This year’s winning Baxter Ambassadors are a diverse mix of students of different ages, backgrounds, and ambitions, but the one thing this group of graduates has in common is optimism. Something we all need a little more of right now.

The only program of its kind in Canada, the Baxter Student Ambassador Program (BSAP) identifies the very best emerging talent from travel, tourism, and hospitality programs across the country. Based on a combination of academic success, leadership skills, community involvement, and a mock interview, one student from each of this year’s 15 participating colleges and universities is selected as the winning Baxter Student Ambassador to represent their school.

Half-way through their education, a global pandemic stopped the tourism industry in its tracks, but this group of students remain undeterred. Many of our Ambassadors even see this downtime as an opportunity to make important changes to the things about travel that aren’t working, like travel’s impact on the environment.

Rachel Cohen, Baxter Ambassador from George Brown College asks, “The pandemic has subjected the entire umbrella of travel and tourism to pause, reset, and consider, what kind of future do we want to have and how do we want to rebuild?”