Thousands of students gather at event showcasing their ideas for future

About 3,400 students from across the province packed Saint John's Harbour Station on Thursday to share their business and community project ideas.

The free morning of activities kicked off My 150,one of New Brunswick's Canada 150 events.

Beyond the variety of youth speaking, Radio Radio, a Nova Scotia hip-hop band, performed and New Brunswick-born broadcaster comedian Candy Palmaterdelivered a speech.

"Today's idea is to get New Brunswick middle and high school students thinking differently about New Brunswick, and thinking more critically about their place within it, and how they might help to solve some of our problems," said Lisa Hrabluk, the organizer of the event.

Ideas from youth

Among the keynotes from youth was St. Stephen High School's. A group of students there are creating a documentary on plastic water bottles to encourage peopleto use tap water more.

"I think we really hope to get more schools involved in what we're trying to do," student Samuel Poirier said after the presentation.

"Get them excited in stopping using plastic water bottles, and we'd also like to see what other people have to offer in terms of changing New Brunswick."

Students atcole Samuel-de-Champlain in Saint John spoke about their PEVOM program, where students created micro-businesses to raise moneyfor a trip to Montreal.

Some students, like Hunter Carr, kept their businesses going after the program.

"I'm trying to make that bigger and expose the marketing all over," Carr said at My 150."So I've got some shirts for people and I want to try to give out shirts around the schools to get some better marketing, so people will buy my products. And that all started with PEVOM."

Students from coleAlaqsite'wGitpu, at Listuguj First Nation, talked about the experience of learning in a trilingual school.

You sometimes have to go to get what you need and then bring it back home.- Candy Palmater, broadcaster

"We realize everyone who came here today to celebrate NB 150,"Dalhia Methot said during her school's presentation. "As Indigenous people who came here and created land for a millennia, we're here to start a mutual discussion towards reconciliation."

She then quoted the late musician Gord Downie:"Let's not celebrate the last 150 years, let's celebrate our next 150 years."

Continuing the project

Hrabluk said the event kicks off a continuing project that will act as a news magazine for youth, also called My 150. It will tell stories similar to those shared during the gathering.

"These ideas, they run the gamut," she said."They're incredible policy ideas or they're environmental, and I think they're incredibly thoughtful. And what I really love is they're from all over, so every corner of the province they're ready."

The event ended with a speech from Candy Palmater, was born in Point la Nim, near Dalhousie.

She said she is slowly adding on to her mother's house in her hometown and enjoys long stretches in the province, but many young entrepreneurs will take what she calls "the hero's journey" out of New Brunswick.

"You sometimes have to go to get what you need and then bring it back home," Palmater said.

"Maybe you have to go to get your business degree somewhere else because maybe they don't have that in northern New Brunswick. But that doesn't mean you can't bring that back home and make something great happen with it."