Students from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation’s Harvey Redsky Memorial School have launched a Shoal Lake 40 merchandise line to raise awareness about their community’s role in Winnipeg’s drinking water. Grade 6-8 students designed reusable water bottles, tumblers, and stickers that feature QR codes leading to a website with information about the community’s history and the origin of Winnipeg’s drinking water. While the initiative was initially started to raise funds for a year end trip, students have continued the project to raise awareness about the origin of Winnipeg’s drinking water. The project has given students a way to develop their entrepreneurial skills, learn about money, and raise funds for the school’s Future Business Leaders Project. Red River College Polytechnic President Fred Meier said that the polytechnic has bought decals for each of its water refill stations. “The important part of that is making sure that every time our students, our staff and others are refilling the water, they understand what the source of the water is,” said Meier.
