TORONTO, Feb. 29, 2012 – York University President and Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri and PowerStream Board Chair and Town of Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti today announced a significant investment towards sustainable energy research and student awards for the Faculty of Environmental Studies at York University.

PowerStream has pledged a gift of $930,000 to support scholarship, research and student awards in the area of sustainable energy economics and innovation.

“We are pleased that PowerStream has made this significant investment at York University,” said President Shoukri. “This transformative gift will help continue to shape environmental studies by allowing our students the ability to focus on their studies and research, and faculty the opportunity to enhance their leadership in the field of sustainable energy.”

The donation is directed to the Sustainable Energy Initiative (SEI) in the Faculty of Environmental Studies. With this donation, York University will establish the PowerStream Chair in Sustainable Energy Economics, the PowerStream Sustainable Energy Innovation Fund, the PowerStream Graduate Awards in Sustainable Energy and the PowerStream Undergraduate Awards in Sustainable Energy. York University will also name a hall after PowerStream in its Health, Nursing & Environmental Studies (HNES) building.

"This donation directly aligns with PowerStream’s vision of being a socially responsible company committed to the environment and sustainable growth," said Mayor Scarpitti, "By investing in environmental education at York University we are helping to build a more forward thinking workforce that will help us meet Ontario’s socio-economic needs of the future, which includes graduating students who will one day work in our industry to champion the environmental initiatives of electricity distribution companies like PowerStream."

York University’s Sustainable Energy Initiative was established to support sustainable energy in Ontario through research, education, and partnerships between educational institutions, government agencies, non-governmental organizations as well as business and industry. More than a dozen faculty members and associated professionals involved in the initiative are educating the next cohort of sustainable energy practitioners to meet the demand created by the Ontario government’s Green Energy and Green Economy Act and by similar initiatives in other jurisdictions.

York University is a leading interdisciplinary research and teaching university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto – Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 55,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 250,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 10 faculties and 28 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges. York University is an autonomous, not-for-profit corporation. 

PowerStream is the second largest municipally-owned electricity distribution company in Ontario, providing service to more than 335,000 customers residing or owning a business in communities located immediately north of Toronto and in Central Ontario. The communities served include Alliston, Aurora, Barrie, Beeton, Bradford West Gwillimbury, Markham, Penetanguishene, Richmond Hill, Thornton, Tottenham and Vaughan. PowerStream is an incorporated entity, jointly owned by the City of Barrie, the City of Vaughan and the Town of Markham.

York U. has a media studio for double-ender interviews.

Media Contacts
Wallace Pidgeon, Director, Media Relations, York University, 416-736-2100 ext. 22091 wpidgeon@yorku.ca

Eric Fagen, Director, Corporate Communications, PowerStream Inc., 647-297-1273 eric.fagen@powerstream.ca