REGINA, Nov. 18 /CNW/ - Co-operators Life Insurance Company today hosted a forum for 35 students from five local high schools to kick off a new Youth Engagement in Sustainability (YES) initiative.

"At The Co-operators, we are very passionate about sustainability and want to instill that passion in young people," Co-operators Life Senior Vice President & Chief Operating Officer Kevin Daniel said. "We are confident that we will see some great project results from students in this first year of the YES initiative and that we will create a model for engaging youth in sustainability for many years to come."

Youth Engagement in Sustainability, or YES, is a unique initiative spearheaded by The Co-operators that engages youth in making their schools, homes, and communities more sustainable places to live, work and play. The Co-operators enlisted the International Centre of Sustainable Cities (ICSC) to help develop the program. During the 2009-10 school year, five participating high schools will complete a sustainability-based project in their school or community.

The forum is designed to equip students with the information and tools necessary for tackling sustainability projects. Topics included project management, applying for grants, enlisting support from others, and leadership development. Students pre-selected a project idea so they could directly apply their learning to their project during the forum.

Co-operators Life Insurance Company, with its head office in Regina, is a part of The Co-operators-a group of Canadian companies offering home, auto, life, group, travel, commercial and farm insurance, as well as investment products. The Co-operators Group Limited is a 100 per cent Canadian-owned co-operative with assets of more than CDN $7 billion. It is owned by a group of Canadian co-operatives, credit union centrals and like-minded organizations. The Co-operators is well known for its community involvement, and is listed among the 50 Best Employers in Canada.