Enactus Saint Mary’s students on site at a Square Roots community market
For more than 10 years, Square Roots has given Saint Mary’s University students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience running a real business while making an impact in communities across Nova Scotia.
Founded in 2016 by two Saint Mary’s alumni, Mitch Harrison BComm’17 and Ross Arsenault BComm’18 MTEI’20, Square Roots is a program dedicated to reducing food waste and creating affordable access to fruits and vegetables through community markets. Each year, two Saint Mary's students serve as project managers and bring together a team to build on the previous year, bringing their own experience and ideas to the business.
Nathan and Leah review the Square Roots website
Nathan Crowell was inspired to get involved with Square Roots after seeing the impact student leaders created through Enactus Saint Mary’s. For Leah McNamara, the connection was even closer to home.
“I got to see all the amazing work that’s happening in each of our communities across Nova Scotia,” Leah shared. “Even just five minutes away from my house, we have a Square Roots location, so getting to see that every few weeks really inspired me to get involved myself here at SMU.”
That hands-on experience has also become an extension of what students are learning in the classroom.
Both Leah and Nathan are Bachelor of Commerce students at Saint Mary’s, and their experience with Square Roots and Enactus has given them the chance to put what they learn in the classroom into practice. By working on a real business, they’ve seen how concepts from their Commerce courses apply outside the classroom.
Square Roots is one way students involved with Enactus Saint Mary’s can gain real-world business experience while working on projects that create meaningful impact. For the students managing Square Roots, the opportunity is about more than running a business; it’s about learning by doing and continuing a project that has been passed down by Saint Mary’s students.
Want to get involved? Square Roots is looking for community managers and volunteers. You can also join Enactus Saint Mary’s to get involved with other projects like Square Roots. Email squareroots@enactussmu.ca to learn more or get involved!