National Engineering Month (NEM) is Canada’s annual celebration of engineering — a chance to showcase the profession and engage the next generation of engineers, including kids and youth (K-12).
The official kick off event for National Engineering Month will take place on March 3 through a webinar on Sharing Your Story to Inspire Kids to Explore Engineering, hosted by Engineers Canada. In this session, you’ll learn how to share your own engineering journey in ways that connect with kids (K-12) and spark their curiosity about the “E” in STEM. The session will cover insights from subject matter experts on what works when engaging youth, details on relevant initiatives underway including Explore Engineering and the Forward Engineering Collective, telling your story in a compelling, age-appropriate way that resonates with diverse students, and more.
We hope this webinar provides information to help you or your organization bring engineering to life for kids, with tools, examples, and a roadmap to get started.
Opening remarks: Jeanette Southwood, FCAE, FEC, LL.D. (honoris causa), ICD.D, P.Eng.,
Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs and Strategic Partnerships
Moderator: Kim Bouffard, B,Ed. – Manager, Belonging and Engagement
Panellists
Christopher Davidson, P.Eng.
Chris is an Environmental Engineer at WSP with 20+ years experience with water management and civil design. His projects have ranged from single-property flooding issues, to highway drainage inspections, to international mine development, to planning nuclear waste disposal. Chris has also supported natural stream design/restoration and climate change resilience through green infrastructure and the development of the LID Treatment Train Tool. He is active in engineering outreach, celebrating over a decade of K-12 classroom visits and events with Engineers of Tomorrow and local engineering chapters.
Isabel Deslauriers, B.Eng.
Isabel Deslauriers is the Director, Youth and volunteer engagement, at Let’s Talk Science, an organization dedicated to youth development through STEM. She oversees in-person and virtual youth programming including the Let’s Talk Science Outreach program and professional development for the post-secondary STEM students who volunteer through it. Working at Let's Talk Science has given her a passion for working in the not-for-profit industry and making sure that all audiences are served by STEM outreach. She was originally brought to this type of work as a volunteer while studying electrical engineering.
Rebecca White, B.A.Sc.
Rebecca White is passionate about unlocking the full potential of engineering outreach in Canada. As a young student who excelled in math and science but wasn’t sure how those interests could translate into a career, her perspective changed when she attended Science Quest — an engineering camp at Queen’s University in her hometown of Kingston. Surrounded by engineering student mentors and hands-on discovery, Rebecca fell in love with the field and returned year after year. Today, as CEO of Engineers of Tomorrow, Rebecca channels that same sense of curiosity and purpose into building national programs that connect engineers with classrooms across Canada. She believes that every engineer has the power to tell a story that changes a life — and her mission is to make sure those stories are heard.
Scott Compeau, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Scott Compeau is a highly accomplished leader in K-12 Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. He is currently the Director, Education & Innovation at BGC South East, where he manages an annual operations plan for STEM, Innovation/Entrepreneurship, Trades, Literacy, and general 21st-century skill development. From 2018 to 2023, he was the K-12 Engineering Education Outreach Manager at Queen's University where he developed a strategic plan, created a K-12 STEM learning ecosystem in the Kingston area, and secured funding to support the growth of STEM outreach initiatives. Compeau holds a Ph.D. in Education (Queen's University, 2021) with a thesis focused on K-12 STEM Learning Ecosystems and the role of university-based outreach units as knowledge brokers. His research interests include the functionality of multidisciplinary-partner education learning ecosystems.