating for empathetic engineering to create a just and sustainable future.”
Badr Abbas is passionate about community engagement and plans to use his engineering degree to find ways to reduce environmental impacts and fight against climate change. Abbas demonstrates his core values of growth and community in leadership roles that support his engineering community. As Outreach Director at Skule French-Speaking Society, a Calculus I TA, and an engineering education researcher that designed inquiry-based lab assignments for first year students, Abbas focusses on instilling a sense of confidence, teamwork, and community amongst engineering students. “My vision is to combine my engineering background with my passion for social justice to create transformative solutions to climate change,” Abbas says. “The world needs more empathetic engineers.”
Reeda Ali Awan
University of Toronto
Electrical Engineering
“You’re far stronger than you think you are, and capable of things beyond your greatest expectations.”
Reeda Awan, as a winning Team Canada athlete at the Panam games, is no stranger to working hard to achieve her goals. Awan has thrived in leadership roles, including a stint as President of the Women in Engineering society, which allowed her to implement new initiatives such as a cross-country Women in Engineering Student Society Conference. She has also volunteered in several outreach programs such as C_Wonder STEM Camps, Go Eng Girl, and Go Code Girl. Awan plans to continue challenging herself and to inspire other women to achieve their goals. “I want society to know that being an engineer doesn’t mean you have to fit into a certain stereotype and that having the mind of an engineer (creative, complex, passionate, and curious) can and will help enhance your life in many different ways,” Awan says. Awan is interested in working in the power industry once she has graduated and plans to tackle humanitarian issues related to energy security and infrastructure.
Kasey Burgess
University of Saskatchewan
Environmental Engineering
“We are often so scared to appear perfect but it is often when you delve outside of those comfort zones into unknown territory where you discover new skills, talents, and dreams.”
Kasey Burgess knew as soon as she started university that she was going to be involved in the engineering community. From a position as part of the first-year council in the Saskatoon Engineering Students Society (SESS), Burgess became President of SESS, leading through the turbulent COVID years. She focused on reaching out to students and helping them through the transition, as well as retaining institutional knowledge and connections. Burgess now uses her passion and skills to advocate for engineering students on the regional and national scale as President of the Western Engineering Students Societies Team (WESST) and the West Ambassador of the Canadian Federation of Engineering Students (CFES). Alongside her degree, Burgess is completing her Certificate for Sustainability and plans to advocate for engineers “to think beyond the build.” For her future plans, Burgess says “I want to be the type of engineer that values the opinions of the community and works to try and include them into the design. I want to be the kind of engineer that advocates for sustainability, diversity, and positive change to society.”
Sarah Cushnie
McMaster University
Integrated Biomedical Engineering and Health Sciences
“Engineering helps satisfy my innate curiosity and provides me with the tools to apply my learnings to real-world applications.”
Sarah Cushnie knows the value of reliable mentorship and has dedicated her time to giving back to her community. In her position as president of the McMaster Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) Society, Cushnie mentored a large team of students and hosted several academic, professional and social initiatives. Cushnie also volunteers as an iBioMed Ambassador, participating in events such as Design Like A Girl, a designation to inspire others to pursue engineering. Cushnie is inspired by the growth and passion she sees in her engineering community. Her goals after graduation involve embracing new technologies and decarbonization initiatives to create a transition to a carbon-neutral steel industry.
Maria George
University of Alberta
Electrical Engineering
“By addressing the intersectionality of today’s challenges, I believe promoting diversity will foster creative and lasting solutions.”
Maria George is passionate about supporting marginalized groups in engineering. From her first volunteer position at TeamUP! Science facilitating engineering workshops, Maria went on to establish the department of Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity, and Decolonization within the Engineering Students’ Society of the University of Alberta. Maria gives voice to intersectional gender equity at events such as the University of Calgary’s Sustainable Development Goals Summit and as a member of the Women’s Advocacy Committee for the City of Edmonton. "Finding a purpose (in my case, advancing equity and diversity in engineering), drove me to better my collaborative skills and expand my knowledge in pursuit of that mission," Maria says. After graduation, Maria plans to continue to foster inclusion and belonging, using her engineering degree to mend systemic inequities.
Annalise Gignac
University of Windsor
Mechanical Engineering
“Find causes and subjects that genuinely interest you, as this will boost your motivation and drive towards your objectives.”
Annalise Gignac is enthusiastic about engineering education and applying her engineering degree to innovating affordable and portable medical devices. Gignac has spent much of her time volunteering as a tutor for Children’s Aid Society, for Windsor SOS, and as a Peer Mentor for Outstanding scholars. Outside of her volunteering, Gignac thrives in leadership roles as the current President of the Engineering Society and former Co-president of Women in Engineering. She has also served on the Mechanical, Automotive and Materials Engineering Council. Her efforts to dedicate her time to volunteering, supporting outreach initiatives, and meeting the needs of her fellow students have won her several awards. “I aim to engineer equipment tailored to the specific needs of these communities, ultimately striving to provide the best possible healthcare services,” Gignac says, planning to make the most of her mechanical engineering degree in the future.
Mi Kadouri
York University
Mechanical Engineering
“Nothing worth doing is going to be easy.”
Mi Kadouri is focused on the future, where she plans to be a licensed P. Eng. working in bioengineering. Kadouri is extremely active within her engineering community, juggling her studies with various positions within Lassonde Engineering, including their recent Vice President of Communications, managing the society’s public relations committee, acting as production editor on the engineering student handbook, liaising for students at a variety of professional engineering conferences, and working with WiSE as well as an educator with the Centre for Sexual Violence, Support and Education. “All one needs to do is look around and actually pay attention to what is going on to see the needs of the community they are in and the communities around them, and then get involved,” Kadouri says. Kadouri exemplifies this idea by volunteering in several different organizations, including running a program called Knotty Knitters, which mobilizes and engages volunteer knitters from across the province to produce engineered prosthetic breast forms for cancer survivors. Following graduation, Kadouri plans to continue searching out opportunities to be a force of positive change in the engineering profession.
Luke McCarvill
University of Prince Edward Island
Sustainable Design Engineering
“Collaboration is so key to this degree and to this profession; engineering is not conducted in a silo. You must learn how to work with others and build up those around you.”
Luke McCarvill did not fully understand the possibilities of an engineering degree until he entered university. Once he saw the meaningful and practical applications, he switched from his chemistry program to sustainable design engineering and hasn’t looked back. McCarvill is very active in the engineering community, acting as the Bilingualism Commissioner when UPEI hosted the Atlantic Engineering Competition while working as Vice President for the Engineering Society. Due to his own experiences, McCarvill dedicates time to teach youth about engineering through initiatives such as organizing and instructing a weekly summer virtual coding club and teaching high school students about STEM at Shad UPEI as a program assistant. “I hope to one day combine my interests in politics and engineering,” McCarvill says, “and I hope to use my leadership skills to inspire more young people to learn more about the profession and consider studying engineering in university.”
Awards
